Russ Was Chivalrous

I liked my grandmother Throcky's long-term boyfriend Russ because he was unfailingly good-natured and he seemed to love her. I was happy when he visited. He was lively! But she would not marry him and they eventually went their separate ways. Years later she handed me a pretty white fur bonnet, saying that it was a gift from him, because I "should have something nice." She seemed very annoyed (shamed?) and I did not know what to make of such a fine and expensive gift. I kept it for many years wrapped in the tissues of the luxury furrier's hatbox, but I never wore it because it did not go with my shabby clothing.

My paternal grandmother Throcky with her boyfriend Russ 1950s