Evening star., 1922-07-16

The COW lowing Tor her cali. Miriam
carrying q brimming pail OF milk
across the grass to the house next
door, the girl there who went in when
she saw her coming with the gift;
Anita-remembering Michael. his OBJ
liviousness. thinking. thinking. Blue
birds nesting: Miriam running to
child who had stumbled in the road,
wiping the tears from its face: Anita
thinking, of the children Michael
had wanted, and she had not. The
cIod of a youth next door. and the
stone he threw at Miriam. and the
way she smiled when she put hot
water on the cut: Anita-thinking
thinking. of the wounds of the spirit
that she had kept to herself and re-
scented. thinking. thinking. p
+H+
"x1oU aren't much like other wom-
en-" Miriam said to her one day.
when she had come back from leav-
ing another unthanked gift at the
house next door. You never ask any
questions"
We'll, you aren't much like other
women, yourself" Anita answered.
But Miriam laughed, tossed back
stray lock of hair, said, "Oh, yes
am. That's just exactly what 1 am"
The old man muttered an ugly
name; Anita watched Miriam, watched
the swelling apple-buds. thought.
Thoughts that were bruises, mem
cries that famed and scared; ques-
tionings that would not be answered;
no help from the nights or days, no
bread Of understanding. no water of
comfort. So had the weeks passed.
The day the letter came she went
out after supper and sat on the door
step. A young moon had left the
night to the radiance OF cleaning
stars; the tender sweetness Of the
air was pierced by the song of the
little frogs caroling their return to
life, and the sadness of past summers
and tho Joy Of the summer to come;
the fragrance Of the drying fields was
like an incense. A world browsing,
vet stirring to resurrection-.
Michael at work, of. course
later. the opening of a door
and the nights air coming in, his
step on the stairs and the way-the
way-ah! Mono! =
Miriam's skirt was brushing Anita's
shoulder. What q night" she said.
There was a basket in her hand.
| Don't you want to walk down the
| road? 1 have an errand. A man
who does work for me sometimes Is
in trouble"
4
They went side by side through
| the song and the incense and the
starlight, Miriam intent upon her err
rand, Anita, remembering. thinking.
They went through the village and
| those they met passed them by as
though they were shadows; they
came to q house on = hillside beyond.
a low, Door house, where a lamp
shone from within. A man came to
the door; his eyes in his unshaven
face looked as though some fire of
| pain had burned in them and died,
leaving them scorched. He looked at
Miriam.
II can't come to work in the morn
ing" he said.
Il know" she told him. I'll be
there with you tomorrow. Here's
something I've brought for her to eat.
You must take some. too, you'll need
your strength"
She amt ct anything yet" the
| man said. She's awful sick
| grievin'."
Before they had gone far on their
homeward way the man overlook
| them. II wanted to ask you-would
it be showing respect If 1 did 1T for
them myself? The sexton charges
SIS. and-but 1 wouldn't want to do
| anything that didn't show respect"
Miriam touched his arm. 1T would
be the most bexutiful thing you
1 could do" she said. You'd always
| have it to remember-that you had
done something for them"
As they neared Miriam's house she
said, softly, 1T is such a very beauti-
full world"
Beautiful All Of Anitas bitter
ness. all the dregs of her accumu-
lated thinking lay in the word.
Yes, it 10. Struggle 10 not beauti-
full, nor Sinking, but just living is."
AA*x
uTHERE was death back there,
wasn't there? Pain hrst, and
| death, and sorrow. Is that beauti-
| ful? And your day"the way you
have to work, the way peopie-that
stone How can you call it
beautiful"
Il know" said Miriam. Il used to
feel that way, too. L hadn't weighed
things 1 used to think more about
what l had to pay than about what
II had. OF course, you have to pay
for whatever you have. Everybody
has to pay. one way or another.
but that's only fair. Life's worth it,"
Never! Nothing could be worth
what you have to pay sometimes"
wYP"" SHRDLU CMFWYP UP UP
"Ah." The word was murmHS OF
protest. Then Miriam said: Look up
at that sky! 1t was a night like this
that / went away, with-him. Oh,
knew what 1 was doing. 1 knew what
| they'd-think Of me. Rightly, too.
knew I'd have to paw. but I'd made up
my mind that what l would have
would be worth it. It's the greatest
thing there is; / guess everybody
pays for It one way or another. We
had always loved each other; 1 threw
| him over; and after mother died and
1 came back here to teach the school
and look after father he was mar
| ried to some one else. They lived
: next door. Yes. those are his children
He always worked hard. but he never
| got on His wife--she wasn't easy to