Why Is It A Surprise

That's Something I Think Is Growing On Me As I Get Older: Happy Endings.

If I Decided To Send This To You, Where Would I Send It? When I Think Of Writing The Whole Address On The Envelope I Am Paralyzed. It's Too Painful To Think Of You In The Same Place With Your Life Going On In The Same Way, Minus Me. And To Think Of You Not There, You Somewhere Else But I Don't Know Where That Is, Is Worse.

Things Have Changed, Ofcourse. There Are Counsellors At The Ready. Kindness And Understanding. Life Is Harder For Some, We're Told. Not Their Fault, Even If The Blows Are Purely Imgainery. Felt Just As Keenly By The Recipient, Or The Non Recipient, As The Case May Be. But Good Use Can Be Made Of Everything, If You Are Willing.

Naturally My Stories Are About Women - I'm A Woman. I Don't Know What The Term Is For Men Who Write Mostly About Men. I'm Not Always Sure What Is Meant By "feminist." In The Beginning I Used To Say, Well, Of Course I'm A Feminist. But If It Means That I Follow A Kind Of Feminist Theory, Or Know Anything About It, Then I'm Not. I Think I'm A Feminist As Far As Thinking That The Experience Of Women Is Important. That Is Really The Basis Of Feminism.

The Deep, Personal Material Of The Latter Half Of Your Life Is Your Children. You Can Write About Your Parents When They're Gone, But Your Children Are Still Going To Be Here, And You're Going To Want Them To Come And Visit You In The Nursing Home.