Show f r 7 THE FICTION ION CORNER I I WILL OF THE THEBy WIND b J By WILLIAM WILLIAl BRANDON 1 11 RS HACKETT found her in the M bedroom crying She stood inthe in inthe inthe the doorway and said grimly I uI came in to borrow some sugar Sylvie The door was open so I just r walked in Now what on earths earth's Wrong wrong with you Sylvia sat up and dried her eyes Her starched gingham skirt was wrinkled and her black hair was tangled and disordered A curling strand of it hung down beside her nose Dose like an ink stain A pin had come out of her imitation lace collar and it had fallen down to catch inthe in m inthe the red buckle at her waist She said shakily Hello Mrs Hackett N Mrs Hackett drew down the corners corners corners cor cor- ners of her mouth Nothing my foot Its It's because of Chip wanting to pull up stakes and go to Canton I Isn't it Of course it is Sylvia slapped the lock of hair out of her eyes I 1 wont won't be a boomers boomer's wife she flared I wont won't Mm Mrs Hackett said sourly A boys boy's will is the winds wind's will That's a poem Its It's the truest thing to in the world Dont Don't do no good to fight against it Remember that and you'll have it easier I 1 wont won't be a boomers boomer's boomers boom boom fa-boom ers er's wife I 1 wont won't drag around to toone toone one cne mill after another all my life and never have anything no home and no no-no no no nothing I wont won't I Well Vell its it's his job if he wants to throw Birow it away It isn't t Its It's just as much mine mineRS as RS it is his I dont don't believe in that DId old idea that a womans woman's just a a-a a a slave dave to follow a d man around at whatever he happens happens' to want to toi i io yea Oh you dont don't Mrs Hackett r said laid And just what can you do about it Sylvia bowed her head and scrubbed unhappily at her cheeks with urith her handkerchief I dont don't know mow she sobbed Of course you dont Youre You're nothIng nothIng nothing noth noth- ing but a child Mrs Hackett sniffed be twenty years finding ending out what to and by that lime time its it's too late to do you any good Unless theres there's somebody around to lell tell you to begin with Somebody who knows Sylvia was not impressed What r i could you tell me Mrs Hackett What could anyone do Ive I've argued with irith him until Im I'm almost crazy but be he-he he he doesn't even listen any more Hes He's got his mind set on moving on i to something different that wont won't be beany beany any different at all and then hell he'll want walt to go again and andA andt and and- t UtA A A boys boy's will is the winds wind's pill will said Mrs Hackett I what the poem says Its It's just as asI astrue I f true of a man or an old man for r rI I r that matter The older they get the truer it gets I reckon Only they hind of give up trying to do anything anything anything any any- thing about it after so long a time She pushed up her lower lip and looked down her nose at Sylvia Like Mr Hackett Sylvia looked up startled You mean Mr Hackett used to want to-want want to- to He was the hardest man to hold down iown in this town He got tired of everything that was his Its It's a sort of laziness that's all all it it is is But Bute Ve e stack here He stuck all right I Why Sylvia wailed What did you do Well Mrs Hackett said you youcan youcan youcan can take it for what its it's worth Sylvia It worked with Mr Hackett I know that But what was it Whenever he worked himself up to a pitch about cutting loose and chasing away some place after something he thought was better I simply gave him his way Sylvia looked disappointed and puzzled Oh But Mrs Hackett said profoundly profoundly pro pro- profoundly he didn't know it I took him on a trip Just a week or so And I kept him on the jump every minute of it I always liked little trips around anyway Well by the time that man would get home homeI again hed he'd be so tired of jumping They were gone six days Each day Sylvia had them up and driving at daylight and she kept on the job circuiting the sights at the next stop until late at night She called upon Chip to stop often roadside at-roadside stands where she purchased carved ornaments ornaments ornaments orna orna- ments and bumpy pottery She plied him with hot dogs soft drinks and bad coffee She was sur sur- and delighted at the glazed look that appeared in his eyes on the third day Mrs Hackett came over the day after they returned She said Well I and paused expectantly holding the cup of sugar in both handsHe handsHe hands He went back to work today Sylvia said There was a listless note in her voice He hasn't said anything about going to Canton for days Mm And what did he say when he got home She pursed her lips That he never thought it would look so good to him Sylvia nodded She sat down on a kitchen chair and swung one foot and watched it pensively Just uJust exactly exactly exactly ex ex- ex- ex she said You wont won't even be able to get him to stir out of the house to a pic- pic Ill I R I I l I I Ili t I e to T 11 r 1 I E 1 F t f fl f fn n V. V I still t tl 1 t 1 They went up into Michigan west to Wisconsin down through Minnesota and Iowa and St. St Louis to Memphis l around that he wouldn't have left for a pension That Mrs Hackett said is flis something you find out about men Sylvia They like to start but they like getting back a whole lot more Sylvia said doubtfully It flIt doesn't sound like Chip would would- would Maybe he Im I'm the last person in the world to try to give folks advice Sylvia Nobody wants it and I guess everyone has to sew his own seam anyway But Mr Hackett says they're shutting down for a week for the millwrights millwright's gang and if Chip was to spend that week in a car bouncing along from one pl place ce to another without even evena a chance to catch his breath Well a boys boy's will is the winds wind's will and the wind can change in a min min- ute But what if he wouldn't want to togo togo togo go Mm You tell him you want a little vacation before you move to Canton If he thinks youve you've given in about that hell he'll take you You try it and see They went up into Michigan west to Wisconsin down through Minnesota Minnesota Minnesota Minne Minne- sota and Iowa and St. St Louis to Memphis Memphis Memphis Mem Mem- east to Knoxville and up through Louisville to come home ture show for a month I told you Winds Wind's will that's the poem They're all alike She put the cup of sugar on the kitchen cabinet and looked at Sylvia and frowned But ButI I wouldn't say you look so happy about it Sylvie But youre you're tired Sylvia stopped swinging her foot and rested her chin on her hands She sighed and said Only of this town I guess I was just thinking when we came back yesterday and it looked so so old and so shabby and dull and tiresome and I thought that well we'll spend all our lives here Mrs Hackett drew back and regarded regarded regarded re re- re- re her and then said again defensively defensively defensively de de- de- de Youre just tired Sylvie Sylvia looked up and her eyes were sparkling But Im I'm not she said I had a wonderful time |