The author considers the life of Clara Schumann (1819-96): her childhood training in music by her father (the cause of her endurance and well developed talent), her remarkable musical career, and her loving marriage and happy life with Robert Schumann (despite his mental illness). Her children paid an enormous price as a result of a career that often took her away from them. The author muses that perhaps her extraordinary achievements outweighed the sacrifices her family made. She wonders, however, when contemporary women flee home in droves for career – simply for material gain - whether the cost to family and society might be too great.