I was raised Catholic. My family attended a very unconventional church, however. It met in the band room of a high school. It was very relaxed. We sat in folding chairs and wore jeans. We sang to guitar and flute music. One of the members baked the bread we took for communion. I loved this church and the people who attended. It was so much more about the community than the rituals. After my parents divorced, we only attended on weekends we were with our father. When he was transferred out of the country for his job, we stopped going altogether.
I tried attending other Catholic churches, but they just weren't as fulfilling for me. I have worked hard to develop a relationship with a Higher Power with whom I am comfortable. For me, there is a big difference between religion and spirituality, and I stay connected to a God of my understanding today mostly through nature.
I did make sure my son was exposed to the Catholic Church while he was growing up. He was baptized, received communion, and was confirmed. I took him to church, while not regularly, but often. My reasoning at the time, even though I was cerrtainly not the best Catholic role model, was that I at least wanted him to have a background-a place to start in the development of his own relationship with God.