The Class Menagerie

him part of the capitalist pig army she was devoted to eradicating. She wouldn’t have gone out with any male who didn’t have a beard and long hair and a dirty T-shirt with something obscene written on it.“
    “I know something that will surprise you about her,“ Jane said, and explained what she and Crispy had found in Kathy’s purse. “... so apparently she’s quite well-off,“ she finished the account. “I didn’t mean to snoop, but when I saw the watch and ring and the checkbook with that balance…“
    “I’d have snooped, too,“ Mimi said. “How fascinating.“
    “Crispy says the rule of reunions is that nobody is what they seem to be.“
    “Almost nobody,“ Mimi agreed. “I haven’t the imagination to invent a persona for myself.“
    “I wonder who Crispy really is,“ Jane said.
    Mimi laughed. “God only knows! She’s deliberately put on so many layers of charming, utterly fake personality that there’s no telling what’s underneath.“
    “And Lila? Who was Lila?“ Jane asked. Kathy came slouching in and sprawled in the chair next to Jane. “Are you going to finish that sandwich? May I have it?
    “Sure, help yourself,“ Jane said, noticing now that the watch and ring line and condition of her hands were truly obvious when you knew to look.
    “I’m telling Jane a little bit about all of us,“ Mimi said. “I’m trying to think how to describe Lila.“
    In competition with everybody,“ Kathy mumbled through a big bite of sandwich.
    “You’re right. I never thought about it that way, but that’s what was so irritation about her back in high school,“ Mimi said, obviously surprised at Kathy being so on-target. “Not only in competition, but thinking she was winning every round and constantly talking about her imagined victories. She had better clothes than anybody, a better hairdresser, better grades—except for Beth, of course—and far better breeding.“
    “All those Adamses she was always shooting off her mouth about,“ Kathy said, reaching over and polishing off Jane’s drink.
    Mimi smiled. “I remember. She was always trying to knock us out with the fact that she was related to John Adams and we couldn’t have caren’t less. Now, if she’d been related to Mick Jagger—“
    “Lila?“ Kathy laughed.
    Mimi went on, “Naturally, Beth drove her wild. Beth was not only genuinely better at everything, but she was gracious about it and Lila coudn’t stand it. They both decided to run for president of the Ewe Lambs our senior year and when Beth found out, she withdrew, saying she didn’t like to compete with a friend. Lila, of course, thought she was being patronized and Beth really meant she didn’t want to embarrass her by beating her. Which was probably true. It infuriated Lila. She was such a fool.“
    “Is that why she was niggling at Beth about that Supreme Court thing last night?“ Jane asked.
    “That and general nastiness,“ Mimi said. “She was really a very bitter, unhappy person. God knows … She had every advantage you’d think anybody could want. Yes, she probably still felt she was in competition with Beth and as it looked like Beth was way in front, she had to drag her back. I’d like to meet the person who could really find out anything bad about Beth. It’s just not possible.“
    “Oh, I don’t know. She probably has some skeleton in her closet. Everybody does, “ Kathy said.
    “You’re just saying that because she’s a judge and you’re a rebel,“ Mimi said with a smile.
    “Yeah, sure I am—“ Kathy sat up and looked straight at Jane. “I’ve been meaning to mention to you that you did a nice job of cleaning up my room. Even the contents of my purse are neat and tidy.“

- 10 -

    “I didn’t want all of you to know how I’d failed,“ Kathy was weeping noisily five minutes later.
    Mimi sat on the arm of Kathy’s chair, patting her shoulder and making sympathetic noises. “You’re hardly a failure, Kathy. We all grow up and change. There’s nothing shameful about that. In fact, it’s a good thing we don’t have to stay what we were as teenagers all our lives.“
    “But most of you changed for the better. All I accomplished was to just marry a man who invented a gadget that made us rich. Beth’s a big-deal judge, probably going to end up on the Supreme Court someday, for God’s sake! Crispy got pretty and stylish and funny. You’re gorgeous and happy with yourself.“
    “I don’t mean to be catty, but there