it's just too easy to come up with a pun, so i'm not going to.

i've been around a lot of nuns since i've been here, and i've decided to blog about them because nuns really are a very interesting breed of creature, and they fascinate me.
when i was younger i wanted to be a nun - it's because i loved the idea of being married to Jesus and entering into a life of service. of course that didn't materialize - mostly because i'm not catholic and i have certain theological disagreements with central points of the catholic doctrine, thus i could not become catholic or a nun.
being around nuns is pretty interesting though. it's sort of like the sound of music all the time. what's really weird is that no one here has seen the sound of music. we actually sand a few sound of music songs (my favourite things, and doe a deer) to some nuns in training (about 20 18-year-old girls who sand and danced for us and begged us for a song and dance in return - they liked the singing, the dancing disappointed).
i think in canada there seems to be this sense that being a nun is a very 'safe', tame profession. in some ways i suppose that may be true, as you give up a lot of your personal freedoms, like the choice to be where you want or study what you want - your superiours decide where they want to send you and what you will do. you have a ton of rules to follow, and (i'm reading this book about nuns and apparently) complete obedience to your superiors is pretty darn important too.
but here, where the choices available to many women are quite limited, and the pattern is often moving from being under the control of your father to being under the control of your husband and popping out babies all your days, the life of a nun is quite freeing and adventurous (not that i'm against marriage or having children!!).
you have to be ready to be sent anywhere in the world to do anything, and you are completely off your own agenda working for the good of others and could be sent to do anything. not only that but you have to give up so many things like personal ambitions, having children, getting married, having possessions... it's pretty wild!

i've really come to respect some of the nuns that i've been around and gotten to know (even though it remains that most of these nuns are CRAZY!!!)