Stories My Mother Told Me

That reminds me of a story my mother told me about a girl she knew named Mabel Ringling. Mabel claimed to be related to the famous Ringlings of Ringling Brothers' Circus. Mabel had a habit of twisting her hair, which was curly--a mass of ringlets. Mabel decided to form an exclusive club; I believe it was the Jolly Four club.
Mabel's three friends were very happy for a time. Soon, though, they found that when they wanted to do things with other friends, Mabel always had to know all about it. Mabel was very jealous of those who were not in the Jolly Four club but who had the friendship of other members of the Jolly Four club. Soon, Mabel made one of the other girls uncomfortable enough about her other friends that she quit the Jolly Four club.

Pretty soon, the other two non-Mabel members of the new Jolly Three club quit for similar reasons, so Mabel formed the Jolly One club.

The rest of the girls felt kind of bad for Mabel, always planning great celebrations and adventures for the Jolly One club.

The moral of the story is that it's pretty hard to have a secret handshake when you are the only member of the club.

(Author's note: After speaking to my mother, a very different story emerged. I didn't remember the story correctly at all.)

Mabel Ringling was actually a girl who went to the University of Montana and studied music. My mother feels that she should have concentrated on Equestrian Science instead, since she was a marvelous horsewoman. My mother felt that Mabel didn't really belong at music school.

The girl who had the Jolly One Club was a sadder case indeed, one that makes my mother feel bad to this day.

The club was actually the Jolly Seven Club. The little girl, Dee-Suse, was NOT included in the club. My mother was. She and her little friends excluded Dee-Suse because her family was not quite as "normal" as the other girls' families. Dee-Suse was not excluded for being snobby, but for wanting to be part of the smart girls' set. Dee-Suse made up "The Jolly One Club" as a little solace for her own lonely little self.

Sad, but true. It's not easy not to be just like everybody else. Especially if everybody else is young and petty and cruel.