The ME Interview

My friend Robin at AbFab Geek did a ME Interview this week, and I thought it sounded like fun. So I asked her to interview me and she sent me five questions. I answered them below. Yes, I know they are very wordy answers, but that's because Robin asked some really great, thought-provoking questions. Here they are!

1. You talk a lot about your faith journey as an adult. What were your church and religious experiences when you were young and how do you think they have influenced who you are today? I grew up in a mixed-faith home. Yes, my parents were both Christian, but Mom was Methodist and Dad was Presbyterian, [PC(USA)]. Serious, big-time Presbyterian. He was on the Presbytery, and an Elder of the church. A staunch WASP. He often preached and there was a time in the early eighties when he traveled to preach at different churches in the north Georgia mountains. I was along for some of those trips. Anyway, you'd think there wouldn't be much difference between Methodism and Presbyterianism. Don't kid yourself. In our house, there was a BIG difference. His and Hers. In the beginning, Mom mostly acquiesced to Dad's denomination. Until IT happened. I'm not sure what IT really was, other than the pastor at church took advantage of the congregation and many members left. My parents tried another Presbyterian church for a bit, but this was around the time that the fire had left their marriage too. After a while, Mom eventually made her home at a Methodist church and Dad tried to go with her but never really made the shift and was floating back to that original Presbyterian church (but the "bad" pastor had moved on by then). Meanwhile, I attended some Baptist services with my high school friends, and was born again at a Baptist youth group function. All this background is to say: I think my official childhood denomination was Heinz 57. Now what was your original question? Oh, yeah. I think all of this influenced me immensely. I am blessed to have the knowledge that God can be found anywhere, no matter what logo is on the church sign outside... and not always inside a church either. As an adult, that has translated in religious freedom for me. I have learned I am NOT tied to my parents' faith, and I've seen so many of my friends trying to come to terms with this same issue. They feel extreme guilt and confusion for not believing what their parents believe. My parents' struggle with integrating their faith in their marriage had some detrimental effects (for me AND their marriage), but it also showed me that faith is a personal choice. A path and a passion to aggressively pursue. My parents didn't just sit idly by, and that was a good lesson for me. I'm going to stop answering this question now. I think I could go on and on (and on...) because this is a great question with lots of answers about my personal history. Guess you'll have to buy my book one day for more of the story. Ha, ha. That brings us to the next question.

2. When you write your book, what genre do you think it will be? Oh, I do love you, Robin! Just the fact that you wrote "when" and not "if." Thank you, my friend. I pondered this question as I fell asleep last night. There are three books that I'd LOVE to be able to model. Two of them are obvious choices right now because I just finished reading them. They are Feathers From My Nest by Beth Moore and The Middle Place by Kelly Corrigan. (Go here for my review on them.) I think these two books could be classified as memoirs. The third book that came to mind as I fell asleep was one that I read when I worked in the ministry. It is The Country Called Life by Lou Guntzelman. It's a collection of essays on all kinds of random subjects: Lent, God, love, grief, happiness, silence, and even trees. Now, at the same moment that I write this answer, the same thoughts that I had when I started a blog are assaulting my mind again. Namely, WHO is going to want to read something I wrote?! There is a (loud) voice within me that I will have to work on answering (or silencing) before I can accomplish this dream. I guess I'll just have to develop my confidence until it out-shouts the critic within.

3. Were you crafty as a child and if so, what was your favorite thing to create? Oh, how I loved to paint. Until I realized I wasn't so good at putting what was in my head onto paper. I loved drawing too, when I was young-young. Like before age 10. I loved using puffy paint on shirts. (And now I've come full circle on that one.) And I really loved art class in elementary school, when it was more about being creative than learning artists' names and famous paintings. I loved using clay and firing random creations in the kiln. I still have the canoe, egg, and ashtray (doesn't everyone have one of those?) that I created. In middle school, I was one of those weirdos who liked woodshop. I would NEVER have admitted it back then, but I liked taking a board and making it into something useful. I thought the lathe was pretty cool too. Kind of mesmerizing. In college, I loved having a pledge daughter in my sorority and decorating things for her like a lap desk and her paddle. Once I graduated and got married, my creativity started really flowing with all the "extra time" I had on my hands (this was before kids, of course). I got my first scrapbook (thanks, Mary) and tried my hand at all kinds of crafts like basic painting, gold foil, decoupage, fabric transfers, and glass etching. I still have that passion to create and make something from nothing. When I'm in the zone and feeling "flow," I truly feel alive.

4. If you had written a note to yourself when you were sixteen years old to be opened by you on your last birthday, what is one thing you would have told yourself? (Or more than one thing if you would like.) I love that you asked this question! Every time I hear that song "Letter to Me" by Brad Paisley, I think of what I would say to myself. Although I'd rather write backwards instead of forwards like your question asks. But since you asked, here's what I imagine my cheeky 16-year-old self would have said to my 35-year-old self: "I hope by now you have found someone who really loves you. I hope you're skinny and drive a nice car. I hope you have three kids and that you're famous. Your kids are probably teenagers by now. Be nice to them and let them date the boys they want to date. Trust them more than Mom and Dad trust me. 35 is old, but I hope you're having fun!" Man, isn't she a sassy little brat? She thinks she's invincible, doesn't she? Little does she know what's coming down the pike. (Ever wonder where that saying comes from? I did, and here's what I found. Interesting...)

5. You used to work in news. What is the most shocking/funny story you can remember from there? The shocking comes to mind first, and here are three of them. One was the Valujet crash. I had nightmares about that for two weeks straight, because I was oversaturated with so many details from the AP wire. The second was when I worked in Kansas City and there was a flash flood that trapped some people on top of their cars. One man disappeared and police searched for his body for days. One of our photogs was there when the body was found downstream, and he got explicit video of it. I watched the tape, and was horrified by this awful drive in me to want to watch the tape. Ugh. The third thing that comes to mind is one of the catalysts for my departure from TV news. I was in a morning story meeting, and the assignment desk told us about a very young girl who had been raped overnight. They shared some of the details with us, and I was again horrified. This time, I couldn't believe we were sitting there discussing such gory details over coffee. And no one was flinching but me. That was my first sign that I had to get out of the biz. Now as for funny? Maybe the time that I brushed an anchor's hair out of his eyes while on a live shot out in the snow. Later, I was told that he wore a toupee. No wonder he about jumped out of his skin when my fingers went for his hair. Or how about the time I got to slide down a fire pole, a la Bridget Jones? Seriously. Or how every New Year's Eve, some people compiled a Dead List and took bets on who would croak in the coming year? Or the time I got to watch a U2 video being shot in downtown Kansas City? I loved the (small) perks that came with the job like free tickets, knowing some of the local celebrities, and all the characters I worked with. We had some great times. But I won't miss the anchors' egos, the crappy schedules, working every holiday, writing anchor packages, going live for the sake of going live, and doing the same time-waster stories over and over (the first baby born on Labor Day, the annual parades [too many drunks], how to safely shovel snow, etc.). Every now and then when major news breaks, I miss being able to read the AP alerts that came over the wire. I'm nosy that way. But the feeling is rare and fleeting, and I find myself thanking God that I'm out of the business for good. I hardly even watch the news anymore now, because it still leaves a bad taste in my mouth.

If you would like to participate in the ME interview, here are the rules.
1. If you want to be interviewed, leave me a comment that says "Interview me."
2. I will respond by emailing you 5 questions. (I get to choose the questions.)
3. Update your blog with the answers to the questions and let me know when you have posted it.
4. You will include this explanation and offer to interview someone else in the same post.
5. When others comment on your blog asking to be interviewed, you will ask them five questions.