The "Good Girl" Profile
"What does ‘grace’ mean?” My challenge reverberated across the scuffed island counter as my coworker riffled through an apparently-neglected corner of her brain. Her expression of curiosity and apprehension reminded me of the way she approached our bait shop’s cold, slimy minnows. Her sculpted eyebrows tightened around blue eyes that matched the dark lake across the highway. “You know, we talk about grace all the time at church. But… I really don’t know.” It was hour three of the late shift at the neighborhood gas station and general store. By now, chalking up my second summer here, I knew that this was the ideal time to take a short break. So when the younger girl I was working with brought up the topic of pastors and her church confirmation, I took the plunge into the deep end of conversation. Based on data I had compiled over previous shifts, Kelsey fit the profile of a stereotypical “good girl.” Near the very top of her class, partying and drugs wer...