Hello, my name is Joseph B I am from America and have aspirations to become a monk, but not in a spot to be able to ordain yet. I have been studying Theravada for 2 years with an off and on meditation practice. Currently 25 years old and grew up in a Christian household far removed from any Buddhist communities. I discovered this forum from a post I think by @RobertK and have used this a better resource for information.
Mainly have read the suttas and have barely any knowledge of Pali, but it is on my list of things to learn. Have started to make it through Knowing and Seeing to improve my knowledge of more of the canon.