Els had never had any grand ideas of adventure. Her one brush with it had left her shipwrecked and it wasn't something she had ever cared to repeat. No, Elsie left her adventuring to novels these days. When she even had free time to do that. Still, knowing Caroline had come from the States looking for grand adventure did start to help sort the pieces.

She listened intently, sipping her tea and pushing her free hand against the little foot stretching into her rib cage. Elsie could sort of relate to finding herself somewhere she hadn't expected; only her reality was much better than the future she had once envisioned. "This wasn't the adventure you imagined then." Elsie could more than relate to not wanting to be stuck home all of the time, devoting every waking minute to her children and the house. It was why she still wanted to work at the library. Her profession was a lot of who she was; she was not just a mother, nor just a wife. She was everything all rolled into one and without each piece she would feel entirely lopsided.

"I'm afraid I don't have much advice, nor am I very big on unsolicited advice to being with," Elsie had gotten plenty over her lifetime. "But if you don't simply want to be a wife and mother, don't. Find something else that helps fulfill your worth. I would be absolutely insane without the library. It may not be grand adventures anymore, but you can find ways to fill your time that are meaningful to you." It was practically unheard of for women like them. Elsie should have quit working as soon as it was obvious she was with child the first time, but she simply couldn't fathom not working anymore. Truthfully it kept her balanced, even if it sometimes added to her plate.

"I know it's not that easy, but if you truly want more, sometimes you have to go find it."