A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to Work Yesterday...
On Monday night, I fully intended to watch My Life in Ruins, (think My Big Fat Greek Wedding; just as funny) with my wife. For some reason, the service I wanted to download the movie from would not cooperate, and I was forced to find a different activity for the night. I ended up putting on paper (screen) some thoughts about/for Mormon women that had been swirling through my head for a long time.
The next morning I went to UNC-Chapel Hill, where I teach freshman English, and endured a thoroughly miserable presentation by a guest lecturer. At the end of class a girl who has spoken maybe twice the entire semester came up to me and said, "Mr. Hutchins, I help run a group on campus that is interested in women and religion, and I know you're Mormon, and I was wondering if you and your wife would be willing and able to come and speak to us next Monday night." Obviously she has never asked a returned missionary to do something like this, or she would have said, "Mr. Hutchins, I know that you're happy to talk about your church ad nauseum, but I need you to limit your remarks to an hour." At any rate, in the very moment that she asked me, I felt as though I understood why my movie download hadn't worked the night before.
You've heard me complain about the lack of a Mormon presence on college campuses; you know that I have strong positive feelings for Eve and all mothers; there was never any doubt as to whether I would accept my student's invitation. There is, however, a small problem. While I am Mormon, I am not a woman. My wife is both Mormon and a woman, to be sure, but she is only one woman--hardly a representative sample. So: if you are a Mormon woman, I NEED YOUR HELP. If you were asked to speak about your faith in relation to your gender, what would you say? Please respond (in the comments) by Saturday night if you can. Also--if you have a blog that attracts Mormon readers, would you kindly ask your female readership for their feedback and either send it to me by email or link to this post in your request?
My thanks--as always--for your time and your help.
The next morning I went to UNC-Chapel Hill, where I teach freshman English, and endured a thoroughly miserable presentation by a guest lecturer. At the end of class a girl who has spoken maybe twice the entire semester came up to me and said, "Mr. Hutchins, I help run a group on campus that is interested in women and religion, and I know you're Mormon, and I was wondering if you and your wife would be willing and able to come and speak to us next Monday night." Obviously she has never asked a returned missionary to do something like this, or she would have said, "Mr. Hutchins, I know that you're happy to talk about your church ad nauseum, but I need you to limit your remarks to an hour." At any rate, in the very moment that she asked me, I felt as though I understood why my movie download hadn't worked the night before.
You've heard me complain about the lack of a Mormon presence on college campuses; you know that I have strong positive feelings for Eve and all mothers; there was never any doubt as to whether I would accept my student's invitation. There is, however, a small problem. While I am Mormon, I am not a woman. My wife is both Mormon and a woman, to be sure, but she is only one woman--hardly a representative sample. So: if you are a Mormon woman, I NEED YOUR HELP. If you were asked to speak about your faith in relation to your gender, what would you say? Please respond (in the comments) by Saturday night if you can. Also--if you have a blog that attracts Mormon readers, would you kindly ask your female readership for their feedback and either send it to me by email or link to this post in your request?
My thanks--as always--for your time and your help.
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