A woman from a large company called me in crisis. She had been raped and although she did not talk about it, her colleagues knew. She wanted to kill herself because every time she walked into the coffee room, or where some were gathered, they would fall silent. The real battle begins away from gunfire, a criminal with a weapon and the mythology of heroism. The real battle begins in the quiet of suburban homes, often long after the event, in the mind of the survivor.
Today is the trial.
I have terrible flu. I want to go to church at 6.30am for Holy Communion. A friend gave me a rosary after the rape. I wore it continuously for the first three months afterward. A month ago I began wearing it again.