. . . But I am not Black so I kind of feel that I am meandering off topic on my own post. Still, this little story does happen to involve a Black woman, so, who knows? Whatevs.
Back last autumn, I was waiting on a ride in front of a little town center when I woman came up to me. She was standing practically at my knee and some other behaviors that I had noticed before gave me reason to believe that she had some low-level mental health issues that caused her to ignore certain social conventions. (Such as how close one should stand next to a total stranger.)
What she said to me certainly raised my eyebrows. "Black people are terrible!", or words to that effect. As noted above, she herself was Black, so I couldn't even draw forth the mighty sword of ally-ship and tolerance. Instead, I sat there and looked confused.
Turns out, the behavior that I had noted before was this woman trying to solicit a ride home from people in the little shopping center. At least one of the people who had refused her was Black, thus eliciting her comment.
When I learned why she was unhappy, I commented that trying to get a ride with a stranger was dangerous. I cut off her serene, confident response of, "I believe in God--" with a cheery, confident response of my own. "I don't!", I said with a perky smile.
Needless to say, she wasn't expecting that. With my gray hair pulled up under my hat, sitting there all plump in my Holly Hobbie dress, I look like Aunt Bea taking a break from grocery shopping on Main Street in Mayberry. Aunt Bea isn't supposed to be an unbeliever!
We exchanged a few other words but I can't describe her facial expression because she was hurrying away from me. Yep, this woman who was willing to risk catching a ride in a car with a complete stranger in an area of Baltimore County that is not as safe as Mayberry RFD, was afraid of a sweet old lady because she didn't believe in God.
It may not be very kindly and Aunt Bea of me, but I sort of enjoyed that little interaction. That poor woman certainly did not want to hear what I have to say about the Bible, even though I made a polite offer to explain everything that was wrong about it to her retreating back.
Good times.
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