From the Relief Society Magazine, February 1958 –

The Gift and the Giver

By Frances C. Yost

Miss Mattie Wilkins had come downtown to buy material for a new spring dress for herself. A new dress, she thought, would raise her spirits. Why, a new dress sometimes changed a person’s whole life. She walked through the stores, looking at the display of yardage on the shelves and counters. And then, suddenly, there it was, a blue and pink plaid, delicately shaded.

Miss Mattie paused, feeling the fine-textured cloth. It was fifty-four inches wide. Then, taking the material to a nearby mirror, she let it fall in folds before her. Draped about her face, the material made her eyes bluer, and made her heart soar. Why, Miss Mattie thought, one might even meet love, in a dress made of this.

“May I help you, Ma’am?” the clerk asked politely.

“Why, yes, I’ll take four yards of this material.” Then Miss Mattie added, “I want some thread, pink buttons, and a zipper to match.”

Miss Mattie watched the clerk run the material through the automatic measurer. The end of the bolt was nearing, was there enough for a dress?

The clerk was wearing a little worried frown, too, then her face turned to smiles and she looked up and said: “Four and one-eighth yards. The small extra piece is a gift from the store.”

“Thanks,” Miss Mattie murmured. Then she added, “I’m so glad there was enough.”

With the bundle under her arm, Miss Mattie hurried from the store. Just buying this beautiful piece of material had given a decided lilt to her step. But it wasn’t until she was home and glanced at the calendar that she remembered her sister Millie’s birthday, which was less than a week away.

“What can I give Millie?” Miss Mattie thought. There were so many things Millie always needed with her large, growing family. She always needed sheets and pillowcases, and towels and dish towels, and tablecloths and napkins. but this birthday, Mattie thought, I want to give her something personal, something lovely.

“I could give her the yardage I bought downtown!” Miss Mattie toyed with the idea. But she so wanted the dress for herself. however, she could get along with what she had. she certainly didn’t need a new dress nearly as much as did Millie.

Miss Mattie visualized her sister in the new pink and blue plaid. Millie’s eyes would seem even more blue. Millie might even want to make curtains for one of the upstairs bedrooms. The windows were so tiny, there would be cloth enough for a room, it was so wide, and lovely.

Miss Mattie wrote a note: ‘Happy Birthday, dear sister. I’m sending some yardage to use as you wish. all my love, Mattie.”

Quickly, lest she change her mind, and keep the material for herself, Mattie wrapped the cloth, the thread, the zipper, and the buttons. “I’ll mail it this very afternoon, so the package will get there well in time for her birthday,” Miss Mattie said.

As Millie Mathews took the package the mailman handed her, her heart seemed to flutter with excitement. “Thank you,” she said politely, but could hardly wait for the friendly postman to pass the time of day and be on his way. Hurriedly, she went to her room and opened the package.

“Why, it’s from Sister Mattie. It’s … it’s material for a new dress!” Millie feasted her eyes on the fine-textured material. “Bless dear Mattie’s heart,” she said softly.

Millie Mathews held up the material against her face as she looked into the mirror. The cloth made her eyes look more blue. “I know just how I’ll make the dress,” she said aloud. ‘I won’t show it to any of the family, until I have it all made. Then I’ll just put it on and surprise them.” Millie had a nice, warm feeling in her heart, just thinking about the lovely dress which would soon be hers to wear.

It was two days later that Millie Mathews went upstairs to see why her daughter Jody was so very quiet. She found Jody lying on her bed, and her eyes were red from crying. Jody was a sophomore in high school. As Millie looked at her through a mother’s eyes, she had to admit how really charming Jody was, even with the bridge of freckles across her nose.

Millie just couldn’t stand to see Jody unhappy. She put her arm around her and spoke ever so gently, “What’s wrong, Jody dear?”

“It’s really nothing, Mother.” Jody tried to squirm away.

“Please tell Mommie, Jody,” Millie pleaded.

“Well, Mother, I didn’t intend to worry you about it, because you probably can’t do anything about it either, but …” Jody hesitated and wiped away an unbidden tear.

“But maybe I can help, if you tell me,” Millie urged softly.

“Well, the senior class is sponsoring a dance a week from Friday, and Monte, you know that new boy who’s so nice … well, he asked me for a date, and well …” Jody’s voice hesitated, then, taking courage, continued, “Everyone will have new dresses for the dance, nice dresses with full skirts, fresh and pretty. I wish … I wish that I could shut my eyes and a fairy godmother would bring me cloth for a dress. I know just how I want it made.” Jody’s voice faded away with hopelessness.

Millie Mathews put her arms around her teenage daughter very tenderly. Millie thought of her sister Mattie. Would she care too much if she gave the material to Jody? What had the note said: ‘I’m sending you some yardage to use as you wish.” Well, she wished to use it for Jody. She would tell Mattie in the next letter about the dance, and how happy Jody was with the cloth she had sent. Mattie would understand a mother’s sacrifice. The material would look so very lovely on Jody. It was such a youthful color combination. Yes, this was what the material was meant for.

“Jody, shut your eyes, and give your fairy godmother two minutes.”

Millie slipped softly out of Jody’s room and quietly into her own room. Withdrawing the material, the thread, the buttons, and the zipper, and leaving the gift wrapping and the card sentiment tucked safely away in her drawer, Millie slipped back into Jody’s room and laid the material on her lap.

“Now, open your eyes, Jody dear,” Millie said excitedly.

“Oh, Mother, oh, Mother! It’s beautiful! It’ll make a gorgeous dress.” Jody ran with the material to the mirror and, dancing on her toes, exclaimed: ‘oh, Mother, you’re better than any fairy godmother!”

Nondus, Jody’s older sister, came home from college Friday evening. It had been a long time since Nondus had been home, and all the family were most happy to see her.

“It’s sure good to have you home again, Nondus,” Jody said.

“It’s just wonderful to be home,” Nondus replied. Then she added rather apologetically, “I know you never cared for hand-me-downs Jody, but maybe you won’t mind clothes that have been to college. the truth is, I just can’t squeeze into them anymore.” Nondus laid a number of nice dresses on Jody’s bed.

“Why, you’re not fat, Nondus, you’re cute,” Jody said.

“Thanks for the compliment, Jody, honey, it isn’t that I’m so fat, it’s just that I’m not a teen anymore. I guess I’ve reached womanhood, and these teen dresses just won’t stretch.” Nondus tried to appear cheerful about it, but she didn’t fool Jody.

“But Nondus, there’s just everything here!” Jody looked at the pile of clothing on the bed. “All the nice school clothes you took last fall, the party dress, your formal, just everything!” Jody was amazed.

“Yes, everything all right,” Nondus agreed, “and I’m not exactly happy about not being able to wear them. Confidentially, my wardrobe amounts to two straight wool skirts and two sweaters. Just between us, I haven’t the heart to tell Mother. She, well, she couldn’t do anything about new clothes right now. So …” Nondus managed a smile, “I’ll just make my sweaters and skirts do until school’s out, and then I’ll get a summer job and buy material to make me some summery dresses that fit.”

Jody looked at the avalanche of nice dresses she had suddenly fallen heir to. “Well, thanks, anyway,” she laughed quietly. “I guess your loss is my gain.”

“I guess,” Nondus agreed, then added warmly, “but I don’t know anyone I would rather give them to than you, Jody.”

Jody thought of the pretty blue and pink plaid material. It would look lovely on Nondus. Jody visualized for the last time the boys standing in line, waiting to dance with her. Just waiting for their turn to swing the girl in the pink and blue plaid dress. Then she visualized Nondus sitting in hot classrooms, wearing itchy sweaters and wool skirts, clear until June.

“Nondus, Mother gave me some cloth to make a dress for the dance next Friday, but now that you’ve given me all these nice clothes, well, I just won’t need it now. I want you to have it. It’s here in my drawer.”

Jody went over and withdrew the pink and blue plaid yardage, the thread, the buttons, and the zipper, and brought them over to Nondus.

“There’s a cute pattern for it, too. You were always good at altering patterns, if it’s a little small.” Jody was talking extra fast, as though if she didn’t get all the words out at once, she might change her mind and keep the dress for herself.

“And, Nondus, if we pitch in tomorrow morning, it’s Saturday, I could help you sew and we could have it all finished for you to take back to school. Why, you could even wear it Monday, if you wanted.”

Jody thought of her mother. Mother wouldn’t care that she had given it to Nondus. Mother was always so understanding and would consider it as a very generous act. mother knew how much the cloth really meant to her.

Jody looked at the array of clothes Nondus had laid on the bed. There was a red and white checked gingham, with a full skirt. It would look nice for the dance, if she washed and starched it. What was Nondus saying?

“Oh, Jody, oh, Jody! You don’t know what this means to me.” Nondus was exuberant. “When I, if I ever get out of college, and get a good paying job, I’m going to buy you some really lovely clothes. You’ll know what it’s like not to have to wear hand-me-downs, Jody. I, I guess it wounds over-sentimental, but, Jody …” Nondus blinked away a tear, and continued, “I do love you, Jody!”

Nondus wore the blue and pink gingham dress to a dance in the college recreation hall. Nondus was on the serv9ing committee, and she was pouring punch when a young man came up and spoke: “Pardon me. I’m bob southerly … I live at ivy Hall … Home town Bakersfield … I’m a senior … majoring in accounting … May I have this dance?”

It had all come out in one breath, and realizing the way it sounded, he laughed sheepishly. Nondus caught the humor of it, too, and laughed softly with him.

Nondus scrutinized the young man standing before her. he was tall and neatly dressed, with a clean appearance, a nice smile, and dark wavy hair.

‘I’d be happy to dance this one.” Nondus knew she was blushing. Then she added shyly, “I’m Nondus Mathews.”

“You’ve been around all year, and I wait until spring to find you. I’m slipping!” bob Southerly smiled. Then he added, “You see, I’ve kept my nose to the grindstone. Majoring in accounting is stiff, but I believe I’ve made the grade, and, well … I felt like I should relax and loosen up my joints at a dance tonight.” He laughed softly.

Later that evening, Bob Southerly said: “I don’t want to sound sentimental, but when I saw you there, pouring punch in that pretty dress, I knew you were the girl I’ve been dreaming about.”

Nondus thought, funny what a new dress would do for you. She knew there would be other dances, other dates.

Nondus thought of dear Aunt Mattie, who had never married, and who was the original giver, as Mother had explained while they were making the dress. Aunt Mattie would be happy to know about Bob Southerly. She would write and tell her about him, and about the blue and pink plaid dress that had sort of introduced them. Perhaps if Aunt Mattie had had a dress like this, when she was young, things just might have been different for her, too.