A ROOM OF OUR OWN
Follette, Isabel Bacon La
A Room of Our Own The 'War of Nerves' European Laboratory What Mothers Do By ISABEL BACON LA FOLLETTE Mrs. La Follette 1HAVE been asked to speak to the Madison Council cf Churchwomen on the...
...Hitler calls the "war of nerves...
...In these days of pressure and world insecurity we are constantly aware in ourselves of what Mr...
...It is what we mothers DO that conveys to our children our faith in our world and their part in It...
...Phil is fortunate in having the ability and vitality to earn money and carry on his political work...
...This is a tough period for political leaders," I replied...
...The question is...
...which continued at intervals until he located me at my desk...
...Surely the laboratory' of Europe, where they have been trying out before our eyes new types of government, should re-vive our faith in our own system, democracy...
...Gee," our room voted for mayor and our guy almost got in...
...Mothers have been disappointed, have suffered, have sometimes dispaircd through their children, yet they cling to their faith in them...
...We have to bear it...
...No matter what our situation, the amount of time, energy, or ability we have to give, the avenue of politics is at every door to use as we will...
...and that for myself I want to accept the responsibilities that opportunities entail and so I must continue to carry them as best I can even though I see (jreat room for improvement...
...I am trying to collect my thoughts on this subject...
...There are plenty of sacrifices, you may be sure, and I only wish there were two of him—one to practice law and the other to work for our cause " It is this opportunity at our doors that we women are only beginning to appreciate...
...Again we see the value of example as a teacher...
...I feel that there are boundless opportunities for us all...
...How...
...then, can we escape the conclusion here in America all our individual faiths must unite in an effective program to make democracy work...
...Then, "but Phil got licked, too, and I hear he's going straight ahead...
...This morning, before starting off on a two days' speaking schedule in Milwaukee...
...Ever since Jesus lived there has been a distinction between those of his followers who are concerned with interpreting his words in terms of what to think, and those who like James insist that Jesus wanted us to be "Doers of the word, and not hearers only...
...Recently a friend said to me, "What has happened to John Smith (we'll call him...
...i smile mures the wounding of a frown.— Shakespeare...
...Pre-Hitler Germany was too full of arm-chair critics who paralyzed effective action...
...I never thought of that" said my friend speculatively...
...Why should he be...
...It is too easy to give in to emotional retaliation when we hear of "German hordes" pouring into peaceful Scandinavia, but let us constantly remind ourselves that the Hitler regime is not the German people...
...Will we meet today's world in a Jittery, craven manner...
...I feel urgently that we women should make it our individual responsibility to create a confident, serene atmosphere...
...The mass of people were desperate, and therefore ripe soil on which to throw the seeds which sprouted into the Hitler regime...
...To the young man he said: "Don't Joke, my boy...
...Well, why shouldn't he be...
...Solemnity an Asset THOMAS CORWIN...
...The past months and weeks have seen all the rules by which men and nations have lived, flouted and ground under foot...
...A great leader like Jesus must have appreciated what putting one's faith into action does for the individual himself...
...My informant reported the almost unanimous sentiment of the people he talked with taxi-drivers, waiters, businessmen, industrialists—could be summed up in the words of one German who told him...
...Looks kill love, and love by looks revivelh...
...And what returns there are when the children "come through" in their own sphere for the values we live by...
...that's clear...
...The clown is the more clever fellow of the two, but he is despised...
...Sometimes I question, as I suppose we all do, whether under constant pressure, and my conscience pricks me when my work for "the cause" conflicts with a family affair...
...Why do all of us peoples have to fight each other just because a little group at the top want supreme power...
...Through our age-old function in giving life to and caring for the human race, we have required unlimited faith in the worthwhile-ness of the human venture...
...Above all things he loves politics and wants to serve his ideals...
...If we do nothing more, we certainly each have the opportunity and the responsibility of meeting suspicion and fear with an affirmative, buoyant attitude, what the Bible calls faith, hope, and love...
...the Ohio Senator who served as secretary of the treasury under President Fillmore, was one day speaking to a young and promising politician whom he had heard Joking with the crowd...
...We have watched the working of Fascism, of Communism, of National Socialism, and can only conclude that for the individuals who live under these systems the cost is prohibitive...
...Why don't I sit down with all the rest of them...
...Occasionally when I am particularly tired I confess I even flirt with the sentiment of my political co-worker who once said to me, "Sometimes I wonder why I do all the things I do...
...All the great monuments cm earth have been built over solemn asses...
...If I'd been able to get to the other side of the room we'd have carried it...
...I countered...
...He accepts the responsibility for his kids, and he's cut off from what he really wants to do...
...La Follette 1HAVE been asked to speak to the Madison Council cf Churchwomen on the responsibility of ehurchwomen toward preserving democracy...
...In my political work I am constantly impressed with the Influence of this vital interest on families with whom I come in contact...
...Naturally, since politics is my avenue...
...Perhaps it is my New England conscience, but I believe it is more than that...
...Peoples' extreme sensitivity today make It only natural for them to react violently to blows, even vicarious ones...
...In today's world we cannot afford the luxury' of on-look-ers: everyone must take her part...
...More today than ever we must have that faith in the human family...
...I was deeply encouraged to learn this week from a recently-returned traveler to Germany that the Impression Phil and I gained in Germany a year ago is even more wide-spread today...
...I am sure that women have responsibility today as never before to put into everyday action our faith...
...If you would succeed in life you must be solemn, solemn as an ass...
...You should always remember that the crowd looks up to the ringmaster and down to the clown...
...Bob came from Junior High after the local election this month and burst in the door with "Ma...
...I'd always thought he was a coming leader, but when I saw him recently he was so so disillusioned, really cynical...
...Time after time, as I listen to a news broadcast, I find myself unconsciously murmer-ing "I simply can't bear it...
...HOW are we going to bear it...
...Or will we muster out the strength that lies within each of us...
...I am very conscious of what it can do for the participant...
...No one is happier than he who lives his faith...
...But he got licked in the last election which means that he has had to make the choice between his family, or politics...
...However, Phil always laughs at me and says that even In the midst of such a good mood I begin planning on the next move...
...There is a breadth, a bigness in the individuals and in the family atmosphere when you find them working disinterestedly for our human cause...
Vol. 10 • May 1940 • No. 18
