Evening star., 1928-12-23
The Children's Mother
BY Margaret Culkin Banning
A Christmas Gift Lesson

must write you. but I will only write
little bit, because it is nicer on the sand.
I like it here better than home, because
we have more fun. We wear out our
new bathing suits
1t was ridiculous to let a .child's letter
hurt so. but Phyllis went through bad
hour. an hour filled with emotions that
seemed to spring to life all at once.
jealousy of Mrs. Morgan, pity for her
! self at being so soon unnecessary TO ner
| children. a dreadful sense of abandon
ment.
She went to see her mother next day.
Marie dropped in, with half dozen
other girls, all very gay and full OF
bridesmaids plans. 1t was light talk,
but it was diverse too, with It's spar
Killing of gossip about charity Dement'S
and the jobs some of the girls had or
pretended they wanted. Mares NE
was very full, just as Phyllis own life
had been before she married. When
the girls spoke to her, they invariably
asked how the children were.
Marie noticed that.
IT should think you'd crack the next
person who asked you about those
kids!" she said humorously.
"Why?"
"Oh, the questions are SO mechanical.
They look at you and the idea chill
dren' pops into their heads. They seem
to think it's the only thing to say to
YOU"
wait until you're married." said
Phyllis.
"Oh. I shall be quite different"
Phyllis made a gesture OF scothng.
II tell you I shall be. My children
aren't going to be my whole life" in
sisted Marie
Don't be too sure"
But I am sure" said Marie, and she
looked so. ''I adore Christopher, and
never mean to let him be pushed out of
the way. My gracious" she added,
driven on by the skeptical smile Phyllis
was wearing, 1--WE certainly had my
lesson in watching you and mother"
'Me and mother
You're just alike" said Marie "You
live In your children, and it's dear of
you and all that. But it has draw
backs. Here are Christopher and me,
just aching to get married. and the
whole thing Is blighted, because mother
is going to be desolate when leave
her. I'm going to live less than hun
dred miles from here, but she's sick of
it. with you married and Jack never
home, she acts as If my getting mar
ried was a kind of desertion. She's
always been such an angel that it
hurts"
"why, Marie! Mother doesn't mind
like that"
"Oh, yes, she does"
why didn't you tell me?"
you've got your family and your
own worries. But that" said Marie,
coming back to the original point, "iS
why I say that I've learned my lesson.
I never shall get that way with my
daughter. I shall always say to her
Have your own life. and I'll have
"Do you think I could help mother?"
asked Phyllis.
"Oh, we'll all do what we can, sup
pose. Come to see her often and make
her come to see us. You can help
while I'm away on my wedding trip
that will be the worst time, I suppose.
But there's not much any of us can
really do. She'll just suffer. Unless
give up Christopher. And I simply
can't, Phyllis. I adore Christopher"
"of course, you do" Phyllis COM
forted her. 'Don't talk that way
There's no reason you should even
think of giving him up. But, Marie,
alike?"
you bury yourself In your children,
just as she did. And you see what hap
pens-when you went away, she was
sad, but it was bearable When Jack
does what every other fellow in town
does on vacations, runs around a lot,
she just sits and pines and waits for
him to turn up. And, when I start to
get married, just because I'm the last,
she suffers, instead of being glad that
I've managed to land a fellow like
Christopher"
You think I'd like that?"
"Oh well, of course, you have Jerry.
If father hadn't died it might have
been different with mother He'd have
been the big thing in her life, probably.
Though, really, Phyllis" Marie finished,
with terrible franknesS, ito look at you
and Jerry. sometimes, one would just
imagine that you are parents first of all
and only incidentally married"
\ X X X
MRS. KENT came in just then and
AVA they cut off the conversation.
Phyllis looked at her mother. The
sweet, devoted face, the constant
solicitude-she'd never thought of it as