Post Six

I remember the first day at college I went down to the desk by the door to see if I had any letters, and I saw a girl coming in the door with her Mother and another lady – it turned out to be her Mother’s sister, Aunt Nan. We immediately responded to each other and, as the mother and aunt stayed for two weeks to see the sights of Boston, they always included me in their trips. The girl was Norma Schiedt, Bud’s mother. We stayed friends all our lives, she came often with me to Oxford for weekends and holidays.

I must have been a “dud” at Wheelock, because I was thrice asked to the “Tea Dansant” at M.I.T. but I wouldn’t accept. I don’t know why – but I did go to the  opera many times with Andrew Franz, who was studying law at Harvard Law School. Maybe it was because he was paralyzed, and I was sorry for him, or maybe, because he came from Lancaster and was a friend of Norma’s.

At Wheelock, I had a double room all to myself.  Father paid the extra so that Eleanor could come and visit me whenever she wanted to do so.  All too soon, it was over, and I went back to Oxford for the summer.  I hadn’t a  place to teach, but Father said why did I want to go away again – he was more than happy to have me at home.

At the Christmas Holidays, I made a Christmas festival with Eleanor and Edna for the village children at the house. A big tree, cookies etc. and presents for everyone. They played games and we told them stories. I think they enjoyed it.

Then just the day before Labor Day, I had a letter from Miss Wheelock asking me to go to Proctor, Vt. My trunk was all packed, so we had Billy Shortsleeves take it  right away to the station and it was off before Father came home. The next day we all started in the car for Keene, N.H. – Father driving and Burt and Stewart Glass and we three girls. Of course, we had to look up in the Atlas to find out where I was going. Very small place where marble was found we learned.

At Keene, N.H, they put me on the train and I rode through the hills to Vermont. It was a beautiful ride.  I still remember a certain isolated house that looks exactly as it did that day, foursquare and, apparently, not painted to this day. We waited in Rutland for about five minutes, and then on to Proctor, which took only about 5 or 6 minutes. I disembarked at Proctor and was uncertain which way to go – there seemed to be a road leading two ways – each side of the valley.