Catholic Confession...

We were in Church, by the Confessionals, we were practising what to do and what to say. Each of us in my class took a turn going in and pretending to speak to the priest:


"Forgive me Father, for I have sinned..."


In a way it was like learning the script to a play

We each had lines

I got to ad lib half way

However, at this point there was a block

I stumbled across each time

"Sins" - I didn't know what to say.



I thought about the 10 commandments,

I hadn't murdered anyone

I didn't really know what adultery meant but I was almost 100% confident I wasn't involved in it.

I hadn't stolen anything

I wasn't greedy

Just what was I meant to say when the Priest expected me to confess to my sins?

I thought back over the day, the last week... longer

I found myself re-examining past events

for potential

I imagined scenes as a third person

I evaluated

At the end of the last lesson before the 'big' event, the teacher asked if anyone had any questions. My hand went up.

I was relieved when she said for all those with questions to come forward so that I didn't have to state mine publically.

I was able to explain and ask her for advice because I didn't know what to say and I was obviously expected to confess to something.

She made a few suggestions, but I hadn't done any of those things. In the end she said, "Make something up".

"Like what Miss?"

"Or ... you could say .... that you didn't go to Mass".



I think this maybe why the term 'Catch 22' meant something to me when I first heard it.