it was still cold. Mavine fetched her heaviest coat and scarf from the hall closet, noting that Vee’s mittens were still in the basket. She tied the scarf under her chin, tucking the ends inside her coat.
While her back was turned, a friendly arm circled hershoulders. “What’s the matter, Mavine? You haven’t been yourself during lunch, or all month, for that matter.”
“I’m just tired, Alma. Vee’s more of a challenge these days, now that he’s in the fifth grade and has to catch the early bus. He has more homework, and Virgil has to get up early and work so hard, and I have to —”
Alma turned Mavine toward her and looked straight into her eyes. “This has nothing to do with Vee. What’s really the matter? Is something going on between you and Virgil?”
“Oh, Alma, we’re both fine, and Vee is fine. It’s just that I’m coming up on my fortieth birthday, and I wonder sometimes if I made the right choices in life. Marrying Virgil, becoming a mother, not trying harder to become a teacher. And wanting Vee Junior to have more opportunities than what Virgil has had. Nobody’s fault, of course.”
“What brought all this on?”
Immediately the Pageant article came to mind, and Mavine chastised herself. After all these months, shouldn’t she have put all that foolishness behind her? But if it stuck with her this long, maybe it wasn’t foolish after all. “I read an article a couple of months back about men neglecting their marriage as they get —more mature. I showed it to Virgil, but I suspect he barely looked at it. Probably thought it was silly. I still love him, and I suppose he still loves me, but sometimes he just takes me for granted. Like today. And sometimes I wish he saw what I need without me having to tell him.” Was she wrong to want that?
“Has Virgil ever done anything to make you doubt that he loves you?”
“No, but he seemed very surprised when I showed him thearticle. It was by a famous marriage counselor and had a questionnaire to go with it, and I took the test while I was waiting under the dryer. When I answered the questions, the score at the bottom told me that I could expect more of my husband.”
“Mavine, Virgil’s one of the finest men I know. You know reading has always been difficult for him. He was probably just confused and didn’t understand.”
“But I want him to tell me he loves me. And recognize what I gave up to marry him. I need to hear him say it.”
Alma took her own coat from the hall closet. “Honey, men don’t always know how to say what they feel. He’s showing you love the only way he knows how.”
“But the article —”
“Mavine.” Alma turned to face the younger woman. “Virgil loves you more than you can imagine. Don’t waste a single minute doubting that. And he’s concerned about the new service station going in. Give him some grace and the respect he deserves. Just love him through it. After all, a good man is far more valuable than a successful man, any day of the week. And one more thing, Mavine.”
She stopped to look her older friend in the eyes. In those eyes was great wisdom. “Yes?”
“Never give up on your dreams. Or your dreams for Vee Junior. The good Lord may yet have something in mind for both of you.”
The Glamour Nook was not crowded. Lula Mae Prewitt had brought her daughter, Darlene, for her yearly trim, and AnnaBelle Stacy, freshly coiffed and stiffly sprayed, had stayed to chat. Mavine looked around the room, particularly at the framed beauty school certificate hanging on the wall. One of her oldest friends, Gladys Blanford had run her beauty shop from the front of the little yellow house ever since she and Tom married, and before that she did hair out of her ex-husband George’s home when they lived across the road next to Welby and Alma. Mavine had always felt it led to their divorce, that George got tired of walking through the house in his boxer shorts to get a beer only to find some
While her back was turned, a friendly arm circled hershoulders. “What’s the matter, Mavine? You haven’t been yourself during lunch, or all month, for that matter.”
“I’m just tired, Alma. Vee’s more of a challenge these days, now that he’s in the fifth grade and has to catch the early bus. He has more homework, and Virgil has to get up early and work so hard, and I have to —”
Alma turned Mavine toward her and looked straight into her eyes. “This has nothing to do with Vee. What’s really the matter? Is something going on between you and Virgil?”
“Oh, Alma, we’re both fine, and Vee is fine. It’s just that I’m coming up on my fortieth birthday, and I wonder sometimes if I made the right choices in life. Marrying Virgil, becoming a mother, not trying harder to become a teacher. And wanting Vee Junior to have more opportunities than what Virgil has had. Nobody’s fault, of course.”
“What brought all this on?”
Immediately the Pageant article came to mind, and Mavine chastised herself. After all these months, shouldn’t she have put all that foolishness behind her? But if it stuck with her this long, maybe it wasn’t foolish after all. “I read an article a couple of months back about men neglecting their marriage as they get —more mature. I showed it to Virgil, but I suspect he barely looked at it. Probably thought it was silly. I still love him, and I suppose he still loves me, but sometimes he just takes me for granted. Like today. And sometimes I wish he saw what I need without me having to tell him.” Was she wrong to want that?
“Has Virgil ever done anything to make you doubt that he loves you?”
“No, but he seemed very surprised when I showed him thearticle. It was by a famous marriage counselor and had a questionnaire to go with it, and I took the test while I was waiting under the dryer. When I answered the questions, the score at the bottom told me that I could expect more of my husband.”
“Mavine, Virgil’s one of the finest men I know. You know reading has always been difficult for him. He was probably just confused and didn’t understand.”
“But I want him to tell me he loves me. And recognize what I gave up to marry him. I need to hear him say it.”
Alma took her own coat from the hall closet. “Honey, men don’t always know how to say what they feel. He’s showing you love the only way he knows how.”
“But the article —”
“Mavine.” Alma turned to face the younger woman. “Virgil loves you more than you can imagine. Don’t waste a single minute doubting that. And he’s concerned about the new service station going in. Give him some grace and the respect he deserves. Just love him through it. After all, a good man is far more valuable than a successful man, any day of the week. And one more thing, Mavine.”
She stopped to look her older friend in the eyes. In those eyes was great wisdom. “Yes?”
“Never give up on your dreams. Or your dreams for Vee Junior. The good Lord may yet have something in mind for both of you.”
The Glamour Nook was not crowded. Lula Mae Prewitt had brought her daughter, Darlene, for her yearly trim, and AnnaBelle Stacy, freshly coiffed and stiffly sprayed, had stayed to chat. Mavine looked around the room, particularly at the framed beauty school certificate hanging on the wall. One of her oldest friends, Gladys Blanford had run her beauty shop from the front of the little yellow house ever since she and Tom married, and before that she did hair out of her ex-husband George’s home when they lived across the road next to Welby and Alma. Mavine had always felt it led to their divorce, that George got tired of walking through the house in his boxer shorts to get a beer only to find some
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