Episode Report Card Kim: A | Grade It Now! YOU GRADE IT Unnatural Disasters
By Kim | Season 3 | Episode 4 | Aired on 08.03.1999
Said tells his friends that he has a visitor. They give him dirty looks, and he says in clipped tones, "It's my sister!" Cut to Said visiting with his sister, who has some sort of liturgical collar on. She tells him that she had a visit from Patricia Ross, who says that Said has been ignoring her and won't see her. Sister wants to know why. Said doesn't answer. Sister guesses that they are in love, which Said doesn't deny. Sister goes off on a rant about how Said rejected their religion, which felt like a rejection of her and their father, and reminds him of when he wanted to marry someone named Marilyn Crenshaw. Said tells her to say what she means, and Sister admits that she's bothered by Said's attraction to white women. She yells at Said to admit that he wants to be something other than what he is. Said yells back that he is black, Muslim, and a man, and sometimes those things war with each other. Said continues, saying that he is not proud of his feelings for Patricia Ross, but he's not ashamed either, because if he shuts down his feelings, then the prison has won. Sister watches him walk away with tears in her eyes.
Poet asks to be let into Said's pod. Once inside, Poet explains that he knows that Said worked to get him published, and Poet fucked it up, but he hasn't been writing in order to punish himself for his misdeed. Now, Poet wants to start writing again. Said gives him permission to do so, since he was asking. Poet is overjoyed, and says that he will dedicate his first poem to Said, for inspiring them all. Said tells Poet to write for himself, because Said is no better than Poet.
Said comes to see Tricia Ross in the visitors' room. He walks in slowly, pauses, and then closes the door behind him. Poet is at another table, talking to his mother or something. Said tells Tricia not to talk, and holds out his hand. Poet sees this. Patricia looks at Said warily, and then takes his hand. Poet watches.
Keller talks to Sister Pete in her office. He asks her if she is a nun or a shrink first, and she says shrink. He asks why she likes to get inside people's heads. Sister Pete says that she does it because sometimes she can make a small difference. Keller asks if it frustrates or hurts her to take such small steps. Sister Pete says she was trained not to let it hurt. Keller says that it's a tough lesson to learn, and then says that it's not her fault that her patients don't get better, but sometimes she has to wonder if she's just not good enough. Sister Pete looks at him like, "Damn, boy! How did you get inside my head?" A bell rings, and Keller hops up to see one of his ex-wives during visiting hours.