They bring their signs and Bibles and posters of dead babies to share with the patients both coming and going - and with passing motorists and walkers, like me.
As I approached them this morning the first lady, who was older, and I just exchanged greetings. The second descended upon me. Finally I told her that she and agreed on wanting to see no more abortions but we disagreed on how to go about this issue. I didn't explain further because my advocating that all women and girls have access to birth control so that no abortions would ever again be needed would not go over well with her. These folks do not believe in birth control.
It's interesting to me that they are from the Mary Magdalene church. Mary Magdalene was a close friend of Jesus. When they met she was demon possessed. Back at that time demon possession usually meant that a man had some sort of mental illness like schizophrenia but for women, it's usually been translated as meaning they were prostitutes. Whatever Mary Magdalene's problems were, Jesus healed them and they became close friends. By the way, Dave and I attend events at this neighborhood church and we have several friends who attend.
On the street this morning I wasn't so concerned with the woman's behavior and speech as I was with my own. I did okay until she said, "You know the Bible says all children are a blessing." This is one of those statements that make my head want to explode. I answered "All children should be a blessing but many are not to the people who have them."
So, on the way back home from Walgreen's where I bought night cream and hand cream and calcium soft gels, I was praying about how I might handle the inevitable exchange in front of the women's health center.
But they were engaged in heavy conversation with two young women who were just leaving the center and on the way to their cars.
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