Peakah's Provocations...

My father in law is one of my heros. His ability to captivate while telling a story is like no other. While text does not convey the bass of his voice, nor the childlike chuckle that sneaks between the pregnant pauses, it does convey the strength of character that is conveyed each and every day he walks the Earth.

This is a recent email that reminds me to watch for those cubic centimeters of chance that open right before our eyes that can have eternal effects.

I have been in and out of more airports than I care to remember, sometimes going to a city or just changing planes for my final destination. The ones I dislike the most are LaGuardia, Chicago and Newark because they not only strike me as rundown and dirty, but that they also seem to represent the poeple you see coming and going.

I remember the days when you went on a plane somewhere you dressed up a bit but now its like the Trailways bus people from Nogales have discovered air travel. They come dressed and sometimes un-dressed in clothing more at home at a rock concert or hippy reunion iin Golden Gate park. What set me over the edge last night in Chicago wasn't so much the way a young girl was dressed, it was her language.

I was at the gate and talking to a young mother who had a five year old girl and a grandma who was helping a toddler to walk with the assistance of patient hands and bent back, when a girl of about 20 sat down across the isle. She got on her phone and even with my diminneshed hearing ability, I could hear every word and the profanity that came from her was simply shocking. She would have put my old army drill intructor to shame with her obsene commentary and filthy descriptions. After several minutes I just couldn't take it anymore, especially with the looks on the faces of those sitting around who hadn't yet found a place to move away.

So I stood up and yelled at her "Enough" and told her we would not sit here and have her obcene and filthy mouth continue to contaminate our airspace. I told her if she didn't stop immediately, I would find a Chicago Police officer to take her away and explain the laws of public decency. Peggy has always told me my voice carries a long way and I suddenly noticed that the terminal was very quiet, even the arrival/departure announcements had stopped and everyone was looking at me standing there shaking my finger at this girl. She got up very redfaced and left the gate area, almost at a dead run and the area erupted into applause. I think that even made her run faster. The lady with the little girl got up and came over and put her hand on my cheek and thanked me for doing something she wanted to do but didn't have the courage. Other people also made similar comments and I told them I had raised six kids and although they were as different from each other as could be, none of them would even think of using that kind of language in private, much less in public. When I see young people like that girl, I wonder just where they come from and then I thank God just one more time for mine.