MISS MATTIE Chapter 10

Searching out the Best for Matties Future
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From the time when Mattie came to live with her, Mrs. Martin had looked forward to when it was time for Mattie to get married.

She never discussed this with Mattie but she was evaluating the prospective males within their circle, and also many who were not.

Early on, she was able to eliminate many of them for they had been living off their parents, and in the future they would plan to feed on their wife's inheritance.

Mrs. Martin knew that when the word went around that Mattie might come into a large amount of money when she died, these men would be flocking around her like flies.  

There were about a dozen young men, she was watching very closely to see how they developed, and she made sure Mattie didn't know about it.

At the age of sixteen guys started to pay more attention to Mattie for she was beginning to look like a woman should. They were from all walks of life. 

Some knew they would never had a chance with her, but figured they had nothing to lose so why not try.

Trying to discourage them became a tiresome job.   

Mattie developed a repertoire of things to say like; “If I tried real hard I might like you as a friend.” or “You are just not my type,” or, “I just don't feel that way about you” and last resort "Get lost."

Just Checking !!
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While Mrs. Martin was checking young men out as prospective suitors for Mattie in the future, Mattie was trying to figure out what she wanted in a man.

She attended all kinds of social events with different fellows but none of them impressed her beyond an evening out.

The one thing she didn't want was to be a farmer’s wife for there she would be kept from doing what she had been preparing for many years to do.  Anyhow husband hunting was something for the future and not to worry about for now.

Mattie had studied accounting in school but she wanted to get certified as a C.P.A.  It wasn't that she wanted to become one, she just wanted to get the knowledge that the training would give her.  

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During her last summer vacation she worked for a brokerage firm, and after that it was one year of college in business administration, and she also planned to audit some related classes.

It was a long year for she was anxious to get started in the business world.

 

She attended church as time allowed just to keep herself on the right track spiritually.

Her Ma and Pa were getting along in age and she wanted to help them enjoy an easier life but she had heard that both had contacted the flu and were very weak.

She went to them and did what she could while relieving her sisters who had borne the brunt of care up to then. Their age worked against them and first it was pa and then shortly after ma joined him in death.

Seemed the whole town turned out for the funeral and showed what good neighbors are all about. Mattie told her sisters they could share the home place and the feed store to do what ever they wished to do with them.

She felt that this was right for they had watched over their parents ever since Mattie went away to live with Mrs. Martin. In the last few days the weeping was gone but the sadness remained along with the memories of running through the fields with the dogs and all the happy moments during those first few years.

How things had changed, how different she was? The old life no longer existed with the death of ma and pa, and the new horizon is no longer hampered by the past. 

To be Continued