Thank You, Ma'am

The story takes place in the night time, around 11:00 o’clock. Luella Bates Washington Jones is a large woman who works late at a hotel as a beautician. She carries a large purse that has everything in it but a hammer and nails. One day a man decides to rob Mrs. Washington to buy a new pair of blue and suede shoes. Mrs. Washington realises the boy’s intentions and swings her purse which causes the boy to fall on his back. She picks the boy up with his shirt front and shakes him until his teeth rattled. She notices that the boy’s face is dirty and tells him to come to her house to wash his face. He follows her to her house and does as he is told. The lady offers him a dinner since no one was at his house to cook supper. Later on the boy notices the remarkable change in Mrs. Washington. She turns from a frightfully aggressive, physically commanding woman to a gentle, motherly type. As the boy was leaving, he wanted to say something other than thank you ma’am, to Mrs. Washington, but his lips moved, he couldn’t even say that as he turned at the foot of the barren stoop.