Judy was one bright cookie, she maxed every National Test she was given. But her grades were bad. Judy was a nurd, she was not driven to study or to work, passing was good enough. But she sought out human interaction, she was never really good at it and most kids still ignored her unless something was wrong with them, like me. She befriended the handicapped probably because she was handicapped in her own way, never stop talking, tolerating but not getting overly involved in anyone, yet seeking for someone to listen to her non stop talking. Maybe it was because she did not have the closeness of a mother or Grandmother but she had a trustworthy father that she sought out lots of adult friends. We even would stop at the 7th grade teachers home to talk to him and his wife. He had been her teacher in I think sixth grade and he had helped her settle down and feel more accepted.
Well, she dragged me through multiple churches in a week. We belonged to youth groups and she talked to every adult who would listen to her, especially the preachers, sunday school teachers, and youth group leaders. I was exposed to a lot of concepts about God and love and the goodness of people. She dragged me to church camp. I was not yet able to socialize a lot with peers but I brought a Religion Made Simple book and I would read enough to make out the religious arguments of the ages and I would confront the teachers with them. It was a great learning experience for me even if they were a bit irritated at me. She also dragged me though YWCA camps. Before camp I had hid Good Earth under my pillow and struggled each night alone through it over months, but I understood the book well and its concepts. A particular camp counselor was my hero, and when I found out that she had read the book I began to question her about the concepts she had learned and wanted to discuss them. I was crushed when she said she enjoyed reading the book but she had no universal concepts and so had nothing to say. I was shocked that she and others did not think any deeper. It was a set back but I knew some adults had more depth. I did not yet realize that my thinking had advanced beyond the average for my age and for many adults and that that could be an advantage. I found it as a dead end, where was I to go or do if trivia was the center of conversation, I could remember concepts but not trivia.
I decided I wanted to learn to study and catch up on the academic scene. What a rude awakening.
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