"As a matter of fact," she went on, "that's a funny thing. One of the chief arguments against the clans is that it doesn't single out a man and a woman as the parents of a child. This is supposed to do something to the child--make him insecure, somehow. But as far as I can see, it makes him more secure. In the first place, he's got that many more parents to choose from, and he can usually find one at least in the mood and with the time to give him what he needs at the moment. Then, too, the clan can afford to have one or two of its people completely concentrated on the children at any given time. And that job can get sort of passed around so nobody gets fed up with it. "Or, rather, if a person does get fed up with the kids, she doesn't have to force herself to be halfway decent to them; she doesn't have to have anything to do with them at all until she gets over her blues. So most of the time, the kids get the kind of attention they ought to get, and they get it from a person who's in the mood to give it. Personally, I think that they're a lot better off under this system, and you'd have a hard time telling me any different." "They do look healthy and happy," he said. "They sure do." She looked proud and satisfied. "I'd hate to be the one to try to keep up with them if they were any healthier. Or any fuller of ideas." "That's why I hate to risk it," he told her. "Everything's going so well now.... The kids are so obviously.... But I take it you don't think there's much risk?" "No." Her tone was incisive. "Any storms she can cook up, the kids can stand better than you and I can." "Maybe you're right," Tom conceded. "But what about yourself? You think she is apt to make 'storms'?" Betsy shrugged. "There's always storms when you take in a new member. You have to adjust; and, even more, the new one has to adjust. And adjustments aren't ever easy. I remember when I came in. I had some bad times--and I was brought up in a clan, too; I knew what I was getting into. But still there were times when it hurt. When I felt lost. When I didn't know what you people were like. When I felt like a stranger, not knowing your private jokes and unconscious language. When I felt out of place and alone. "There were plenty of times when this happened, but I stuck it out. And I learned. I learned what made you people tick, and why you did some of the things you did. I grew into being a part of you. Now I am one of the clan, legally, socially, and in my inmost self.