Daddy meet the Quakers :S
My dad is coming to visit me next week :)
This is good as it means I get to see my dad, talk Norn Irish and let my dad treat me to the finest of New York's tourist industry. Yippee :)
I've decided I love being a tourist in New York. I'm still new enough to find new things and get excited by it, but I'm also more in the know than the average tourist. Firstly I know my way around the city now so I know where things are. I know to combine trips to central park with a look around Bloomingdales. I know where the best shops are and how to get there. I know how to get cheap theatre tickets and I know which cafes and restaurants are really good, and which are to be avoided. (Sadly I have learned this the hard way and would like to know how it is that I can travel to Eastern Europe and not get a dicky stomach episode, but in America I've had several?!).
I know how to cross the road - a feat in Manhattan where the traffic lights only stop oncoming traffic - traffic that wants to turn the corner will just drive around you. For a British person this is terrifying. I know how to hail a taxi - again, something that takes some getting used to! I know how the subway works - ok, ok, I accidentally took the wrong train the other week and ended up on Roosevelt island whereupon I met another Irish girl who had done the same thing - but for the most part, I'm pretty good on the subway. I'm not afraid of it, unlike my friend Paul, a big strapping lad who can pack away 24 oz of bright red, blood pouring out steak and yet looked mortified to hear that I ride the subway alone, even at night. Personally I think I prefer the subway to the taxi - some of those drivers are pretty terrifying.
I am now wondering whether or not to ask dad to come with me to the Quakers. I'd be interested to hear what he makes of it. To my knowledge, my dad has never been to a Quaker meeting. I dropped it into coversation a while ago that I'd just got back from the Quaker meeting - so I have hinted. But I've yet to say, 'Hey dad, I've joined the Quakers.'
I think he knows I'm more liberal than I used to be. Just over a year ago we were driving together and there was a program on the radio about gay bishops and I asked my dad what he thought and he sort of shrugged and said, 'Well, live and let live I guess'. I replied, 'Oh I'm an avid supporter - gay bishops, gay marriages, the lot. Its about time, the church is so backward!' But my dad and I don't tend to discuss religion.
This shall be fun. I wonder if he'll want to come with me - I won't push it if he doesn't, but I'll be curious to see if he's interested enough to come and what he makes of it if he does.
posted by Ruthie @ 6:44 PM
4 comments
4 Comments:
People do surprise us sometimes. I'll never forget my wedding...it was kind of a crazy mish-mash of things...but mostly Quaker in tone (but held in a methodist church, mainly because that was the only place large enough for our families and friends)...My sister-in-law's uncle, a Quaker minister from Iowa, presided. We wrote our vows, the minister read letters we had written (because we had a long-distance relationship for a number of years) and I of course insisted on a silent meeting in the middle of the ceremony. My father-in-law, a staunch Irish Catholic, was very skeptical about the whole Quaker thing, it was hard enough that his son was marrying a flaky artist! But, I explained the whole thing to him, that during the quiet if one felt moved to speak, one would rise in the silence and share with the group his thoughts and feelings. We weren't sure how the whole thing would go...but in the end he surprised us all and was the only individual to stand during the quiet and welcome me into the family. It was a beautiful thing, and I'm sure a difficult thing for someone standing un unfamiliar ground. So, give your dad the chance to surprise you!
That's a lovely story Melissa & it was very kind and brave of your father-in-law to speak!
I'm not in the least bit worried about bringing my dad to a Quaker meeting - he's very open minded so at worst he'll find it a tad odd and bemuse himself at my latest adventure :)
I am just wondering whether now is a good time to invite him and what he will make of it!
Thee knows wee will be gentle with him : ) truely... and welcoming... which First day might he be coming, today or next week, or mid week?
lor
I'm thinking N.I. wee instead of we... Jeekis... not thy wee father... we the Quakers...
lor
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