It Was Good for Her
A Story about Peer Pressure
“You know, we just told her she needed to lighten up a little. Just a little. And we put a teensy bit of pressure on her, but I mean it was for her own good. And we told her that.”
They were sitting in one of the booths in the far corner of the dining hall. Saturday morning at 11am, it was nearly empty. Only the six of them from Club Swim and a few triathletes over by the salad bar, similarly partaking in a post-practice repast. And a few hungover “srat stars” who’d stumbled in looking for coffee and some toast. Quenton was leaning against the wall, watching his older sister recount the events of last night, when she and her housemates had hosted the team’s annual Girls’ Wine Night.
“We told her that we were worried about her. You know, she’s so uptight. She needs to relax. Everyone’s got to let go a little every once in a while. I mean, it’s no harm – it’s not like we were doing anything wrong. If you don’t just let your hair down every once in a while, I mean, you get repressed.”
“What did she do?” asked Quenton.
Cara answered this time. “Well, I asked if it was a religious thing or something. I said, ‘no shame, nothing wrong with that, we just wanted to know.’ But seriously, I mean if it was, I mean it’s so weird to live with that much shame about everything. I mean, you can’t.”