Pious Amen

Please share a young person's view of the weekly responsibility of the Catholic faith in the Seventies. The confessional "booths" were priests in folding chairs in the high school gym. When our line arrived, we knelt behind whichever priest was without a supplicant. Youthful minds wandered and oh, those sinful sins! With a thankful nod to St. Pius X High School, now closed and only a memory.

L-R: Peggy, Rebecca, Marybeth, Sr. Teresa Urda

Lines
Lines
Everything
in
lines.
First class first, second class next,
Lines,
More lines.
          Alphabetical
          Academic
          Boy-girl
          Girl-boy
Ssh...SSH! Quiet, please!
Down the hall,
To the gym,
To confession...
To confession?
Kneeling,
Kneeling,
One    after    another
Quick
   headshift left,
              headshift right
To check...
Anybody listening?
"Bless me, Father, for I have sinned..."
(I can't believe Mary French-kissed!)
"...it has been six days since my last confession..."
(Look at how short Judy's uniform is!)
"...these are my sins..."
What do I say?
How much do I tell?
Will he be shocked?
My God, he's a priest!

The ordeal is over;
Obligation fulfilled.
"Three Hail Marys, one Our Father, and a Glory Be"
Genuflect
Cross myself
Return to
Lines
Lines
Whispering
Chattering
"Sins forgotten" lines.