S11.E00: Christmas Special

[susannah]

16 hours ago, Rootbeer said:

My aunt, who would've been about the same age as the nuns on the show, had a best friend from school who went into the convent.  They would get together for lunch sometimes and the stories they told were incredible.  It's hard to think of nuns having flirted with boys or having romances or drinking beer, but they certainly do.  My aunt and her friend used to hang out at the USO as teens and enjoyed flirting and dancing with the soldiers.  The nun actually had a former boyfriend who came to visit her in the convent before she took her vows begging her to not do it and to marry him instead.  He brought her a dozen red roses and she was mightily pissed that her Mother Superior ordered her to put them on the altar at the chapel rather than keep them for herself.  She also claimed to have a box full of letters under her bed written to her by soldiers off at war who'd met her at the USO.  She claimed the other sisters in the convent were going to be utterly shocked when she died and they discovered her life before the veil and 'how much I loved boys and beer'.  

Yeah, it's weird but some people think that nuns had to be born wearing their habits, and forget that they were actual people, with actual lives, and interests, etc!

[EllaWycliffe]

5 hours ago, susannah said:

Yeah, it's weird but some people think that nuns had to be born wearing their habits, and forget that they were actual people, with actual lives, and interests, etc!

In fairness, thats because until the church loosened up a bit, thats exactly what people were encouraged to think - that nuns usually were called at a very early age, and were the sweet little girls who entered their teen years as dutiful, religious teenagers who followed the rules and were chaste. Nuns weren't encouraged to talk about their pasts and they don't necessarily even keep their actual names from their prior lives. They're really not encouraged to spend a lot of time reminiscing on their time before the nunnery. 

[susannah]

3 hours ago, EllaWycliffe said:

In fairness, thats because until the church loosened up a bit, thats exactly what people were encouraged to think - that nuns usually were called at a very early age, and were the sweet little girls who entered their teen years as dutiful, religious teenagers who followed the rules and were chaste. Nuns weren't encouraged to talk about their pasts and they don't necessarily even keep their actual names from their prior lives. They're really not encouraged to spend a lot of time reminiscing on their time before the nunnery. 

But the people they grew up with would remember what they were like.

[susannah]

On 1/2/2022 at 7:57 PM, anna0852 said:

No, the TB family are the ones that are out of the picture. Heroin Mom showed in England in episode 9.6. She asked to see Mai but when Mai was shy and clung to Sheilagh the bio-mom got mad and refused to sign the adoption papers. Mai is stuck in foster limbo. The Turners want to adopt her but bio-mom won't agree. The social worker said they could go to court to challenge but clearly haven't yet.

Didn't the woman at the refugee organization that the Turners spoke to after May's mother refused to sign the adoption papers tell them that the courts would side with the mother? I believe it, even though the mother was a junkie who couldn't care for the girl, and she was in a stable home with a family who loved her.

[anna0852]

49 minutes ago, susannah said:

Didn't the woman at the refugee organization that the Turners spoke to after May's mother refused to sign the adoption papers tell them that the courts would side with the mother? I believe it, even though the mother was a junkie who couldn't care for the girl, and she was in a stable home with a family who loved her.

No, the social worker said the courts would likely favor the Turners.

[susannah]

2 hours ago, anna0852 said:

No, the social worker said the courts would likely favor the Turners.

I will have to rewatch that, since I seem to remember that they were pretty torn up after talking to the refugee worker, and I thought that was why. May's biological mother told them that they can be her guardians but they would never be her parents.

[EllaWycliffe]

As I recall, the mom was refusing the adoption at that time. But... she's since apparently disappeared with no contact so while I am sure thd show can and will contrive a custody issue in the future, realistically Mai is an abandoned child and lucky that her foster parents want to adopt her.

[Rootbeer]

On 1/5/2022 at 11:50 AM, susannah said:

But the people they grew up with would remember what they were like.

True, but having attended Catholic schools, I can vouch for the fact that most of us students were sure nuns hatched from the womb carrying rosary beads.  Back in the day when they still wore the wimple and veil, we used to speculate as to whether they shaved their heads-they don't.

My uncle dated a woman in high school who became a nun; although my father used to joke about it, my uncle played no role in her decision to take the veil.  The night before she entered, she, my uncle and a bunch of her friends got together and got drunk and she smoked a cigar which my uncle got for her as she wanted to try it.  

I have a friend who married a man whose sister is a cloistered nun.  That means she is in an order that stays in the convent 24/7, she also has a vow of silence.  They can speak to her on the phone at designated dates and times.  When my friend had her first child, they had to wait until the appointed time to let his sister hear the good news.  She gets a couple weeks vacation every year.  She comes home and my friend was shocked to see her wearing jeans and tee shirts and sandals.  She wanted to see movies, go out to restaurants, hear some rock music and have a few beers.  Like people do on vacation.  Then she goes back to her life of silent prayer.

[Clanstarling]

 

On 12/26/2021 at 9:04 AM, Nialla said:

My DVR didn't automatically catch it, so I had to set another timer for it.

Mine didn't either - though it recorded 2018 and 2019's shows. I finally watched it on the PBS App.

On 12/26/2021 at 6:42 PM, Blackie said:

I lost it when Phyllis started talking about Barbara. Also I liked that Phyllis doesn't necessarily believe in God but she is the first on to jump and start dancing to the choir in the church.

That was one of the most touching parts of the show. As for the dancing, there's dogma and there's good music. You don't need to believe to feel the spirit and beat.  I'm no believer, but I do love the lively spirituals.

On 12/27/2021 at 5:56 AM, dubbel zout said:

That's interesting. Do you know why that is? I don't understand why PBS cuts in the first place (well, I do, so they can play those Viking Cruises ads six times).

I'd much prefer real ads to those faux "we're not really an ad" ads.

On 12/27/2021 at 6:51 PM, Rootbeer said:

I stand corrected, the show did use animatronic babies for the thalidomide episodes.

https://www.radiotimes.com/tv/drama/how-call-the-midwife-filmed-thalidomide-birth-scenes/

I still think the addicted newborn last night was, for the close-ups anyway, a real infant.

Other than the pitch of the crying - which can be manufactured - I thought the baby looked very much like my 36 week old preemie. I think it was a real baby - shot carefully, and with sound augmentation.

On 12/30/2021 at 3:49 PM, Straycat80 said:

Oh darn,  my DVR didn’t record this. Is there anywhere I can watch it? Netflix? 

PBS has an app, in the event you don't want to watch it on the computer.

On 1/3/2022 at 4:18 PM, marceline said:

• Is it my imagination or is Vanessa Redgrave a.k.a. "Mature Jenny" having a tough time with the voiceover in this ep? Perhaps it's time to look at passing the torch to another "future" character.

I thought she sounded pretty rough too.

On 1/4/2022 at 1:56 AM, Daff said:

She actually said “Air Force Auxiliary.”

Which is a component of the RAF. For interested folk, here's the wiki link:

Auxiliary During WWII

 

Edited January 6, 2022 by Clanstarling

[ChelleGame]

On 1/4/2022 at 6:19 AM, Rootbeer said:

My aunt, who would've been about the same age as the nuns on the show, had a best friend from school who went into the convent.  They would get together for lunch sometimes and the stories they told were incredible.  It's hard to think of nuns having flirted with boys or having romances or drinking beer, but they certainly do.  My aunt and her friend used to hang out at the USO as teens and enjoyed flirting and dancing with the soldiers.  The nun actually had a former boyfriend who came to visit her in the convent before she took her vows begging her to not do it and to marry him instead.  He brought her a dozen red roses and she was mightily pissed that her Mother Superior ordered her to put them on the altar at the chapel rather than keep them for herself.  She also claimed to have a box full of letters under her bed written to her by soldiers off at war who'd met her at the USO.  She claimed the other sisters in the convent were going to be utterly shocked when she died and they discovered her life before the veil and 'how much I loved boys and beer'.  

What a great story. Thank you for sharing.

[susannah]

On 12/26/2021 at 4:47 AM, purist said:

ETA: That older woman who had four sons under 10 years old was so rude

It reminded me of the woman who had the Thalidomide baby who didn't live. She too had a bunch of boys who were driving her to distraction, "they egg each other on!" and she so wanted a baby girl, and this one was a girl. She was the poor woman St J found in the cafe drinking booze in her coffee when they were rounding all the pills up.

[Kristi800]

12 hours ago, susannah said:

That older woman who had four sons under 10 years old was so rude

I suppose she's used to having to shout to get heard above the loudness so isn't always the most polite! 

[susannah]

8 hours ago, Kristi800 said:

I suppose she's used to having to shout to get heard above the loudness so isn't always the most polite! 

 I am sure that is true!

[dcalley]

On 12/27/2021 at 2:14 PM, Kristi800 said:

I thought it kind of a strange conversation between Lucille & Phyllis about bridesmaids. "They're usually someone special - like a sister - beat, (basically) none of you is like a sister, but here are the pearls I took out of your drawer to remind you of a dear friend you lost...but you still won't be a bridesmaid..."

Yes, that stood out to me as odd, too. Lucille said "bridesmaids have to have meaning" or somesuch. OK then!

On 1/2/2022 at 10:46 PM, susannah said:

Didn't like Violet [...] scolding Reggie after Lucille let them know he was outside with them. He isn't six, and he was with friends.

But he snuck out alone in his PJs (thankfully with a coat and hat) without anyone knowing! It was just luck he ran into people he knew.

[susannah]

6 hours ago, dcalley said:

Yes, that stood out to me as odd, too. Lucille said "bridesmaids have to have meaning" or somesuch. OK then!

But he snuck out alone in his PJs (thankfully with a coat and hat) without anyone knowing! It was just luck he ran into people he knew.

I don't remember exactly, but it didn't seem like he had wandered far from the shop. Lucille and Cyrus ran into him, more like!

[Dr.OO7]

I loved this.

My favorite moment in a wedding ceremony is when the couple kneels at the altar for the blessing of the marriage, but you never see that depicted on TV (hell, TV leaves out a LOT of what happens in your average ceremony), so I was glad to see that moment for Lucille and Cyril.

[marypat57]

@Rootbeer

I loved some of your stories about “fun” nuns.  My friend told me a story about her aunt, who is a member of one of the local order of nuns.  My friend’s aunt loved to travel and go places with another nun.  The two sisters liked to go to one  of the local Native American casinos and spend a few dollars at some of the different activities.  My girlfriend’s dad said that the two women were “going off to perform charitable” work in the Native American community.  The two nuns also made several trips to Las Vegas.  
Just like your aunt’s friend, they enjoyed a good glass of wine, and the occasional bottle of beer.  My sister in law’s sister is a member of the same community, and they all enjoy serving the Lord joyfully, even though it’s not the same job they signed up for 50-60 years ago, or even more.

 

[Rootbeer]

On 3/18/2022 at 6:34 PM, marypat57 said:

@Rootbeer

I loved some of your stories about “fun” nuns.  My friend told me a story about her aunt, who is a member of one of the local order of nuns.  My friend’s aunt loved to travel and go places with another nun.  The two sisters liked to go to one  of the local Native American casinos and spend a few dollars at some of the different activities.  My girlfriend’s dad said that the two women were “going off to perform charitable” work in the Native American community.  The two nuns also made several trips to Las Vegas.  
Just like your aunt’s friend, they enjoyed a good glass of wine, and the occasional bottle of beer.  My sister in law’s sister is a member of the same community, and they all enjoy serving the Lord joyfully, even though it’s not the same job they signed up for 50-60 years ago, or even more.

 

Well, we know the Catholics like to gamble, hence, the weekly Bingo game!  My aunt's childhood friend also loved the casinos.  One of her brothers was a priest and he did, too as did her mom.  After their father died, they made several trips to Vegas with their mother on vacation.  This was back in the days when priests always wore collars and nuns habits with veils.  She said they really didn't have non-religious clothing, didn't need it in their daily lives.  On one of their trips, their mother opened her suitcase and pulled out regular clothes for both of them.  She felt it looked bad to be hanging with a nun and a priest in the casino playing Blackjack and wanted them to go incognito.

Edited March 20, 2022 by Rootbeer

[marypat57]

@Rootbeer

I remember that when I returned for my sophomore year of high school, that one of the orders of nuns that staffed our school had switched to a modified habit—shorter, knee length habits with simple veils.  If the individual sister wished to stay in the “old” habit, they could. 

We had two orders of nuns in our school.  One order wore white habits, the other wore black habits.  They had separate convents, one at each end of the school building.

Your aunt’s friend bringing “regular” clothing reminded me of the afternoon that Sister Julienne took off from her duties and went to the movie theater to see The Sound of Music. She looked different in her non-religious clothing.

[TVFAN]

Picking Shelagh to take over is very much in character for Sister Julienne.  I have always thought she viewed Shelagh as the closest thing to a daughter she would ever have, and the feeling is reciprocal.  Shelagh told Sister Julienne that Teddy was on the way before she even told her husband.  Sister Julienne confided in Shelagh when she feared she would be named mother superior, and she absolutely dotes on the Turner tots.  

Sister Julienne has always been able to rely on Shelagh in a pinch.  I understand the criticism that Sister Hilda has stayed the course as a nun and deserved the honor of organizing the celebration, but I also understand why Sister Julienne was concerned about Sister Hilda's judgment--it has not been all that long since Sister Hilda's alcohol fueled hen party.

[EllaWycliffe]

6 minutes ago, TVFAN said:

Sister Julienne has always been able to rely on Shelagh in a pinch.  I understand the criticism that Sister Hilda has stayed the course as a nun and deserved the honor of organizing the celebration, but I also understand why Sister Julienne was concerned about Sister Hilda's judgment--it has not been all that long since Sister Hilda's alcohol fueled hen party.

Sister Hilda is never going to learn to lead if she's never allowed. 

I love the relationship between Sister Julienne and Shelagh, I really do, but to me this is a leadership issue that Sister Julienne is failing at. Part of her job as a leader is to teach the youngling nuns how to step up and provide them opportunities to learn her role. She won't live forever. Sister Bernadette was the obvious choice to be her successor but Shelagh is no longer Sister Bernadette. Both Sister Hilda and Sister Francis have great potential but they need the opportunities for leadership more than Shelagh at this point.