Saturday, September 13, 2014

Large Families and Stuff

This morning while standing in line at a local fruit and veggie co-op I had an incredibly enlightening conversation.  Or not.  It just drove home what I already knew actually!  We are blessed in Helena to have many like-minded Catholic families that we count among our friends.  This being said, our kiddos consider the average American family with 1.87 children the anomaly, not us.  Since I had a baby in tow it opened up a conversation with the women around me.  One individual asked if this was my first. Shannon is always telling me that I assume the worst, so this time I chose to believe she only asked  because I look so young!  When I stated it was our eighth, she asked me what the age difference was between the oldest and youngest. By this time more people were turning to get in on the conversation.  When she learned our oldest was in college, she turned up the heat on her interrogation. 

Now, I must interject that I like to know as much about people as the next person and have been horribly guilty of interrogating acquaintances into discomfort a time or two.  This was definitely just punishment.  

"Where did she graduate from highschool?" 

"Heh, heh.  We homeschool," I replied.  I should have told her that it was Seton College Prep School and the conversation would have probably ended.  

This devolved into a discussion about larger families and how the olders help care for the youngers as if this robs them of their childhood.  Frankly, I believe that's one of the problems in society today. We remain in a perpetual state of childhood, never rising above the state of adolescence.  

Now more people had drawn in close to witness this spectacle that had sprouted a second head in their presence, "Where is your daughter going to college?" another asked.  

"Carroll," I smiled.

"Is she living in the dorms?"

Then, I lied, "Yes, she's living in the dorms." 

"Oh, what a marvelous experience for her!"
 
"They learn so much in the dorms," another lady chimed in that, from her appearance, had learned a lot from college life.

At this point I should have just smiled and nodded, but no, "They sure do learn a lot, for better or worse.  She probably didn't need to learn the details of the marijuana pen, but, yeah, it's been a marvelous experience."  

Abrupt change of conversation, "Oh! Look at the puppy!"  

Mind you, not one person had peeked at Max, but a dog, oh my! Have I mentioned how I really don't like dogs?  It's mostly because people think their dogs equally as important as people.  And they slobber. At this moment, however, I was delighted to see the mutt, just for a change of focus.  

After the dog left, the conversation resumed, darn it.  This time I did choose to stand silently with a smile on my face.  But then the most vocal individual said matter-of-factly, "Many of my children's friends came from families of three or four, you know, larger families like yours." 

And I couldn't resist, "Right. Three. Eight.  What's the difference?"  BUT, to my credit, I wore a genuine smile.  How lost we are, but how blessed I am to know first-hand the joys of having this at-times-chaotic crew surrounding me.  It's crazy to be sure.  Sometimes I'd like to quit my job.  But at the end of the day all that really matters is that these eight kiddos grow to know, love and serve Him. By the grace of God, they will infuse a new generation with something more than what we have now, breathing life into those they come into contact with, as I so often fail to do!  


                  An evening with cousins at a local motel, courtesy of Grams ~ 







2 comments:

  1. You're so smooth when it comes to these situations. I don't know how you do it, but I'm sure your eight have given you plenty of patience-practice! Way to be strong in your faith and your family! loveyoumeanit....

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  2. Excellent read ! Cool as a cucumber in my book- if it were me I'm sure I would have gotten snotty and defensive. Well done. Maris

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