Ridicule

During this period, Rick seemed to want to advertise his life-style choice by wearing makeup and styling his hair in less than traditional fashion. At one point, I took Rick and Mike, his partner, to lunch to a local restaurant. We live in a very conservative area but I was shocked at the number of people who would point, laugh or whisper to their friends or co-workers. A waiter obviously went to the back of the restaurant and filled in his fellow workers because several at a time came out to take a peek at our table. I could understand why people stopped and looked. After all, Rick and Mike were going out of their way to call attention to themselves. However, I didn't understand why other people would point fingers, laugh and mock them. This intensified my hurt because it was one of my greatest fears was that Rick would become the victim of a hate crime and get beat up or killed.