here today?" I asked. "Did you want GreEN to provide guest lectures for your students?"
"Oh no," Lara said. "Scarlett and Angel had such interesting things to say about you when they got home last night. You can imagine Michaela's response. We just had to meet you. Tell us about your program."
I looked between them. Normally I was more than happy to talk about GreEN, but right now, I was far more curious about them. "Got home? Do they live with you?"
"Oh no," Lara said. "But we all live close together. We're a very tight family, and sharing dinners together is common. Tell us about GreEN."
"And we're very interested in hearing about your involvement," Elisabeth added. She hadn't taken her eyes off me the entire time we'd been talking, and her gaze was intent.
I launched into my standard spiel. It was clear they didn't need to be educated on the importance of conservation. I dare say Michaela especially could educate me in some areas. And so I talked about how GreEN sought to help educate the public.
"But your name is an acronym," Elisabeth said. "You're a network of some sort?"
"Yes," I said. "When some particular disaster strikes, we can mobilize our network of volunteers. We have a database of thousands of people we can call out."
"All here in Wisconsin?"
"Oh no, that's nationally. More locally we try to get people to engage in letter writing campaigns when important legislation is up for consideration."
"That seems very tame," Elisabeth pointed out. "Do you ever engage in more, oh, active fashions?"
"Are you asking whether we're eco terrorists?"
"Oh no," she replied quickly. "But perhaps you've chained yourself to trees or freed mink from a farm."
I'd done both of those and had the arrest records to prove it. "Our planet is important, and sometimes civil disobedience is the only way the silent majority can convince the politicians and corporate overlords to take notice."
Oops. I usually tried to sound sane. GreEN wasn't that type of organization, and I worried I'd just given the wrong impression.
"But that isn't what GreEN is about. We're not crackpots. We just care about our planet."
"Of course you're not crackpots," Michaela said. "We're all on the same side here."
"Exactly," I said.
"I find myself considering a donation," Lara said, "perhaps one somewhat larger than Scarlett's yesterday. I would love to know how you would spend my money, well, once it was your money. With so many organizations clamoring for donations, you can imagine I have to investigate them very carefully."
"I understand completely," I said. I spent another twenty minutes answering their questions. I'd never felt more expertly questioned, discounting that one visit with the FBI. But I hadn't done anything serious enough to warrant their continued attention, and eventually they had come to the same conclusion.
Finally it was Michaela who said, "We've been monopolizing Zoe far too long. There are students here who require educating. We should leave her to her duties."
"Of course," Lara said. "But you'll be hearing from us, Zoe."
"I will?"
"Of course. I haven't decided yet whether I will be giving GreEN any money, and if I do, how much."
"For now," Elisabeth said, "You should put us on your mailing list." She produced a business card and handed it to me. 'Elisabeth Burns', it said. 'Burns Protection Services'. I stared at the card.
"What do you protect, Elisabeth?"
"Mostly?" asked Michaela, answering for her. "Me." She said in a light-hearted fashion, but I thought I detected an unhappy undercurrent at the same time.
"We do personal protection, like providing bodyguards, as well as home and corporate security."
After that, we shook hands again, then the group turned to walk off. They had gotten perhaps twenty yards, and I should have turned to any of the other groups of people milling around our booth.
But instead, I ran after them. "Elisabeth?"
As a group they turned around, but then Michaela whispered something, and the
"Oh no," Lara said. "Scarlett and Angel had such interesting things to say about you when they got home last night. You can imagine Michaela's response. We just had to meet you. Tell us about your program."
I looked between them. Normally I was more than happy to talk about GreEN, but right now, I was far more curious about them. "Got home? Do they live with you?"
"Oh no," Lara said. "But we all live close together. We're a very tight family, and sharing dinners together is common. Tell us about GreEN."
"And we're very interested in hearing about your involvement," Elisabeth added. She hadn't taken her eyes off me the entire time we'd been talking, and her gaze was intent.
I launched into my standard spiel. It was clear they didn't need to be educated on the importance of conservation. I dare say Michaela especially could educate me in some areas. And so I talked about how GreEN sought to help educate the public.
"But your name is an acronym," Elisabeth said. "You're a network of some sort?"
"Yes," I said. "When some particular disaster strikes, we can mobilize our network of volunteers. We have a database of thousands of people we can call out."
"All here in Wisconsin?"
"Oh no, that's nationally. More locally we try to get people to engage in letter writing campaigns when important legislation is up for consideration."
"That seems very tame," Elisabeth pointed out. "Do you ever engage in more, oh, active fashions?"
"Are you asking whether we're eco terrorists?"
"Oh no," she replied quickly. "But perhaps you've chained yourself to trees or freed mink from a farm."
I'd done both of those and had the arrest records to prove it. "Our planet is important, and sometimes civil disobedience is the only way the silent majority can convince the politicians and corporate overlords to take notice."
Oops. I usually tried to sound sane. GreEN wasn't that type of organization, and I worried I'd just given the wrong impression.
"But that isn't what GreEN is about. We're not crackpots. We just care about our planet."
"Of course you're not crackpots," Michaela said. "We're all on the same side here."
"Exactly," I said.
"I find myself considering a donation," Lara said, "perhaps one somewhat larger than Scarlett's yesterday. I would love to know how you would spend my money, well, once it was your money. With so many organizations clamoring for donations, you can imagine I have to investigate them very carefully."
"I understand completely," I said. I spent another twenty minutes answering their questions. I'd never felt more expertly questioned, discounting that one visit with the FBI. But I hadn't done anything serious enough to warrant their continued attention, and eventually they had come to the same conclusion.
Finally it was Michaela who said, "We've been monopolizing Zoe far too long. There are students here who require educating. We should leave her to her duties."
"Of course," Lara said. "But you'll be hearing from us, Zoe."
"I will?"
"Of course. I haven't decided yet whether I will be giving GreEN any money, and if I do, how much."
"For now," Elisabeth said, "You should put us on your mailing list." She produced a business card and handed it to me. 'Elisabeth Burns', it said. 'Burns Protection Services'. I stared at the card.
"What do you protect, Elisabeth?"
"Mostly?" asked Michaela, answering for her. "Me." She said in a light-hearted fashion, but I thought I detected an unhappy undercurrent at the same time.
"We do personal protection, like providing bodyguards, as well as home and corporate security."
After that, we shook hands again, then the group turned to walk off. They had gotten perhaps twenty yards, and I should have turned to any of the other groups of people milling around our booth.
But instead, I ran after them. "Elisabeth?"
As a group they turned around, but then Michaela whispered something, and the
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