After I gave my service on August 20, a few people asked me how I became a Kemetic – at least one in a bewildered tone that said, “How in the world did you end up here?” No worries. If you had told me 35 years ago that I would believe this, I would probably have laughed at you.

I think this happened in stages.

Stage One: Catholic School

Hang with me.

My parents were devoted Roman Catholics and sent me to Catholic schools for my first 12 years of schooling. When I was in third grade, an acting troupe came to my school and put on a play about the female pharaoh Hatshepsut, who reigned a little before Tutankhamen. They made it funny for us nine- year-olds: the ghost of Hatshepsut spoke like a ghost and said things like, “I am her ka” with arms outstretched like the actor was a zombie. It made an impression. (Somewhere in my house, I still have the mimeographed cheat sheet to the characters in the play.) And I remained hooked on ancient Egypt ever since.

Years later I would learn that my mother was also an Egyptophile. For those of you who believe in reincarnation and the possibility of choosing your parents…it makes me think.

Stage Two: The Brogan Museum

It was late 2005 and my husband and I had moved to the Tallahassee area five months earlier. In terms of religion, I had ended my Catholic phase years earlier and started an agnostic/atheist phase without really being conscious of it.

One day my husband says that the Mary Brogan Museum of Arts and Science was exhibiting artifacts from the tomb of King Tutankhamen. In reality they were reproductions because the originals had gone on tour years ago and been badly handled. (Not too long ago, I realized that my mother had seen the originals when they came through the Boston area in the early 1960s. She was living in that area while studying to be a nurse.)

To be continued next month.