I woke up from a dream this morning and it got me wondering.
I was leaving Numonohi and was talking to one of my fellow MKs and saying why didn't we have a drink together to celebrate the transition from childhood into whatever lay beyond.
Which got me to thinking about all the milestones in life that run through our cultures and stages of life. Then I realised how many I'd missed. So I thought, why not start a thread about it, it can be funny, reflective or whatever the direction takes us (and don't we know from experience what interesting places we do go
)I did turn up for my birth, I don't remember it, but apparently I was there. I haven't turned up for my funeral yet and I plan on being "The Very Late" one for that one, or possibly avoiding it altogether.
I remember my first day at school and even a few events before that. And I remember the shock of arriving at boot camp.
I never actually graduated, I switched to correspondence at Numonohi. Anyway the thought of me in a blue gown trying to balance a funny hat on my head while marching up the aisle to Elgars Pomp and Circumstance then having to "give my testimony" was horrifying.
Of course I missed out on the road to Damascus experience, it was a more conversion by osmosis and then retreat in shock when we hit NTM.
I did manage to get married, but didn't get up the aisle then either, as went to a Registry office, being a particularly shy person and not wanting a lot of fuss. Must have liked the experience because I did it again a decade latter, this time with the lovely Mrs Bemused
.Then I forgot to have children, so have missed the whole birth experience. No hang on, I've been to five births as I did my obstetrics part of my nursing. Guess it is probably a bit different when it is your own and you don't get to take them home, or if you do that is the end of ones career and takes some serious explaining.
So saying, I'm probably going to miss out on the grandfather milestone.
I even managed to miss many memorable Christmases, as I donned my uniform and fed turkey through straws to those in Gods waiting room (or some mental state of oblivion as the case often was) and then grabbed a bit of cold turkey in a few minutes downtime, so enabling my colleagues with children to be at home for their festivities.
I never did have that first drink down the pub, due to a dodgy liver. But I did buy a house and get a mortgage.
And I travelled around the world in what is the Kiwi rite of passage "the Overseas Experience".
So to my long lost fellow MK, wherever you be, I raise my orange juice and toast your milestones.
Cheers
Continuing my perception of isolation. However, since I still hadn’t had my fill of “the cult” I continued in the mission’s Bible School. Those years are also a shadowy memory in my vault for good reason. Once I was out I moved around a bit with none of my family being in this country. The heroes in my story are my extended family and my godparents. They saved me. They taught me how to function in this world. Then my man came into my life. So lovely and normal. He saved me too. I was then ready to be a good mom and raise great people.