Interrupting a Prayer Under a Streetlight

Dear Diary:

As I was walking down Lexington just south of East 96th Street one recent Sunday evening, I noticed a man kneeling on one knee, his head bent. Thinking he had fallen or was ill, I asked him if he were all right. He said, “Yes.”

Then I asked him if he needed help. Suddenly he screamed at me, “GO AWAY!” I did.

When I turned up East 94th Street, I saw that he was right behind me. I was not frightened, as I had just passed a building whose doorman was standing outside watching.

The man caught up to me and said: “Miss, miss, I just want to apologize to you. Everyone always asks me the same thing. I was just praying and trying not to be conspicuous.”

Not conspicuous? On Lexington Avenue under a streetlight?

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