Assumption

Irene Kelly is a gifted singer and songwriter whom I have known – only from a distance – for 20 years. Our paths crossed unexpectedly yesterday when I happened upon Irene and her two beautiful daughters at a fund-raising event on the lawn of my church. For reasons that are unimportant our brief conversation led us to the fact that we had recently become ‘Friends’ on the Internet site, Facebook. I told Irene that I had become frustrated with Facebook and would soon ‘logout forever’ because what was once a fun and friendly social site has become another portal for individuals to spew their political/social issue bile. In response to my comment Irene said something unusual. She said, ‘They assume.’ I must have given her a curious look, so she continued: ‘People assume that because I’m a folk-singer I must think a certain way.’ With a handful of simple words Irene had just expressed the essence of my afore-mentioned frustration. ‘People assume.’ As Irene and her daughters drove away I noticed a political bumper sticker one seldom sees on Facebook. It’s funny - I assumed I was the only conservative in the music business.