Moving a lot and life have me considering this challenge. There is something freeing in people not knowing much about me, but at the same time it is also lonely. When I come to church and I'm quiet, does anyone recognize that I'm hurting or do they just assume I'm a quiet person? Sometimes I want to be recognized and sometimes I want to fade into the background. There must be a medium somewhere.
Years ago I was the person known for having so many small children, for sewing all their clothes, and for volunteering at the preschool and church. That moved into being known as the person who still loved to cook and sew and volunteer but who also was a good leader for some ministries. I moved from that identity to the American in the village and then to the American who interned at the church.
Now I'm no longer the sole American, I'm not sure what my place in the church will be, I sew very little and we're not home most evenings before 8 pm so cooking is limited at best. I feel the things that defined me and that I was good at are no longer applicable. It's freeing--I have lots of time to think, write and read but it's lonely. Not only do others not know me, but I'm not sure I know myself.
Kevin Vanhoozer says, "To deny people a voice is to deny them their person hood." I suppose we all need to know what we want to say.
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