| Show r Kathleen a Norris Says Forgiveness in Marriage arria ge Ben Bell Syndicate Features s. s of 7 l rv t 1 J t Presently hostesses are saying And Ill I'll ask a nice nice man for you Ivy It always turns trans out to be Phil IM Larrimore the greatest bore in the whole circle By y KATHLEEN NORRIS I HEN our children are I W WHEN little we give them certain certain certain tain nursery rules of living They dont don't believe them but they believe us Later on we again give them the benefit of our experience and belief This tir time e they dont don't believe either For example when you tell ten a restless discontented disillusioned young wife that she will make a grave mistake it if she divorces her husband she flatly doesn't believe you Harry whom she married marri d with such radiant hope and confidence confidence dence only seven years ago has turned out to be a completely un- un partner They just dont don't seem eem to speak the same language or want the same things any more Ivy has always hated divorce and God knows she hates it now but anything anything's better than to have a little boy growing up with a father and mother who have stopped loving each other and hearing quarrels all the time Lots of Ivy's friends are are re divorced and they seem much happier happier happier hap hap- pier and freer Shell She'll make it up to little John Harry agrees to the divorce Ivy rushes ahead with it There isn't any happiness at this point nor any freedom for new responsibilities and annoyances surge into the gaps left by the old ones and are worse than they The close friends who advised Ivy not to put up with Harrys Harry's Harry's Harrys Harrys Harry's Har Har- rys ry's on goings-on now draw discreetly away they dont don't remember ever having said anything against poor I old natured good-natured Harry They ask I him to dinner They all feel sorry for lor poor little John Ivy has bas nervous talks with her lawyer Hundreds of women go into nervous breakdown at this point Ivy hates business She hates Johns John's Innocent talk of his bis father She hates deciding what to do with John She misses affection approval cooperation cooperation cooperation tion from her own circle So she marries again She marries a man exactly like Harry only with a different outside All very well writes Anna from Palm Beach But what about actual infidelity Ive I've been married 17 years When we had been married married mar mar- ried tied about five and had bad two girls Archie had an affair with his office clerk a divorced woman oman 10 years older than he I was sickly weak I needed l him m terribly and he was wonderfully tender with me and 1 forgave bun him but but I watched Our Ion on was born everything went on well for another few years and then four years ago It began all over again This time tune it was also an older woman whom he saw whenever whenever whenever when when- ever ever business business' took him to a city a thousand miles away I found the letter that told the whole story immediately Im im- Immediately mediately got a divorce Since then Ive I've worked helped financially by alimony and domestically by my two girls What would you have advised advised advised ad ad- In this case My girls and boy love their father father father fa fa- fa- fa ther he takes them off oft alternate weekends week makes them presents They dont don't discuss it but they blame me and I know it I have never been happy I didn't expect to be But aut there is justice in this world n 1 D r An affair with hit his clerk 4 s I. I i IS DIVORCE WISE How much should a wife endure before she turns for relief relief relief re re- re- re lief to the divorce courts Thiis This Thi is a problem that many women have to face at some stage in their married life Maybe its it's just a vague discontent a feeling feeling feeling feel feel- ing o of f neglect or a realization that the glamour of the first I years ears have fled fled or or it may b be bea e ea a serious injustice as in this case discussed in this issue She had been married about five years when she discovered that her husband was ivas un unfaith unfaith- f aith I f ful ul She forgave him that time He was wa otherwise an excellent I husband and father father father-a a good I provider and affectionate I About ten years later he again wandered from the path of vir vir- vir- vir tue She immediately got a divorce divorce divorce di di- I vorce giving up her luxurious j home and secure social I tion Although she site received alimony she had to work to support the three children Somehow she wonders if divorce divorce di die vorce was ivas the right move The children still love their father I and see him often Their friends friend and neighbors seem to sympathize with him Justice is on her side but hers was ivas a I hollow victory it now appears there here is right and wrong Is a good faithful wife v to condone what belittles and insults her and let a aman aman aman man get away with this sort of thing We had a lovely home I had hada a faithful and beloved colored helper help help- er my children had infinitely better social prospects than they have now Who is to blame for this change I Archie or I I acted as I 1 thought I was entirely justified in acting Was I right My answer is no you weren't right In marriage marriage-in in true marriage mar mar- there there must be forgiveness for everything even that A w wife e needn't love the sin but she must forgive the sinner She can pity his weakness weakness that that stupid male weakness weakness weakness weak weak- ness of the spirit and flesh alike that so loves flattery She can be thankful in her soul that she kept I her vow if it he didn't have strength enough to keep his She can accept his apologies and promises with dignity dig dig- and and not too much belief belie And she can keep the home together to together together to- to gether live for her children friends books garden arden kitchen clubs clubs clubs-a a thousand normal interests She can simply close one door of her heart the glory of young love and trust Many a loving elderly man and his wife rightly proud of their fine children their home their place in society have passed this crisis Wives have faults too Nagging extravagance extravagance extravagance ex- ex ex- ex crossness neglect of at I Ithe the children selfishness these selfishness these are the grave faults that many a good husband has to forgive Infidelity is the bitterest cross a wife ev ever r has hasto hasto hasto to bear It outrages everything that Is sacred In her wifely love But It Isn't good cause for ruining several lives It Isn't good cause for breaking up a home Nothing is |
