THE NEXT GENERATION My parents and grandparents faced the most oppressive governments, the worst wars, and the greatest challenges, but the next generation, the one they gave birth to, had a strength and courage of its own, and faced its own formidable challeng- es. If you have read this far you know how much I love and respect my husband. He is also the best possible father our children could have. THE WORKING MOTHER At one point I decided it would be a good idea for me to work a couple of days a week. I took Herman’s car and went to work for Pearl and Al in their very nice, new shop in Overbrook Park. I did that for a while and then decided that a full-time housewife and mother was what I really wanted to be. A CHILD’S PERSPECTIVE Children see the world differently than adults. Michael and Frankie were arguing once about whose Nana was whose. Michael felt that Nana Dora was Frank’s because Frank often stayed at her house. So whenever Dora called we began to tell Michael that his Nana Dora wanted to talk to him – hoping to eliminate the idea that she belonged only to Frankie. When I think of it, he was so smart to notice Nana Dora was spending more time with Frank than with him. I think we finally solved the problem. Children have a different concept of time as well. Once Frankie got up at 6:30 in the morn- ing. I got up with him so I could be in the room with him while he played. He disappeared into the kitchen for a moment and when I asked what he was doing he said he had called his friend David’s house to ask him over to play. He said that David’s father had answered and said he would tell David when he woke up. For Frankie the sun was shining and it was time to play, not sleep. In the interest of the good neighbor policy I told Frank to wait until after breakfast before he called again. Shortly after that we had a big snow storm and one of my neighbors called and told me that some of our neighbors’ phones had gotten mixed up from storm damage. She said she had picked up the phone one day and heard this heavy breath- ing and that she kept saying, hello, hello, but no
Dorothy and Herman Shooster
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