| Show joys sorrows and remembrances in journey down hills of yesterday I 1 have just returned from a long journey down the hills of yesterday actuated by a desire to find a picture of the old high school before it was called which I 1 knew must be in the old box of letters and reminders of other days I 1 dragged out the ponderous thing that has been toted from pillar to post lo 10 these many years in spite of the disapproval of the entire family it contained programs ams of graduating classes and of all the activities of my young life but the picture failed to appear there were old letters dating back to girlhood days and I 1 tools took the fatal step of reading some of their yellowed pages alas no arguments of hardhearted any cynical onlookers could persuade me to dump the whole outfit into the furnace let the dead past bury its dead what do you you want with all that antiquated stuff and kindred remarks assailed my ears unheeded as I 1 slipped back into the past there were faded letters written long ago by indulgent parents brothers and sisters reciting the homely details of family life joyfully describing little outings parties and weddings sadly speaking of illness ard deaths there they were from girlhood days down to maturity I 1 read many of ft them dwelling longest upon the days of young motherhood on letters from little ones just learning to write about little successes of keeping house in mothers aasen ab sence ce of sweet little confidences so naively expressed letters embellished with drawings of flowers and people by the little artist a boy of nine writing thus 1 I have to read silas mariner and the mill on the floss would that george el llott the spelling Is in hla his had used her own name shed never have been great 1 dickens comes next nest which Is the best to read of course I 1 mean the shortest and easiest and so on letters too sacred to quote breathing hope and happiness family history in the making how could I 1 bear to let the flames of an unfeeling furnace obliterate it all there were ivere letters from girl friends full of nil all sorts of foolishness the book boob lovers asking for something good to read had I 1 read one summer for instance yes indeed I 1 h have a ve never forgotten that clever little story I 1 can still see that young soung lonesome girl starting out in the rain and wind at a little seaside village in search of a book to rend running into the hero to be and almost putting out his eye with her unmanageable umbrella the pen of blanche willis howard had happily entertained me before with her story of aunt serena centered about the opera or of lohengrin As I 1 recall it now it must have been on the order of susan ersts madame clare about that time everybody was reading Il helens elens babies A fools errand that lass 0 dowries Low rles ries rudder grange the lady of the aroos took daisy sillier miller and the short stories of elizabeth stuart phelps harriet prescott spofford and sarah orne jewett t for two whole days my room was a chaos of letters in process of assortment I 1 walked in the past me mechanically cliant performing the present day duties until the orgy was over then I 1 came back to earth tied all the letters in bundles according tf te dates of special significance and put the old box boa back into the closet an adf not into the furnace with so many years behind ui it Is very difficult to conform to present tactics which admonish us to forget the past and live in today IM M 0 W 11 in the indianapolis news |
