More stories about marriage

Every once in a while it is enjoyable to sit down with a book that is rather old-fashioned and simple. I discovered the reprinting of D.E.Stevenson's Miss Buncle's Book last year at the book store. This title was originally published in 1934 and its sequel, Miss Buncle Married followed in 1936. Life was a lot different then for Miss Buncle and her creator Dorothy Emily Peploe (nee Stevenson). Like many women of her time she didn't have the opportunity for a university education as her father worried about educated women in the family. She started writing at a young age and in secret. Lucky for us that she found a publisher to take on her work and share it with the world.

Miss Buncle finding herself rather short of cash looks for a way to earn some and turns to writing a book. She, like many authors, writes what she knows and her novel about a small village full of interesting characters is born. The only problem is that she hasn't successfully hidden the true nature of her neighbors and when the book is published under the pseudonym of John Smith, everyone is up in arms. She lives in terror of the day when she should be found out. When that day does come, she is spirited away by her publisher, Mr.Abbott.

When next we encounter Miss Buncle, she is now Mrs. Abbott and she's on the hunt for a new home for the two of them. She chooses a run down home in the little village of Wandlebury, but she alone can see what it and the garden can become. Lo and behold she pulls off a miracle and husband and wife happily become part of the community. Of course plenty of shenanigans occur but I will not spoil it for you.

Near the very end I found this quote: "It's turned out all right after all, she said contentedly. "Things usually do, somehow. You worry and fuss and try to make things go the way you think they should, and then you find that the other way was best. I'm going to try not to worry about things anymore." (p. 323) What a great piece of advice! So much of my life I have spent an inordinate amount of energy and time on worrying about things when all along they seem to come out all right. I need to give up the worry and just enjoy the moment. The wasted energy prevents me from having enough for living life to the fullest. Mrs. Abbott who thought she wasn't very clever is the most clever of us all.