Following "Modest Proposals," I enjoyed the unexpected bonus of a "girls' night out" at Eli's Restaurant with fellow panelists Wendy Shalit (above, at the seminar), Miriam Grossman, and Cassy DeBenedetto, along with Diocese of Arlington young-adult ministry director Mary-Rose Lombard.
I can't tell you what anyone else said, as we all agreed that what happens in Eli's stays in Eli's, but I can tell you one anecdote I shared that made Wendy flash her 10,000-watt smile. It was about the time I went out for dinner with a male fan of Wendy's book A Return to Modesty, a work which praises not only female virtue, but also chivalry and male honor. Afterwards, the gent waited with me on the subway platform until my train came, even while his own train came and went in the other direction. When I thanked him for waiting with me, he said, "Wendy Shalit would never forgive me if I didn't."
