I can relate to that around the childfree stuff, although I am happy to report that things have improved on this front as I've gotten older. I still get the questions about whether I am going to regret not having children, but they seem less frequent now (or maybe I've just gotten so used to them I don't notice as much).
I've heard from a few Black co-workers in a couple of different workplaces about this happening to them. I'm not sure how common it is, as I've only seen it happen once. Still, it seems like an odd thing for someone to make up, so I assume it has been an issue for those who reported it happening to them.
Yep. One of my go-to lines when I don't have the option of walking away is, "I don't think that is an appropriate topic for the workplace."
Yep. That doesn't surprise me at all. I have had to have similar conversations with parents after which I was scolded by administrators. I don't think this sort of thing is helpful to the students at all.
Congrats on the new job! Hopefully, you will be able to avoid the topic. It can be difficult when one's co-workers frequently bring up their religious beliefs.
Funny you should mention college students who are utterly unprepared to face the future. I've had a couple of run-ins with students like this recently and was shocked by just how helpless they seemed. Things as simple as requesting to meet with someone, asking for a letter of recommendation, or visiting an office on campus that was there to assist them were beyond what they were able to do. I talked them through how to approach these things but made it clear that I was not going to do any of them for them. It really makes me wonder what their parents have been doing all these years.
For me, some of it had to do with the fact that the hour or two I was sitting there meant that I was missing out on other things I would have rather been doing. This wasn't common because most of my friends would be stuck in different churches at similar times, but I can sure remember the times when sitting in church meant that I was missing some real fun.
Right. Some probably do find life too scary to face honestly. My guess is that others have been told this sort of thing their whole lives and aren't quite ready to run the risk of finding out what such a life might be like.
I assume Dorian was all part of their god's plan. Those affected by it probably deserved what they got because...sin or something. If Christianity wasn't nearly immune to tragedies, I think it would have faded away long ago.
You know, that Onward Christian Soldiers one always struck me as bizarre too. It made me wonder who we were going off to fight and why. I can also relate to the image of standing up mid-sermon and screaming "bullshit." I became preoccupied with the fear that I might lose control and do that.
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