Grace

One day this week, I accompanied a friend (who shall remain nameless) to traffic court for a minor accident citation. I had never been to traffic court before, and I hope to never return except to accompany other nameless friends. :)

However, I did enjoy my time there, even the hours of just waiting outside the courtrooms. What a great place for people-watching...and eaves-dropping. Lawyers and interns came out and discussed their cases with their clients (apparently no need for confidentiality), shady looking teenagers sulked around with their girlfriends, and nobody looked really excited to be there. Besides the interesting observation that most male lawyers in Chattanooga sport beards (I support this trend), the best part of the experience were the Groves--yes, this is their real name! I learned a lot about the this elderly couple, even though I never talked to them. Grace, the apparent traffic-law-violator with short, curly, old-lady hair, sat next to her very chatty husband with a white goatee, who was always discussing intently some subject or another with whoever ended up sitting next to him. (No one seemed to last too long, for some reason). They were simply fascinating to watch, and I could hardly wait to hear Grace's story in court.

Thankfully, we didn't have to wait long (after the scary traffic safety movie). Grace was the first one called, and she slowly shuffled her way to plead her case before the judge. It appeared that Grace had run a red light, and she tried to explain how it changed before she had time to react. Judge Judy (not her real name) asked if she had ever been cited before. "One time, 40 years ago, I got a ticket down in Florida for accidentally going the wrong direction on a one-way street, and I just had to pay $5.00." Judge Judy, with a look of compassion toward the unfortunate woman, told her she would dismiss it with six months of good behavior, and to just be careful with the red lights. "Oh, whenever I see a green light now, I slow down, I'm just so afraid I'll do it again..." Judge Judy told her not to cause an accident, just to be careful. Grace walked a way with a little bounce in her shuffle.

On the way out, Grace beckoned toward her husband that it was time to leave. I overheard him lament a little too loudly, "I'd kind of like to hear some of these cases..." as he reluctantly followed his wife out of the courtroom.