Locker Room Language at Bay Front Park.
We usually chit-chat for a few minutes about what we had done the day before, or about our plans for the day.
Bart doesn't hold back on any topic under the sun. On some days this is entertaining, on others it is wearying, (depending on which side I have gotten out of the bed).
On Tuesday (10th) he was downright offensive.
He started his screed by saying "Yesterday I called a woman a c..t".
His tale was all about a disagreement he'd had with a stranger about who was next in line at the drive-up desks at a local bank. They "had words", which was when he said (full volume), "you are a c..t").
Why was he telling us this? I turned my back to him and gazed out into the bay, wanting to say something, but chickening out.
He asked " Father, do I get absolution for telling you this?" "No", I said, "I want you to stew on this for 24 hours".
In truth it was I who was stewing all day Tuesday. "Why", I wondered, "had I been a coward? "Should I raise the matter with him on Wednesday, or let it go?"
I had determined to talk with him about this, but I didn't want to embarrass him in from of Shirley.
Bart gave me no choice this morning. In his first sentence, he referred back to the previous day's conversation, and used the "C" word again.
This was my day not to hold back. I told him that I did not like the word, and that I found it very offensive, He countered that it had been the first word in his mind.
I said that the woman driver could have been my sister or my cousin. He said that my cousin would not have driven badly.
Shirley shifted on her feet and tried to change the subject. I bad them goodbye. He called out "so do I get absolution for that?"
"Absolution in this case" I said, "is not a matter for me. You'll have to raise it with your own Pastor Faustus at St. Martha's Church".
Comments
Post a Comment