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Show *205- inform his mother. At the moment, this seemed almost as horrible as the death i t s e l f . She had never accepted any of the warnings. She was certain her prayers would suffice. When he reached the house, a l l was dark. His mother and the rest of the family were in bed. He entered quietly and turned on only a single l i g h t . As he opened his mother's bedroom door, she sat up. Seeing the look on her face, he could not speak. She was pleading for hope. He could only shake his head. He saw his mother's mouth open, but the sound that emerged was something he had never before heard. He could only call i t "a wail of grief." It went on as he moved to her and put his arm about her shoulders. The only word distinguishable was the word, "no!" uttered over and over. He could scarcely hold her and was surprised at the strength he could feel through his fingers. She subsided into sobs finally and turned her face into his shoulder. After that night, she didn't cry publicly again, although there were times, such as when she stood before the casket, when tears came into her eyes. The Professor pondered for years his own response to his father's death. Was i t genuine grief? he asked himself, or was i t more regret - regret that his father had not lived long enough to see and acknowledge his son's accomplishments? The reconciliation begun when the boy returned home and graduated from college, continued when his father had paid the v i s i t to |