The Seattle star. [volume] (Seattle, Wash.) 1899-1947, 1920-08-16
MaUMa1:ic
[@0 BY Elean0rHpO1ter YIN
UMutI cop~RIoAT 7Sa0 0MMl
PREFACE
Which Explains Things
C0pXRIoAT

PREFACE
which Explains Things
Father calls me Mary. Mother calls
mo Marie. Everybody clse calls me
Mary Marie. The rest OF my name
is Anderson.
I'm ~ years old. and I'm . cross
current and q contradiction. That
Is. Sarah says I'm that. tsarah IL
my old nurse). She says she read Il
onoe-that tho children OF unlikes
were always Q cross-currcnt and q
contradiction And my father and
mother arc unlikes. and I'm the
children. That is. I'm the child. I'm
all there In. And now I'm going To
be bigger cross current and con.
tradiction than ever. for I'm going
to live half the time with mother
and tho other half with father
Mother will 30 10 Boston to live. and
father will stay here--a divorce. you
know.
I'm terribly excited cvsr H. None
OF tho other girls have DOT = divorce
in their families. and l always did
like to be different Besides. II
ought TO BE- awfuliy interesting:
more 20 than just living along. com
mon. with your father and mother In
the same houne all tho time-espe-
oiaily II it's been anything like my
house with my father and mother
In Ia
That's why I've decided 70 make .
book Of it--that II. II really win be
book. only shall have 20 call IL .
diary. on account OF father. you
know. Won't II DO funny when I
don't have To DO things on account
OF fatherf And. / won't OF course.
tho six months I'm living with
mother IN Boston. But. Oh. my
the six months I'm living here with
him--whew. But then. I can stand
IL I may even Ike it--~ome. Any
how. i'm be different And that's
something.
Wei. about making this into =
book. A. L started 10 say. he
wouldn't let me- know he wouldn't
He says novels Ar- . silly waste Of
time. II not absolutely WICKED. but
diary--oh. he loves deries' He
keeps ono himself. and he told me /,
would bo an excellent and instructive
discipline Cor me 10 do II. ,oo-srt
down the weather and what ! did
every day.
The weather and what did every
day. indeed. Lovely reading that
would make. wouldn't IT. Like this
The sun shines this morning. !
got up. alto my breakfast went TO
school, came homo. sfs my dinner.
played ono hour over TO Carrie Hey.
wood'a pncttced on the piano one
hour. studied another hour. Talked
with mother upstairs In her room
about tho sunset and the snow on
tho trees. Ate my supper. Was
talked TO by father down In tho
library about improving myself and
taking caro- not to b ughtmindcd
and frivolous. He meant Ike
mother. only he didn't say Il right
out loud. You don't have TO say
some things right out In plain words.
you knowJ Then went TO bed"
Just as II was going to write my
novel like that Not much I am
But I shall call II q diary. oh. YES.
I shall call Il . diary-tili I take II
TO be printed. Then I shall give II
its true name-a novel And I'm
going 10 tell the printer that I've
left Il for him to make the spelling
right. and put in all those tiresome
little commas and periods and ques-
ton marks that everybody seems TO
make such a fuss about II I write
the story part. I can't be expected to
be bothered with looking up how
words are speit. every five minutes.
nor fussinE over putting In a whole
lot OF foolish little dots and dashcs.
As II anybody who was reading
the story cared for that part The
story's the thing.
| / love stories. I've written lots of
them for tho girls. soo-iittle short
ones. mean: not n long ono like this
IL going TO be. OF course And it1l
be 80 exciting TO be living n story In.
stead OF reading it---only when you're
living a story you can't peek oscr to
the back TO sec how It's all coming
out I shan't like that part Sun.
IL may he all the more exciting. after
all. not TO know what's coming.
I like love stories the beat. Fathers
got-oh. lots Of books In the library.
and Two read stacks of them. even
some OF the stupid old histories and
biographies. I had TO read them
when there wasn't anything else to
read. But there weren't many love
stories. Mothers got a few. tho
lovely oncs--and some books OF
poetry, on tho little shelf in her
room. But read all those ages ago.
| That's why I'm so thrilled over
this new onc--the one I'm living. !
mean. For. OF course. this will be n
love story. Thcrc1l DO my love
story In two or three years. when
grow up. and while I'm waiting
there's fathers and mothers.
| Nurse Sarah nays thai when you're
divorced you're free. just like you
were before you were married. and
that sometimes they marry again.
That. made mo think right away:
What II father or mother. or both OF
them, married again7 And should
be there to sec II, and the counting
and all, Wouldn't that be some love
story? Wei. just guessl
And only think how all the girls
would envy me-and they just living
along their humdrum everyday ex.
istence with fathers and mothers al
ready married and living together.
and nothing exciting to look forward
to. For really. you know. when you
come right down TO II, there aren't
many girls that have got the chance
I've got.
And so that's why I've decided TO
write II into n book. oh. YES. know
I'm young--only 10. But feel really
| 4.