A Tale of Two Families
Thanksgiving, Easter and Christmas are the biggest holidays for my family. Every goes to my Grandparents house in Ohio, where the same 20 regulars stay, and an odd six who vary every year. The holidays are filled with laughter and joy, catching up with family about who Aunt Linda is marrying now or the new scandal in Amy’s life. Then we eat a huge meal where all the kids sit at one table and all the adults sit at another table, even my 32-year-old cousin sits with my 8-year-old cousin, it’s really quite a sight.
Next, we will go to see a movie and all of the parent will fight over who gets to pay for everyone. We fall asleep with hot chocolate, pillow fights, and sleeping bags, dreaming about a painless following Sunday.
Next morning, we are woken up by my grandmother’s voice, “Up! We have to go to church!”
I look at the clock; it’s 6:30 am, three and a half hours before mass starts. I try to roll over, but my Aunt Mary Ann is in my face, anticipating my every move. I’m dragged out of my sleeping bag and forced to put on a dress, as my hair is dramatically combed into two tight braids. I look back into the room; four of my cousins are still sleeping, smiling in their comfort.
Half of my family is up at daybreak, the other half goes to church at night. A clear divide begins in the family. What could have caused it?
Both my grandmother and my grandfather are widows. My grandfather had three girls and my grandmother had two boys and three girls. They were married when my mother was ten, and a huge family began; however, there was always a clear divide between my grandfather’s kids and my grandmother’s kids. My grandfather was Lutheran. He wanted to raise his children Lutheran so he sent them to Lutheran school and forced them to participate in a Lutheran community. My grandmother was catholic; she wanted the same for her kids. Therefore, even though, the families lived in the same house, they had completely different lives because of their religious beliefs.
I think the different religions have continued the divide in our family today. At my step-cousin’s wedding, my blood cousin and I sat with the organ player at dinner while my step cousins all sat in the middle of the reception. The family reunions remain separated, my step cousins will go to Vermont, and my blood cousins will go to the beach. There is hardly any mingling.
The different communities that religion provides allows a person to remain separated from diversity in a town, school, or even a family. In history, most towns revolved around the church for their community, like my grandparents. As a result, the two religions remain distant from each other and form a wall to form. I’m so relieved I live in a place where you don’t use church or synagogue as the only method for finding a community, now we can all get to know each other despite our religious differences. Maybe if my family did that, it could’ve been different.
Next, we will go to see a movie and all of the parent will fight over who gets to pay for everyone. We fall asleep with hot chocolate, pillow fights, and sleeping bags, dreaming about a painless following Sunday.
Next morning, we are woken up by my grandmother’s voice, “Up! We have to go to church!”
I look at the clock; it’s 6:30 am, three and a half hours before mass starts. I try to roll over, but my Aunt Mary Ann is in my face, anticipating my every move. I’m dragged out of my sleeping bag and forced to put on a dress, as my hair is dramatically combed into two tight braids. I look back into the room; four of my cousins are still sleeping, smiling in their comfort.
Half of my family is up at daybreak, the other half goes to church at night. A clear divide begins in the family. What could have caused it?
Both my grandmother and my grandfather are widows. My grandfather had three girls and my grandmother had two boys and three girls. They were married when my mother was ten, and a huge family began; however, there was always a clear divide between my grandfather’s kids and my grandmother’s kids. My grandfather was Lutheran. He wanted to raise his children Lutheran so he sent them to Lutheran school and forced them to participate in a Lutheran community. My grandmother was catholic; she wanted the same for her kids. Therefore, even though, the families lived in the same house, they had completely different lives because of their religious beliefs.
I think the different religions have continued the divide in our family today. At my step-cousin’s wedding, my blood cousin and I sat with the organ player at dinner while my step cousins all sat in the middle of the reception. The family reunions remain separated, my step cousins will go to Vermont, and my blood cousins will go to the beach. There is hardly any mingling.
The different communities that religion provides allows a person to remain separated from diversity in a town, school, or even a family. In history, most towns revolved around the church for their community, like my grandparents. As a result, the two religions remain distant from each other and form a wall to form. I’m so relieved I live in a place where you don’t use church or synagogue as the only method for finding a community, now we can all get to know each other despite our religious differences. Maybe if my family did that, it could’ve been different.
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