Law & Order Pt. 2

Michelle sits beside me fidgeting like a child. I look through my paperwork pretending I am occupied so I don't reveal my nervousness at her proximity. What am I nervous about? Why would a tiny woman's presence cause such a strange response in me? I backtrack my mental processing to discover the problem.

In the short time I had to observe her, I had sized her up. I sat in the seat of the judge weighing the evidence at hand.

Exhibit A: Limited in speech and vocabulary.
Conclusion: Minimal education

Exhibit B: Unusual decay and discoloration of teeth, extremely thin, excessively fidgety, and aggressively bold.
Conclusion: Junkie

Exhibit C: She was getting evicted due to failure to pay rent yet she showed up to plead her case.
Conclusion: Victim mentality leading to a refusal to take personal responsibility for own actions.

The conclusions I drew from the evidence led me to my judgement: Michelle must be a selfish, lazy, lying, leech sucking the time and money of productive people in society and even lying about a sick grandson in order to feed her habit. What intelligent, upstanding citizen wouldn't feel uneasy sitting next to such a person!?

Pause: As I re-read my account in order to check for spelling and grammar errors, my cheeks burn with embarrassment. Maybe I shouldn't be so honest about my inner thoughts. This isn't a journal, it's a public blog! Do I really want people to know what goes on in my heart & mind? Maybe I'll skip my mental processes and go straight to the part that makes me look really saintly and compassionate. No, you might get the wrong idea about me. Anything good in me is a result of someone else's influence and I don't want to mislead you.

I snap out of my introspection when I hear my case being called. Michelle has left the courtroom having consented to the judgement against her, supposedly in a rush to the hospital. I approach the bench to receive the signed judgement forms and am happy to be on my way home after almost 3 hours sitting on a hard wooden bench.

As I walk down the hall towards the exit, I hear fast paced footsteps behind me. I move to the right to make room for them to pass and catch a glimpse of pink in my peripheral. Michelle. I slow my pace to let her pass and because the blisters on my feet are rubbing raw. The distance between us grows until she turns the corner out of sight and a foreign thought enters my mind, "What if you're wrong about her?"

Huh? Couldn't be, the evidence speaks for itself!

Another thought assaults me, "Are you sure you read the evidence correctly?"

Well, of course! I mean, I think... Well maybe there are some other explanations that would fit...

"Is it really your place to sit as judge anyway?"

Okay, I see your point. I don't have all the information and even if I did, I don't have the wisdom to make a proper judgement against someone else. I concede, lesson learned. My bad!

"Not so fast, the lesson isn't over yet."

What?

Okay, this entry is getting way too long. There's gonna have to be a third part. I promise I'll finish it.