tale telling

I recently read Anita Loos' Autobiography "A Girl Like I." She was quite a dame.

A screenwriter, playwright and author - an elegant lady who got her start around the time of the silent film era was taking off. She claims to be one of the first women to wear her hair in a bob and as a flapper, wit, international socialite and party girl, she knew everyone worth knowing for most of her life. You may be familiar with her as the author of the book "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes" that became the Broadway play then musical then movie. She is lively on the page. And probably even more so in life.

She recounts talking with her maid about life in Harlem during the Renaissance. Her maid described how sometimes money would get so tight that someone in the neighborhood couldn't make rent. When that happened people would throw that person a rent party. Folks would gather bringing food, music, drink and a few dollars to help out. They would dance and party down 'til dawn and the next day there was rent money for the landlord.

I love this story. It shows such generosity and community. I like the idea that helping someone in need can be done with joy and compassion without the recipient feeling shame or stigma.