The Pittsburgh Press (December 22, 1945)
Ferguson: Empty adventures
By Mrs. Walter Ferguson
Footloose is a word that always has had a fascination for men. Today women also know its meaning. World War II opened up new avenues of adventure and life to millions of girls. The appeal of travel and change is understandable. Carefree, without responsibility, able to roam, questing for adventure, following new trails, flirting with the morning star – no wonder these phrases allure them.
For girls as well as boys are born with itching feet. And, within four years, hundreds of thousands of our own have cast off from their home moorings and gone out to find new adventures and new lives.
Will they be any happier than the stay-at-homes? I doubt it.
Footloose people, as we call them, have done a great deal for humanity. The first men who sailed uncharted seas to find new continents created wealth and homes and felicity for millions. But except for the momentary thrills, what did they get out of it for themselves? Not much except longings, restlessness, sighs, homesickness. Columbus, after his many travels, found peace in a prison cell.
A footloose man may be a romantic figure but he is seldom a contented being. And as for women, there is no such thing as a roaming heart. Our feet may wander far, but in our souls, there is always a yearning for some secure place. A good many of our soldier wanderers tell us now that the sweetest sight to their eyes are the hills, the valleys or the mountains – of home.
So perhaps it is a mistake for us to think that moving about will satisfy women – or men, for that matter. A small fixed spot which is our own may mean responsibilities and work, but it also means loving ties. Without those three things life loses its savor.