Tim Donovan
One day in class, Lavenia hinted at a reason for the failure of one marriage. She said something like "the quietest man can be the sickest." I know it's dangerous to speculate on the basis of such gossamer evidence, but I think she was referring to a former husband, possibly the one surnamed Boykin. I note the daughter from that marriage apparently never married herself--a possible consequence of sexual abuse in childhood.
It's remarkable, even abnormal, that Lavenia kept tying the knot after at least one, and possibly several, bad experiences with men. That may have stemmed from a past or Southern milieu, in which a woman, to be respectable, must be married. Or it may have resulted from a character disorder, in which the allure of romance outweighed memories of past failures, however painful. One might suggest she had so much love to give no failure could daunt her.
It's remarkable, even abnormal, that Lavenia kept tying the knot after at least one, and possibly several, bad experiences with men. That may have stemmed from a past or Southern milieu, in which a woman, to be respectable, must be married. Or it may have resulted from a character disorder, in which the allure of romance outweighed memories of past failures, however painful. One might suggest she had so much love to give no failure could daunt her.
