[jdviole2]

Helena always told friends that I had corrupted her. It is true, I guess. When we met she had not been exposed to the range of things that I had. I suppose that is what led her to ask all the questions about Naples and its seedy side. Her language was that of a lady. She might give out with a hell or damn but nothing more exotic than that. Terms she might use about sex were no worse than you might have heard anywhere. Periodically, more in the earlier years less in the later years as her knowledge grew, I would use a word or phrase that she did not know. She would demand an explanation. In the explanation I also included data on when not to use the word/phrase. I used my mom as my litmus paper. I would tell Helena that this one she should not use in front of my mother. In a very short while she grew very adept at "reading the room". She could tell in just a few minutes what kind of language would be acceptable and what wouldn't. It was funny to watch. She wouldn't say much at first then would gradually begin to join the conversation. I loved watching that. In a certain group of people you would swear that she was born and raised in a convent. Not even a damn or hell would come out. In the right crowd, however, you might swear that she had been a prostitute. She could use all the right words and phrases, and in the correct context. She was right. I had corrupted her. I'm not bragging about that. Not my greatest accomplishment. It did make her better able to navigate the world though. And know what was going on. I remember a party and two of the women were talking about the husband of a third. Apparently he and his wife performed some kind of sex act and the story teller couldn't remember the right name. Helena came to the rescue and provided the correct term and then rejoined her conversaton about quilting. The two women were speechless. With her face people underestimated what she could do or could and would say. I miss hearing her voice. Hey, I still had lots of words to teach her. On to the pictures for today. The first picture is at the Little Bo Peep gift shop that used to be in Branson Missouri. I am showing this because Helena did the design of the lamb and the original drawing that the owner used as the LOGO for her business. This was a freebie since the owner was a friend of Helena's mother. The second shows Helena in front of the LA Museum of Art. We wanted to see the King Tut exhibit I had seen in London but we couldn't get tickets. This was in, I think, 1976. The third is Helena in another shot similar to some I have posted before. In the next picture she is in a garden area but I don't remember where. It was also in the late 70's. The next one is Helena dwarfed by a desert plant. This was in the late 70's in Joshua Tree Natural Park, in California. The last picture is Helena in California in the early 80's. I do not remember exactly where.