I'm offended! By a teacher!

[Anything in quotes below is from memory] 

A few weeks ago in the cafeteria, I overheard a teacher talking with some girls at the next table, 

     "Atheists really do believe, they just say they don't for the attention." 

Now, as a Catholic school student, I'm exposed to more religion than the average person, but I couldn't believe what I'd heard. I asked the teacher what he just had said. 

     "I don't think people are really atheists, they just say they are for the attention."

     "That's not true," I replied. I was getting offended by now, and I think he could tell.

     "I think it is," he said, as if his opinion were law. In four words he moved me from irked to pissed.

     "But it's not." Then came my witty argument, "If that were true, why are there secret atheists? I know people who I'm one of the only people who knows they're atheists. If they just wanted attention, why don't they tell people." Not my best argument, but it was a quick reply, and i think it got the point across. Then, he walked away without saying anything else. In his defense, I am a known troublemaker and atheist loudmouth.

     A few weeks later, I've written an email to him:

[Name Withheld]

     I don't know if you remember, but a few weeks ago I overheard you talking at lunch to the table next to mine. You'd said that atheists really do believe, but say they don't for attention. At first I was a bit  angry to hear that, but now I'm just curious: Why do you think that?  I am genuinely interested in your thoughts, and I'd really appreciate a reply. 

It's within his job description to answer questions like that, so I expect a reply. I'll be sure to post with any developments.

Well, crap, It's been a while.

Blogger tells me that it's been a year since my last post. I'm thinking of this as a re-launch, a new start, a new blog even. My past year, I have done barely anything toward the goals I laid out in this blog. I'll admit it, my grades are still crap, and I haven't accomplished much. I've failed so far. That's gonna change now.

Failure is inevitable. The trick, one I've never gotten the hang of, is to never let failure stop you. I've failed, I admit it, but now I must get up, brush myself off, and keep going. (That sounded trite. Maybe my writing is out of practice)

In addition to a renewed commitment to posting here, my writing will take a thematic turn. I have said that I'll write whatever I feel like, but I may try a new way of doing it. First, I'll start writing more short posts. I've been afraid of turning into a tumblr before, but I read a few blogs that mix short and long posts, and think I could do that, too. Second, as I become more open about my atheism, more posts on that topic will pop up (Though that means I won't be able to tell certain family members about my blog. Oh well.).

I want this blog to be a forum for it's readers, so please comment as much as you like. I'd love to hear from you. Keep an eye on my Facebook, Twitter, and Tumblr for updates. (Anyone know how to automate that? I'll poke around.)

Thanks for reading!