THOUGHT
FOR THE DAY
"Will
you come out and meet Alice?" Matthew said.
"She's working at the 'Oriflamme.'"
"All
right." Ronald kicked the laundry.
"Of
course, you know," Matthew said, "she isn't a
Catholic. She's a spiritualist."
"I
don't suppose she'd let it stand in her way if she wanted
to marry you."
"I
meant, from my point of view--"
"Yes,
I know what you meant."
"Well,
as a Catholic how do you feel about--"
Ronald
turned on him in a huge attack of irritation. "As a
Catholic I loathe all other Catholics."
"I
can well understand it. Don't shout for goodness'
sake--" Matthew said.
"And
I can't bear the Irish."
"I
won't stand for that," Matthew said.
"Don't
ask me," Ronald shouted, "how I feel about
things as a Catholic. To me, being a Catholic is part of
my human existence. I don't feel one way as a human being
and another as a Catholic."
--Muriel Spark, The
Bachelors
Kevin Michael Grace,
1.44 am, 10 March 2006►
