lent, day 13

i arrived in williston village to find a variety of police and firetrucks on north williston road next to the williston federated church.

i have no idea what was going on. i hoped some chucklehead hadn't done something or found something and now they were looking for me and i considered just going home and not protesting but i thought if they were going to be looking for me it would be best if i were easily found.

so i started my pass.

and i'd gotten just to the parsonage when a police vehicle pulled up in front of me.

i thought: oh, crap.

but the officer looked friendly, and when i said "hello, officer", he said "hi. i'm scott.", which i thought was a good way to start the conversation.

he asked about the assault and if i had come to the police and i explained to him that the assault itself happened outside this state and as the perpetrator himself let me know in less polite terms, if there was no penetration, it doesn't count.

i had to explain to officer scott that the perpetrator was the husband of a prominent committee member at the williston federated church and that the pastor involved int he coverup was joan newton o'gorman, because he wasn't clear on that point.

i had to explain that the assault itself (which i managed to stop) ad the stalking (which was limited in scope and is no longer happening) was far less damaging than the fear of losing the church if i spoke of what had happened, and that getting thrown out of the church when i spoke was the really damaging thing.

he seemed to understand.

he told me about victims' advocacy groups in this state and reminded me that if i needed anything from the police department,  i knew where their offices are.

when he went to pull out of his spot on the roadside we laughed because since he had stopped me in front of the parsonage i was not legally permitted to step onto the lawn to make room for him to pass.

"don't worry," he laughed.  "i'll drive right around you."

and i continued on my pass.

across from the library a pair of women, maybe mother and daughter, stopped me to ask about the sign.

so i told them the story and we talked a while.

they were outraged at what had happened to me at the church.

and i told them about the lilly foundation's subsidy of the choir's european vacation and the pastor-who-should-be-fired's upcoming sabbatical.

"can you afford a european vacation?" i asked. because i can't. and the lilly foundation is granting financial aid to choir members who can't.

they said that when they pass me on the road from now on they will honk and wave.

after all that, i thought i'd done enough for the day and didn't make a second pass, but on my way back to the car, at the intersection, somebody was honking and gesticulating wildly.

they were either very angry or very friendly, but quite frankly i couldn't tell which.