Henry enjoyed Elvis Presley because of his Country roots, while
Juliette enjoyed his rockier side. While that didn’t seem to be a
significant issue, it did cause a bit of a rift between the two of
them. The rift was further widened when Henry expressed his support
for Vice President Nixon and Juliette preferred the handsome young
Senator Kennedy in the upcoming Presidential elections. Kennedy’s
beautiful wife, Jackie, was an inspiration to many young women, and
Juliette was not alone in her adoration of her keen sense of style
and, some might say, majestic presentation.
Juliette found an ally in Annette, both in her musical tastes as
well as choice of candidates. With the busyness of raising their
children the two had not had much opportunity to spend any time
together. Now that the boys were enrolled in school, it was easier
to make the impromptu visit, and sometimes accompany each other on
a girls’ day out shopping, having lunch and general
gossiping.
“Henry and I had a big fight last night,” Juliette confessed to
Annette after she had settled in for a morning visit. “It’s that
Tricky Dick. Henry adores him, but I can’t stand him. I’m ashamed
that I voted for him in 1956.”
“You voted for him?” Annette asked for clarification.
“Well, not him exactly, but I wanted to show my support for
President Eisenhower. He did us a great service when I was
born.”
Annette seemed momentarily confused, trying to associate the
President with Juliette’s birth. “Oh!” she exclaimed as she
explained her confusion.
Juliette had a knack for numbers and did a quick calculation in
her head. “Come to think of it, he would have been about Kennedy’s
age when I was born. Do you think he was as handsome?” Juliette
chuckled.
The two laughed a bit at the absurdity of the comparison, and
continued their conversation.
“That Jack Kennedy is a dreamboat, and I positively adore Jackie,”
Juliette remarked. “But Henry thinks he’s too young to be an
effective leader.”
“That ridiculous,” countered Annette. “Nixon’s only four years
older. That’s not a very great gap.”
“Henry thinks that his experience of the last eight years as the
Vice President makes him the better candidate,” suggested Juliette.
“To me, he was a failure.”
Angela, who had been playing quietly in the other room, wandered
and interrupted the conversation. “Mommy, I’m hungry.”
The two looked at little Angela and Annette suggested, “Let’s
continue this conversation over lunch.”
“Let’s not. I’m getting too flustered all over again,” Juliette
replied.
“One final word, and then I’m done for now. You can’t let this
affect your home life, but don’t back down. It’s important that we
girls are heard, too.” Annette didn’t realize it, but she was
speaking for a generation.