It is ironic that a doctor's child would be as we used to say "crippled". She used crutches to walk, the old style wooden kind with no cross arm protectors. On her thin legs she wore marvelous braces. The one on the left leg was a full length kafo with a locked knee. The one on right was a half length afo. Both braces had dark brown leather cuffs. The bands around the back of her calves were bare metal. (Most braces in this period had bare metal bands on the back). On her feet she wore black and white saddle shoes and white bobby socks. She had gorgeous blond curly hair and small breasts just starting to show as high bumps on her bosom. I was instantly in love with her and at the same time frightened to even talk with her.

I remember observing her sitting down on one of the folding metal chairs. I was fascinated watching her reach down under her dress hem so she could pull up the knee lock on the side of the brace upright allowing her leg to bend before she could sit down. Her brace made a clanging sound as the metal parts around the back of her thigh and the metal uprights hit the seat. After she settled into the chair, her feet were off the floor hanging over the edge not moving because of the tightly fitted restricting braces. I think she new I was watching her but she pretended not to even notice that I was there as she he pressed down her dress hem to make her legs less noticable.

We were in this violyn class for a little more than a year. It would take me a while to get up the courage to talk with her or ask her out for a date. At this time in my life she was the most beautiful girl I had ever seen.

The class met twice a week on the second floor of an old school building. Of course to get to the second floor the pupils had to climb about twenty steps. It was always a spectacular sight watching Martha and Marjorie climbing these steps one at a time with their stiff legs and crutches. Marjorie would put both crutches under her left arm and hold onto the railing with her right hand. Then she would push up lifting her legs to the next step. I would try to time my arrival to coincide with the stair climbing. I loved to admire her braced legs showing below her full skirted dress hem with flowing pettycoats. Usually Marjories's mother came with her to help her up the stairs by holding her violin case and music. One day for some unknown reason, her mother did not come with her to help her. This was my first opportunity to talk with her. I would offer to help carry some of her belongings. Too bad I was not older or stronger I could even carry her up stairs.

Marjorie looked right into my eyes and not even flinching said "I would love it if you would carry my violin up for me. You go ahead up though it will take me a while to reach the top of these stairs. I am very slow because I can only climb one step at a time". I did as she said even though I wanted to walk up with her step by step so we could talk and get better acquainted. I ran up the stairs and walked into the practice room. Where I waited for her to arrive. I heard her struggling with each step. We were in an old building which seemed to amplyfy sounds. I could hear her breathing and singing to herself. Her crutches made a thumping sound and her braces jingled as her limp feet landed on each step. At last she came into the room and with a bright smile, thanked me for helping her.

She was really pretty this day wearing a gingham jumper dress with smocking on the bosom which showed off her small breasts and her very skinny waist. She also had on a silky white blouse under the dress which made her look like a gypsy princess. Her hair was just perfect as usual, dark blond with curls. And her deep starring blue eyes looked at me with a distant smile.

I gazed at her braces as she walked over to her seat and noticed heavy leather cuffs encircling each ankle and a 1 inch thicker sole on her left shoe as well. Latter on I realized the muscles in her left leg were more atrophied than her right causing that leg to be shorter. Of course the most prominent feature looking at her from behind was the bare shinny metal calf band around the back of each leg. Every time I saw her I realized how how firmly these braces were supporting her weak legs.