Edith's diary. (June 11th, 1961.)

June 11th, 1961

Dear Journal,
I haven’t ever had a diary in my 14 years of life on this Earth, because there’s been nothing worth writing down so far. I have written before, just not like this. Since this is my first page for you, I will take the time to tell you my name, my age, what I look like, and the story of my life, so far. My name is Edith Anna Vanderbilt. I was born on May 22nd, 1947, and I was named after my mother, Anna Rosenkratz, who died in 1954 of polio. She was a wonderful, kind woman, and I am eternally grateful to be her child. My father’s name is Walter John Vanderbilt. He is a very rich man, who owns a train company passed down from his father, my grandfather, Edgar. He is a strict and cold man, but he has his moments where he shows an ounce of decency towards us. You’re probably wondering who “us” is. I have 4 siblings, whom I will now tell you about. My father has had 4 wives, the first being Lillian Bates. Her first daughter’s name is Amelia Mary, and we call her Amy. She’s 20 years old, and she wants to be a nurse. She’s sweet and oh-so caring. Our father is helping her apply to a nursing college. Amy’s younger brother, the second child of Lillian, is called Edward Thomas, and we call him Eddie. He’s charming and handsome. I think he looks like Jimmy Stewart. He wants to be a farmer, but all of the rest of us doubt that that will happen. He’s probably going to end up an actor, with those good looks of his. Or in an office, who knows? Lillian died in 1944, when Eddie was born. My twin brother is named Franklin Walter. We’re inseparable. His favorite movies are Hell’s Angels and Rebel Without a Cause, which I think says a lot about him. Personally, my favorite movie is It’s a Wonderful Life, but to each their own. My father met his third wife, Edna Davis, in 1955. She has two daughters, Elizabeth Margaret, who is 5 and really sweet, and Audrey Kathleen, who is 4 and really shy. I never knew what happened to Edna, but in 1958, we moved here. To the small, coastal town of Mermaid Cove, California. Then in 1959, my father’s fourth lover, Augusta Jones, disappeared, taking nothing with her except her clothes and a few personal items. Now, it’s 1961, and we still don’t know what happened. I still don’t know what prompted our father to move all the way across the country to a town that isn’t even on any maps. I usually hate the beach, but here I sit, in California with my toes in the sand. I had a happy, if bizarre, childhood with Amy, Eddie, and Frankie. We had private tutors instead of going to regular school, we were forbidden to play outside with other children, and we talked amongst ourselves instead of talking to Father, most of the time. As for what I look like, I am 5 feet and 7 inches in height. I have short, dark hair in a bob, fog colored eyes, a sharp nose, and peach coloured skin. “You look like your mother.” Amy always tells me, and I would like to believe that. I like to wear my mother’s old clothes from when she was a girl in the 30s.Frankie tells me I look like a ninny, but Eddie told him to shove off, and he reassured me by telling me that I look like Myrna Loy, which made me feel better. I also like to wear Amy’s old dresses, and the ones that are too modest for her anymore. The girls at school look at me funny, but that can be quickly remedied by one of Eddie’s glares, which makes them, unfortunately for Eddie, swoon. I tried to tell them that we had been homeschooled for all our lives in New York City, but Frankie told me not to tell them. Our whole existence here is a secret, in order to avoid the dreadful gossip that spreads around this town faster than a forest fire, not that I know anything about forest fires. 
Well, Frankie has walked down the beach, and told me to "Quit dilly-dallying and it’s time for dinner."

Sincerely, Edith A. Vanderbilt.
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