More ‘Brutal Frankness’

The letter from the older single male extolling the virtues of younger women merely reinforced my belief that there are darn few men, just mostly varying degrees of little boys.

So he and others can’t bear the thought of sharing their wives with children. It’s out of the question to ask them to share themselves with children. The idea of a grown man considering himself the rival, with a child, for a woman’s attention is nauseating and ridiculous. . . .

Far too many women define their femininity in terms of the presence or absence of a man in their lives. They wonder, “What’s wrong with me that I’m not loved?” instead of asking themselves, “What’s wrong with them that they can’t love me (or anyone else)?”

As for me, I will fill my life with good things that make it pleasant. If no man fits into that category, so be it. Like the spinster told her well-meaning friends, “I’ve got a parrot with filthy language, a dog that makes a mess and a cat that stays out all night. What do I need a man for?”

VIRGIE BREWER

Bakersfield