Hiding In Plain Sight

Cousin Earl had to ride to the county seat to pay his tax bill and what-not and he asked Uncle Bubba to ride along just to keep him company. Uncle Bubba hadn't seen much of Cousin Earl lately so he took him up on the invite. It was a beautiful sunny Spring day though a little chilly for the wind; after all, it was March. Cousin Earl parked in the lot across the street from the courthouse and as he stepped out of the car he left the keys with Uncle Bubba so he could listen to the radio while he waited. Uncle Bubba cracked open the window and heard voices as he noticed several small groups of people standing between cars and talking. There were young and old, little children and grandmas. It didn't take long for Uncle Bubba to realize that there was a lot of drama happening in that parking lot. Well, it made sense since folks were coming out of the courthouse and walking back to their vehicles. They were probably there fighting over split-ups, divorces, child custody and what have you; maybe some small claims stuff, sad stuff. Come on man, if you lie with dogs, you're bound to get fleas.


Beyond the angry gestures and foul language, across the street and right under the American flag was a black granite statue of the Ten Commandments. Uncle Bubba stared at them intently, with a twinkle in his eye as he thought about the political statement that the county made by placing them there; it felt good, it felt right. But then the irony of the tragedies that were happening around him struck his heart. If these hurt and harmed folks would only live by the words etched in that stone monument they wouldn't be standing there up to their eyeballs on such a beautiful Spring day. In Bubbie's view, the answer to most of the drama in their wretched lives was hiding right there in plain sight.