Your Coca-Cola Bottler presents Claudia. Music Claudia, based on the original stories by Rose Franken, brought to you transcribed Monday through Friday by your friendly neighbor who bottles Coca-Cola. Relax, and while you're listening, refresh yourself. Have a Coke. And now, Claudia. Say, David, you awake? Mm-hmm. Is it Sunday? No, it's Tuesday. That's what I thought. Say, David, I've been thinking. How much longer is our lease here? Ooh, two months. Then we'll have to move. Brilliant. And where are we moving to? I have no idea. That's just it. We move in two months and we have no place to move to. My heart bleeds for me. Well, aren't you concerned at all? Well, certainly I am. But it's not the most important thing in the world by a long shot. Well, it is to me. And I'm going to find an apartment today. And where is this apartment you're planning to find today? Not far from here. Mama called last night after you were in bed with your cold. She said she heard about a house that was just starting to be reconverted, to be ready in about two months. What do you think of that? I think that's pretty wonderful. You don't look as if you thought it. You look as though you had something else on your mind. Not a thing. Not a thing on my mind, but you. Say, I've got to hurry. I want to leave with you so I can be the first person there. Oh, there'll be a traffic jam in the bathroom. No, there won't. I'll go put on the coffee while you brush your teeth. Then I can brush my teeth while you get dressed. Good, good. And say, David, do you mind if I squeeze a can today? It'll be faster than oranges. No, I don't mind. Just so you take out all the pits out of the label. I'll use the strainer. Oh, and David, be sure you wear a warm suit. And please be careful today. I won't sit down in puddles. I won't wade through drafts. I won't get warm. I won't get cold. Sounds pretty good. Say, David. Hmm? Listen, if we were to get this apartment, it'd be the sort of thing that doesn't happen to people. But it's got to happen to somebody, so it might as well happen to us, don't you think? David, you haven't been listening to a word I said. Hmm? What's that? Oh, sure, sure. I didn't miss a thing. What did I say? Well, you said... You didn't listen. No, darling, I didn't. My mind wandered off for a minute. Darling, what were you thinking of? Nothing. Nothing special. Is anything wrong? No. Why should anything be wrong? I don't know. Ever since we got out this morning, you seem to be thinking of something else. You only listened to half of what I said. Well, I catched the other half the second time around. And you're already excited about the apartment the way I thought you'd be. I'll get excited when and if we get it. Oh, I'd rather be excited now. Because then if we don't get it, I'll have had all the fun beforehand anyway. That's one way of looking at it. Well, I am ready for breakfast. I don't know. You still don't look right to me. What's the matter now? Am I tie crooked? No, it's your face. Crooked? No, just different. Not like you. You're sure your cold's all right? My cold is doing fine. Hey, let me feel your forehead. Get away from my forehead. I was only going to feel... I thought I was going to have to... I wasn't going to have to wait for you. You won't have to. I'll tie my shoes with my toast. That'll be attractive. The coffee should be ready by now. Oh, David, please smile. I haven't seen you smile all morning. How's this? Not very good. You look like a pumpkin. Don't you like pumpkins? I like pumpkins all right, but I like you better. I like you to be happy. Especially in the mornings. Then give me my coffee and my toast. And your boots and your saddle. Please, can you tell me who I ask about an apartment? In this house? Lady, we've only just begun. There ain't no apartments here. But there will be, won't there? Sure, there will be in time. We just started on the job. Well, how big are the apartments going to be? Two rooms, three rooms, and four rooms. Four rooms? Can you tell me how much the rent is? Lady, I'm just the builder. I make apartments. I don't rent them. Well, isn't there anybody here I can talk to about it? Sure, she's right here and I'll call her for you. Thank you. Thank you very much. Hey, Super, guess what? Somebody wants to see you about an apartment. Say, you sound as though there have been a lot of people ahead of me already. You didn't think you'd be the first, did you? Well, yes, lady. I'm waiting to see the superintendent. I will help you. I am the superintendent. Oh, I thought you'd be a man. I live here. I used to be the cook. Now they are making over the house and I am watching over. And you live here with all this noise going on? It is quiet at night. Oh, you know, I never realized that a house could have so much undone and still stand up. They are only just beginning. You have come about an apartment, huh? There's a lot of people before me, I guess. Yes, but it is foolish. The house is not finished maybe for six months. Well, I know, but I thought I could make a reservation for one. Could you tell me about them? Two rooms, three rooms, four rooms. More I cannot tell, but I will give you address of the man who sells them. Who sells them? You mean you rent some? Oh, no, they sell these apartments, cooperative. You buy them and you own them. Oh, it's that kind of a house. Oh, you don't want to buy apartments? I, if I was going to buy something, I'd buy a house. We only want to rent. I am sorry, that you will not find here. I thought it was too good to be true. You look some more, you will find. I've been looking, you know, it's not so easy. No, no, nothing is so easy these days. I'm afraid not. Well, anyway, we don't have to really worry for two months. Oh, that's good. Look at all those soldiers, there must be a parade. Oh, look, they're so young. And they wear uniforms to march in a parade for a war they hardly know about. You mean the first war? Yes. Armistice day is for the first war. So they will march. Most of them look too young to fight even in the last war. But not too young to be in the army now. Men marched to the first war, then to another war. Now men march to remember. Most of these boys are too young to have anything to remember. I'm afraid I am too. Was your husband in the war? Oh, I wasn't married to him during the war. I was lucky, wasn't I? It was all over when we met. You were lucky, yes. And I wasn't around for the first war. It seems like I just got under the rope both times. I got into the rope, like you say, both times. My husband, my son. Twice wars, twice my men they go. How awful. I suppose it's something you never get used to, saying goodbye. Never. Now I try to get used to being lonesome. All the time lonesome. You shouldn't be lonesome now, unless... Oh, no. That couldn't have happened. Yes, it happened. First my husband, then 30 years later my boy. In the Pacific, the Solomon Island. It is a place I never even heard of before. And every year is Armistice Day. For all the wives who are not wives, all the mothers who are not mothers. All the sweethearts who have no sweethearts. I think I'd have died if that had happened to me. No, you would not. One lives, one is left behind to live. Someone must live who cannot forget, who remembers not only an Armistice Day, but all the long days of the year. And if there are enough people who can't forget, who remember that way, then we won't have any more wars. You are young to say that. You have a young hope. And now I pray that you keep your husband and you keep your son. Makes me feel as if I didn't have any right to them. Oh, you have the right and you must keep the right. You must say to yourself, see all these young men. I want them to be very old men, to live and to live together, side by side. If this comes to be, you will never have my loneliness and my sickness in your heart. Claudia! Claudia, when do we move? Hey, is anyone here? Hey, when do we move? David, I'm so glad you're home. Hello. We're not moving. They were selling apartments, not renting them. Disappointed? No, it's not important. Since when? Since today. Darling, how's your cold? Much better. Oh, David, take care of yourself. Don't let anything happen to your promise. Hey, hey, what are you so solemn about? David, why didn't you tell me this morning it was Armistice Day? How could you let me go around not knowing? It isn't something that somebody could tell you about, darling. Besides, you had so many other things on your mind. I don't see how I could have forgotten. Except I didn't have a chance to look at the papers and there was the apartment. And I'd forgotten about the bells ringing. Look, darling, nobody's scolding you. I'm scolding myself. No reason to. You knew this morning. That was the look on your face. And that's why you weren't more excited about things. And I going on as if nothing had happened. Well, nothing has happened, darling. That's just the point. Nothing has happened to me, so Armistice Day's just been something left over from the last war. Look, I didn't expect you to feel anything about it or I would have said something. You weren't born in the first war and you were just 12 when this one started, so... But you were old enough and you remembered this morning. See here, darling, you can't kick yourself because you just happened to be born a little too late. But if I wasn't, just think how one morning, just like this morning, you'd have gotten out of bed, said goodbye and gone away someplace I'd never even heard of before. And then maybe not... I can't even say it, David. Don't say it, darling. You don't have to. Yes, I do. I do. When others did and gave and lived through so much, I didn't even know exactly where some of the places we fought at were. You learned a great deal today, Claudia. I grew up a little today, David. That's more than many people do in a lifetime. You know, for a while it made me feel as if I'd lost you. I won't forget that. Made me a part of everything that's passed. Here, darling, read this. A few lines written by a great man and you'll see just how much you have learned. It can be our moment of silence. Here, here's the place. You read it to me, darling. All right. Listen. No man is an island entire of itself. Every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the mainland. If a cloud be washed away by the sea, the continent is the less. Any man's death diminishes me because I am involved in mankind. And therefore, never seek to know for whom the bell tolls. It tolls for thee. This transcribed program of Claudia was brought to you by your friendly neighbor who bottles Coca-Cola and who thanks you for the privilege of joining your observance of this armistice day. Thank you.