Forty in the Female Lane
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She put the phone back on the hook and went to the refrigerator to see what she could fix for her dinner. She took out lettuce for a salad and went to the sink. As she stood washing the lettuce, she thought about how often in fifty-eight years she had let someone bully her into their way of thinking. As she began to realize the truth of this thought, a wave of pure rage came over her. She realized in amazement that she had been had. She had been married to Mike for thirty-seven years and had always thought she had a very successful marriage. It occurred to her that the marriage was not so much successful as it was lacking in stress. A stress- free relationship has certain advantages but it is not necessarily a happy marriage. She also realized that the union was stress free because she had always made sure that no one's feelings were ever ruffled. She had made it her job to make everything run smoothly for the family and if that had meant giving in or not having an opinion, and then that was what she did. Mike had made all the major decisions of their marriage with very little input from her. He had decided on the social life they had the houses they had lived in, the children's colleges and even their daily routine was geared around his schedule. With that bit of late-blooming awareness firmly planted in her brain, she realized she had a predicament. She knew absolutely, in one of those little epiphanies that life hands out every now and then, that she had been dishonest all her life. Following hard on that understanding, she knew that she could never do that again. This revelation was so startling that she was simply floored. She thought back over the years to all the times she had given in; to her parents, her teachers, Mike and yes, even the children. No wonder they were so self-involved. With her as a role model, they had been taught that their opinions and methods were valuable, but hers were not. Her value as a person was questionable and the children had been taught that by her actions. She had always considered herself a peacemaker, and God knew she had kept the peace, but the peace she had bought was fraudulent and dishonest to herself and her family. She wondered how she was going to make this right. She knew that Mike would not understand. He would probably think she was crazy. However, Boots had never felt saner or surer of herself. Her rage had dissipated. She sat in a chair in the family room and thought about what she had discovered. She felt excited and very alive. She could never remember feeling this sense of herself before. It was as if a door had opened and everything came pouring out from the pent-up well of who she was. She had no desire to close that door or to stem the tide of understanding that she was experiencing. She knew that this was the beginning of her real life
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About the Book
Patsy A. Mills was born in Alabama and spent her formative years in Tennessee and Kentucky. That southern indoctrination was the deciding mold for much of her early approach to life and has been a large part of the persons who make up Forty in the Female Lane. Forty in the Female Lane is a novella which details the lives of five women who were in high school together and will meet again for their fortieth high school reunion. The story, written in narrative form, examines how each of the women pioneered a life in America in the Eisenhower fifties, the social changes of the sixties, the turbulent seventies, the self-involved eighties, and finally, the nineties with all the technological and social changes of the world culture. The book is an affirming look at what women in their later years can expect and achieve. The individuality of each woman as she reacts with the culture she is a part of, is a testament to each woman's ability to survive and prosper in a culture that is not always supportive.
About the Author
Patsy A. Mills was born in Alabama and spent her formative years in Tennessee and Kentucky. That southern indoctrination was the deciding mold for much of her early approach to life and has been a large part of the persons who make up Forty in the Female Lane. Ms. Mills has three daughters and seven grandchildren for which she feels richly blessed. At age sixty-two, she retired after twenty-one years as an insurance agent and spent two years as a full-time student at the Culinary Institute of America. After graduation, she has spent time practicing her skills on friends, family, and various community and social groups. Most are happy to be test subjects even though some things are, perhaps, a bit too creative!