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From: Jerrie Shepard Matney
Date: 10/21/03
Time: 12:23:52 AM
Remote Name: 67.75.63.12
Don, THANK-YOU! THANK-YOU! THANK-YOU! I can't tell you what an absolute joy it was to find another pastor who stutters - and who is still preaching! I have looked high and low, and have not found any others. Reading your article just made my day! So much of what you wrote was exactly how I feel. No one knows why I stutter either, and I've only been doing it for a few years. I am still struggling with acceptance. I also play with word order and substitute, as well as move around a lot - don't stay in the pulpit much. It has certainly made me a more creative preacher! I really identified with your comment about the "capricious nature" of stutterig. Just when you think you've identified a pattern, it changes. How very true! And so annoying! Your list of emotions was so much like my own - it felt so good to find a fellow traveller, and someone who understands what it is like to deal with this Sunday after Sunday. A couple differences - you said you see it as an alien thing inside you - I see it as an attack from outside. I am also very fluent in conversation. It is formal settings, public speaking, large groups, etc. that challenge me. I would welcome the opportunity to correspond with you further, and to meet (via email) other pastors who stutter. jsmat1@juno.com. Thanks again!