On religious FREEDOM at any age

I was raised in a militantly Catholic family who NEVER missed a Sunday or Holy Day for all of my years living at home. EVER. We even found a church to go to when we were on vacation. I always thought that was especially awful - because what I prayed for was that vacation meant vacation from CHURCH too. I also went to an all-girl Catholic school my whole life, getting kicked out when I told a priest that if I wanted to talk to God, I surely didn't need him to do it for me. (Well.... that and I was pregnant) Anyway, my Mother was very religious, and it struck me as ironic even as a little kid that we would go to church, then get the crap beat out of us, usually later the same day while being called god-damned shit faces on every downstroke. I digress. But I did mostly stop going to church at 18.

Last night I had a dream that Henry snuck off to a Catholic School without telling me and I didn't find out until he was about to graduate. His graduation finery was 3 hand drawn crayon crosses on a piece of paper, taped to the front of his t-shirt .... and I was mostly mad that I had forgotten my camera.

Tonight we are laying in bed eating Otter pops and watching The Simpson's. In this episode teaching evolution was banned in Springfield schools, after Flanders visited a museum evolution exhibit and pushed Mayor Quimby to outlaw Darwinism. After holding secret evolution classes, Lisa is arrested and retains a lawyer to help defend her beliefs in front of a judge. While Flanders is on the stand in court, Marge gave Homer a beer in the courtroom, and when he couldn't open it he began acting like an ape. The judge was swayed to believe that Homer in fact could have descended from an ape, case closed. Nelson called Flanders a "God-wad. Brilliant.

After it was over, Henry sat quietly contemplating for a moment or two and then said "Mummy, I think there IS a God and I think he is good. Can I start going to church with Laura"? I might have been silent a moment too long, pondering this religious freedom thing because he finally said "They have donuts there." "Coffee too?" I asked. "Probably!" Ahhh sold.