The Southern Way

Ida is a 39 years old white woman who lives in Watkinsville, Georgia. Unfortunately, she is in an unhappy marriage with her 52 years old alcoholic husband. Ida barely goes out and when she does it is either to the grocery shop either to the Church. She is unemployed and the main income comes from the husband. Her economic situation is one of the main reasons for which she hasn’t left him yet. Sam works from Monday to Friday as a mechanic and spends more than 10 hours outside of the home. Ida is a bit happier when he is not home but Sam disgusts her when he returns; he is always dirty, drunk, and smells bad. While he has never been physically violent, he acts very oddly when he is drunk. He often throws things around the house and spends a lot of time talking to himself and apparently arguing with an invisible someone else. In the past, she often had to refuse him sex because of how bad he smelled. Now, he doesn’t ask for it anymore and Ida suspects that his alcoholism “killed” his manhood.
Ida is a Baptist and a very religious person. The Church is the only place where she feels better. One day she is surprised to discover that the Church has a new pastor. The young pastor makes an introductory speech that leaves Ida breathless. “What a sweetheart”! she reasons. Seems like the kind of person who can give her a religious advice regarding the morality of divorce. What neither Ida or the pastor remotely suspect is that the help will come in a very surprising way.