Another unbelievable day at the office

My work is challenging, but rewarding. I work with victims of sexual assault mostly, but often I help with victims of domestic violence as well. It is a tough job because it is often emotionally taxing. At least once a week someone reminds me that they could not do my job. They shake their heads slowly saying things such as it could not be me.

The fact is someone has to do this job. I happen to have the unusual skill set to do it well. I was a volunteer Victim Advocate for three years in my hometown, New York City. The training was intense, but in some respects that was the easy part. I spent one weekend and one weeknight a month on-call waiting for my phone to ring. As a twenty something New Yorker that is normal, but I was not waiting for a call from a previous date. I was waiting for a call from the Emergency Room of the three hospitals I was assigned to. My job was to go the hospital and advocate for victims who might be too traumatized to do so themselves. The stories I heard were harrowing tales of distress, violence and fear.

Prior to the volunteer experience I was terrified of hospitals, but I knew how to handle myself well under pressure. I thought volunteering in a hospital would rid me of my fear. It worked.

I do not discuss cases here because they are confidential, and I do not want to traumatize my friends with details about my work. Yet, how I ended up in an office with a female Solider in uniform and three other uniformed Soldiers watching her grope me requires some background.

The Army has set up a special office for attorneys who take sexual assault cases to Court Martial. One of these special prosecutors came to Vicenza to interview one of the victims I am helping. I went into the meeting with strict instructions from JAG not to speak during the meeting. I had to just sit there with her, and be supportive without talking. She asked for my help but, I could not answer. So when the special prosecutor asked for my consent to let the victim demonstrate on me how her offender grabbed her I was eager to help.

Before I knew it she was palming my butt with her fingers grazing my nether regions. Talk about a complicated situation. I was not prepared to have her touch me that way. The fact that she did so in front of three men as they watched is a discussion that I could have for hours. I took the appropriate actions after the interview, and added the experience to another unbelievable day at the office.