I do love to hear about what you are doing in that beautiful house to make it even more beautiful! There's something thrilling about it. I really could tell why, if I'd let myself go; but not today. It would be concerned with much that I have learned about women on my way out of this world. It's pretty damned wonderful, I can tell you!
During the past ten days we have had at least six inches of rain after the driest late summer and early fall I can remember. And also I received a whole
letter from Bower (a bully one) and your good long letter, bless you! You speak of American Literature books that mention me. There are several in the library here, I know, and I'll look for them. No, I did not know the WPA had taken note of my old haunts in Wayne and Bancroft. So. Dakota WPA gave several pages to the Hugh Glass monument. I have the "Guide" here. There's a lot of that stuff scattered about. It grew up mostly before
the present modernistic cliques became dominant. Sheldon, for years Sec'y. of the Neb. Hist. Society, wrote a history of Neb. with a rather longish account of my life & work.
You may tell Mrs. Fitter and Martin Schmitt that I'll certainly perform for them if they want me. I can't know yet when I'll break loose and "zizz" (golly! what an expressive world!) out to see you. But if I'm living later on in the winter, I'll surely "zizz"!
Last evening I had dinner with Sandy and his good lady in their trailer home. We had a happy time. I
do want old Sandy to come through with flaps flying. His girl's faith in him is so great. He
must get German and French this year, he said. How can this be? He is not talking either now. I do want him to win out. He is a good chap, and
wants to do the best. Can he hang on and fight through? O I do hope so . so.
As I remarked in a former letter, the Prayer of an Alien Soul was and still is true of me, but only a certain part of me then and now. When I wrote it, I meant it deep, deep down in me. But even then, there was a physical me that was having a might good time enjoying the expenditure of excessive vitality (as some of the
Bundle indicates). It would be a mistake (which you would
not make) to regard the Prayer as the exclusive truth about me.
What I told you about the bitter cold winter
night when the girls and I sang poetry with the "holy family" of animals ringed about the fire with us, means a tremendous lot to me. I love to think of that experience! The children, the cow, the horse, the goat, the dog, the cat, all sharing the light and friendly fire and the poetry!! It's a tentative picture of my kind of Heaven! (and remember the big old tree that was over us!) O Lucile!!
You ask how I'm feeling this fall? No cold, no flu, not even pollen trouble, which I've had in other years when the ragweed was flourishing. Maybe I shouldn't gloat — I might catch a humdinger of a cold any day; so I'm being humble.
How I do hope that winter and the "shots" will stop your bronchial trouble! That's not the sort of thing for you to have. It just doesn't "belong". It's not like you to have it, and it must leave you.
A week ago we lost Yo-Yo! Goodness gracious! You know she is quite rattle-brained about cars. She will jump into any car and jump out again anywhere possible. — Well, last Sat. she turned up missing, & we had no notion where she could be. We 'phoned, and then advertised in the papers & by radio. All the while a nice little girl on Coats street was enjoying her new doggie! A neighbor 'phoned us. Yo-Yo was very happy to be back. Now I'll have to give the nice little girl some sort of present for her kindess.
