Why did I join? Well the short answer is, I went to college one night and I was getting some material for an assignment that was overdue. I popped in to see Father Fred Bliss and he said, “What are you doing next year?”
I said, “Well, I don’t know.”
What might you be doing?”
“I think I’ll go to the seminar.”
“Whyich one?”
“The Marists.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yeah.”
“Do you want an application form?”
“Yep.”
He started rummaging around for an application form.
I said, “Do you mind if I have a smoke?”
He had a packet of Pall Mall Filters sitting on his desk.
He said, “Go ahead, help yourself.”
So I took a cigarette and lit the wrong end. I lit the filter end.
I went home and told my parents and my dad said, “You’ll bloody well have to pull your socks up before they let you in!”
So the shortest answer is it was done in the spirit of the moment, but therre were other things. Ten of us went that year from st Pat’s Town, so it was the atmosphere.
Other reasons to go were more grounded in the way I was brought up: Irish Catholic. I had a number of relatives who were priests and religous. The story goes that at two weeks old I was being ooh-ed and arr-ed at by certains Sisters of Compassion, who still remind me of it! So that was there in the blood and in the roots.
The other thing was, I had good connections with some of the priests at St Pat’s and I was impressed by their community life. And when I had surgery and was on crutches for five months, these fellows were very good at picking me up, taking me to school and then home again. So there was this personal connection they made with me.
As far as alternatives when, I didn’t have any girlfriends. I was too shy to go down that track. I went on a blind date once and it was pretty appalling. Not from her side, but from mine. I certainly wasn’t mature, not for a long time. So that helped get me to the seminary too.
My first impressions of the place were of a community of fellows who were quite respectful with each other. There was acceptance by older fellows and friendships developed. The place was physically beautiful. I remember the first few mornings waking up with the fog at the base of the hill stretching across to Napier and I thought, ‘This is pretty nice. I could stay with this.’
Read more excerpts from On a Mission by:
Andrew Gunn
Dennis Farrelly
Chanel Houlahan
Merv Duffy
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