"Good morning dear. Are you alright?" Lovey asked as she and Maggie descended the stairs. Maggie looked tired.
"I think I'll be alright, but I think I may have more bad dreams."
"You had bad dreams, darling? Why didn't you wake me?"
"Ms. Williams heard me crying and tried to get me to sleep."
"Oh dear how dreadful, bad dreams and not much sleep. Maybe we can give you a sedative tonight or you can tell me about your dreams. At Vassar the first lady analyst had taught Lovey psychoanalysis she wanted to actually use it someday!
"I can wake you up at night?"
"Yes, no matter how late, dear."
"Would Mr… I mean Father mind?
"Well he may be grumpy, but you can come to me."
"Thank you Mother."
"You're welcome dear. I won't be home until after dinner tonight. I have two meetings. One in Providence and one in New York, both of them are to help children who've been raised by people who aren't nice to them."
"Other people do that to children too?"
"Unfortunately yes, dear. Many people want to help the children. My first meeting is with people who the Governor chose to see how we can try to stop those bad things from happening."
"He must be a very good man."
"Yes dear, a Republican, a very good man."
"The organization in New York was started because a long time ago a social worker discovered a girl like you; your age that had lived with people who treated her like those horrid Irish people treated you. There were no organizations to help. Her lawyer came from an organization that helped animals not to get hurt by people, turtles even." Lovey found this horrid! As if turtle abuse was an issue!
"Children should've been helped before turtles."
"Yes, dear that's what the people who founded the organization to help children thought. Cook is making blueberry crêpes for breakfast!
Too bad, I really wanted pancakes, thought Maggie. She was still not used to being assertive, so she said, "I like those, Mother!" (She did, but liked pancakes better!)
After breakfast, in the limo Lovey left with her favorite coffee drink, Coffee with sugar, milk and vanilla.
At her first meeting, Lovey met professionals; legislators, lawyers, doctors, psychologists, clergy, social workers, teachers and foster parents and a couple who had recently adopted an abused child. They were not all on the Social Register, but her work on both of the committees that strove to protect children seemed more important than the board of directors of cultural institutions, in Lovey's opinion. She left New York City that evening thanking God that she could continue to help these poor dears like Maggie.