Rosemary Walls

               Sometimes Rosemary Walls confuses me. At times, it seems that she puts herself before her children and truly regrets having them. The kids have to drag her out of bed to go to work while she whines and complains. Does something sound wrong there? She pampers herself while her children starve. For example, she bought a chocolate bar and stored in in her bed. When she kept going under the sheets, the children thought something was up. She claimed her teeth were hurting her and that she was chewing on the sheets to make them feel better. When the children pulled the sheets back, they found a half eaten chocolate bar beneath the sheets. They confiscated the rest and divided it equally between themselves. The family hadn't had a decent meal in ages and there was their mother, of all people, indulging herself on a chocolate bar. Other times, she would take her paycheck and spend some of it on food, but then also put down-payments on extravagances, as she called them. They had crystal vases and no food to eat, the house was falling apart, and none of the kids had decent clothes for the winter.

            Another example of her selfishness was when Brian and Jeannette found a two-carat diamond ring in the woods. They assumed it had belonged to the woman who owned their house before them. The children intended to sell it and spend the money on something useful like food, but Mrs. Walls decided she would keep it for herself. Mr. Walls had pawned her wedding ring shortly after they were married and she wanted to keep this one as a replacement. Mrs. Walls claimed that the ring boosted her self esteem and at times such as the ones they were facing, your self-esteem could be more important than food. To me, this seems a little bit ridiculous.

          In addition to not selling the ring, she also owned land in Texas. That land was worth about a million dollars and she refused to sell it. She wanted to keep it in the family. So as the kids went hungry and were attempting to keep warm, she kept her precious vase, diamond ring, and plot of land in Texas.