Two hours later Maria heard knocks on her door. It was a police officer. Sally's mother had found the phone. Sally had told her mother that she had been watching T.V. when Maria came to the house with the pay phone in the laundry bag, promising to come back and pick it up the next day. Maria told the police officer the truth. He took notes and told her that it would be investigated.
The next day it was all over school that Maria had stolen a pay phone, had taken it to Sally's house, and when she had gotten caught had blamed Sally. Maria told her version of the events to a few people who seemed to believe her but the general buzz around school was that she had tried to save her own neck by getting Sally in trouble.
Justice had been served in the end, but it had taken four months. All throughout those four months and even after, Sally continued to blame Maria. What had saved her were the words of Mrs. Contega, the old woman who liked to sit on her front steps and chain smoke while she watched the goings on in the neighborhood.
Mrs. Contega had seen Sally enter the house with the laundry bag and also seen Maria come by empty handed. Sally was put on juvenile probation, ordered to pay restitution and to do 50 hours of community service.
The following summer Maria and her parents traveled to San Francisco. It was 1977 and there was a ten-year anniversary celebration of the Summer of Love.
Maria's parents were freshmen students at Berkeley in 1962 when Maria was born. It was an unplanned and unexpected pregnancy but both of her parents had managed to complete college. After graduating they spent the summer of '67 in the Haight-Ashbury district with 5 year old Maria in tow.
The next day it was all over school that Maria had stolen a pay phone, had taken it to Sally's house, and when she had gotten caught had blamed Sally. Maria told her version of the events to a few people who seemed to believe her but the general buzz around school was that she had tried to save her own neck by getting Sally in trouble.
Justice had been served in the end, but it had taken four months. All throughout those four months and even after, Sally continued to blame Maria. What had saved her were the words of Mrs. Contega, the old woman who liked to sit on her front steps and chain smoke while she watched the goings on in the neighborhood.
Mrs. Contega had seen Sally enter the house with the laundry bag and also seen Maria come by empty handed. Sally was put on juvenile probation, ordered to pay restitution and to do 50 hours of community service.
The following summer Maria and her parents traveled to San Francisco. It was 1977 and there was a ten-year anniversary celebration of the Summer of Love.
Maria's parents were freshmen students at Berkeley in 1962 when Maria was born. It was an unplanned and unexpected pregnancy but both of her parents had managed to complete college. After graduating they spent the summer of '67 in the Haight-Ashbury district with 5 year old Maria in tow.
Comments
Post a Comment