They were almost too much for their equally tired
mother, so half of them sat on Desire's lap most of the time.
desire's half seemed to bounce a great deal and gave bubbly kisses,
but the rings around its fat wrist and the pink dimples in its
fingers were well worth while keeping clean and cool just to look
at. It was true, as Desire reminded herself, that she did not care
for children, but anyone might find a round, fat one with cooey
laughs a pleasant thing to play with! She did it mostly when Benis
was in the smoker with John.
At Winnipeg the honeymoon couple left them and the old lady from
Golden, much to her disgust, was also compelled to stay over for a
day because her middle-aged daughter was train-sick. Other and less
interesting faces took their places.
Desire watched them hopefully but the only one who seemed appealing
was a sturdy prairie school teacher going "home." Desire liked the
school teacher. She was so solid, so sure of herself, so wrapped up
in and satisfied with something which she called "education." She
asked Desire where she had been educated. desire did not seem to
know. "Just anywhere," she said, "when father felt like it and had
time. And I taught myself shorthand."
"Then you aren't really educated at all?" said the teacher with
frank pity. "What a shame! Education is so important."
Benis was frankly afraid of her.
"But you need not be," Desire assured him. "She looks up to you. She
thinks that, being a professor, you have even more education than
she has.
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