My friend is a rather old-fashioned lady, always quite delicate and elegant, especially in her language. She and her husband were planning a week’s vacation in Florida, so she wrote to a particular campground and asked for a reservation. She wanted to make sure the campground was properly equipped, but didn’t quite know how to ask about the “toilet” facitilities. She just couldn’t bring herself to write the word “toilet” in her letter. After much deliberation, she finally came up the the old-fashioned term “bathroom commode”. But after she wrote that down, she still thought she was being too forward. So, she started all over again and re-wrote the entire letter. This time, she referred to the bathroom commode as merely B.C. “Does the campground have its own B.C.?” she wrote.
The campground owner wasn’t old-fashioned, and he just couldn’t figure out what the woman was talking about. The business about “B.C.” stumped him. After much thought and deliberation, he showed the letter to other campers to get their opinions, but they didn’t know either. The campground owner finally decided that the woman was asking about the location of the Baptist Church, and sat down and wrote this reply:
“Dear Madam:
I regret the delay in answering your letter, but I now take great pleasure in informing you that a B.C. is located nine miles north of the campground, and is capable of seating 250 people at one time. I admit it is quite a distance away if you are in the habit of going regularly, but no doubt you will be pleased to know that a great number of people take their lunches along and make a day of it. They usually arrive early and stay late.
The last time my wife and I went was 6 years ago, and it was so crowded we had to stand up the whole time we were there. It may interest you to know that right now, there is a supper planned to raise money to buy more seats. They’re going to hold it in the basement of the B.C. I would like to say it pains me very much not to be able to go more regularly, but it surely is through no lack of desire on my end. As we grow older, it seems to take more of an effort, particularly in cold weather. If you decide to come down to our campground, perhaps I could go with you the first time you go, sit with you, and introduce you to all the other folks.
Remember, this is a very friendly community.
Best Regards,
The Campgound Owner”