THERE is no doubt that I have been much happier since I came to Jesus ; it seems to make everything so different. When I am doing my lessons now, I try to do them well to please Him.; and when the children are cross, I try to amuse them, and be patient with them, because He would like me to do so ; and when mother is busy, I try to help her, because I know Jesus is looking at me to see if I love Him, and will try to do what He tells me.
And then prayer seems so different now from what it did before. I know now what mother meant, when she said she felt Jesus close beside her when she prayed. And oh, I can’t help loving Jesus now I don’t love Him nearly enough; I never shall do that. But, whenever I think of all He has done for me, I can’t help loving Him better than anyone else.
My red book is nearly full, only two more empty leaves. But I cannot finish the book without telling of one more wonderful thing that has happened whilst we were at Ravenscliffe.
It was in the month of July, a very hot summer’s morning. Melville and I had done our lessons, and were sitting in the branches of a tree on the Langholme Road. Such a pretty little place it was ; we used to go there every day when lessons were done. We could see every one who went past, and no one could see us, for we were hidden by the leaves of the tree.
Mother had been very dull the last day or two, for she had. not had a letter from father for a very long tune; three weeks had gone by without one, and now mother thought. that father must be ill. She tried to be cheerful when she was with us, but when she was sitting at her work I saw that she often looked very troubled, and she read father’s last letter over and over again, to see if she could find out any reason why he had not written. And every morning, when it got near post-time, mother used to stand at the door, watching for the postman, and would go herself to meet him, and look through all the letters quite quickly, to see if there was one from India.
But no letter came. ‘I am so glad mother has gone to call at Langholme,’ said Melville ; ‘it will cheer her up.’
‘Yes,’ I said, ‘Miss Howard always comforts mother. I do love Miss Howard; don’t you, Melville ?’
‘Yes, she is the very nicest lady in the world, except mother,’ said Melville, and I quite agreed with him. But it was too hot to talk much, and we felt very sleepy, as we sat in our sunny place in the tree.
All was very quiet; nobody passed by on the road, except a woman with a can of water, and a boy driving some sheep. ‘Shall we go home?’ said Melville, after we had been there some time; ‘the sun comes on us a little now.’
We were just going to climb down when we heard the sound of wheels in the distance.
‘Let us wait and see this carriage pass, Melville,’ I said, ‘and then we will go.’
So after a minute or two the carriage came up. There was a gentleman in it, and some luggage. He could not see us, for we were hiding in the tree, but we could see him quite plainly, for it was an open carriage, and it was going slowly up the hill,
‘Melville,’ I said, ‘who is he?’
‘Yes,’ said Melville; ‘I was just going to say, Who is he? Isn’t he very like —'
‘Like father, Melville,’ I said. ‘Were you going to say that?’
‘Yes,’ said Melville; ‘I am sure he is very like father. Oh, Olive, do you think it could be father?’
‘Oh no,’ I said, ‘of course not, Melville. Why, father is in India! Of course it isn’t father.’
‘Well, Olive, I’m sure he’s just like that picture in mother’s room,’ said Melville. ‘Let us go home and see if the carriage has stopped at Ravenscliffe.’
Oh, how quickly we ran home! On our way we met the carriage going back again, but only the driver was in it; the gentleman and his luggage were gone.
‘Oh, Olive,’ said Melville, ‘he must have stopped at Ravenscliffe; he has not had time to go any farther.’
Then, though it was such a hot day, we went even faster than before. But when we got within sight of Ravenscliffe, we saw the gentleman coming to meet us, and he ran even quicker than we did.
‘Olive,’ said Melville, ‘I am quite sure now that it must be father.’
Yes, it was father, our own dear father; he had come to take us by surprise. He had got leave unexpectedly, and he thought it would be so nice to drop in upon us, and to see if we knew him, so he had not written to tell mother anything about it. I cannot write down how pleased we were to see father, because there would never be room in this book to do so. Melville and I had not seen him since we were little children, and it seemed very wonderful to have him there with a, at Ravenscliffe.
Then Melville and I took father to Langholme, to find mother. I shall never forget mother’s face when he went into the room. She was so very, very glad, and yet she could not keep from crying. And now we are all together, and are so very happy.
Father has brought us such beautiful presents home from India; there is one for each of us, even for the baby boy. Father does like the baby so much; he had never seen him before, and he was so pleased that baby was not frightened of him. But Mrs. M’Bride said, ‘Of course baby had too much sense.’ And she was sure he knew father quite well from his photograph. She says baby could not help knowing father, when he has looked at father’s picture and kissed it every morning. Father says he does not think he should have known Melville if he had met him anywhere else, he has altered so much; but he says he would have known me anywhere, because I am the very image of mother. I am so glad father thinks that I am like mother! It is so nice to see mother; happy as she is now ; she seems as if she could not leave father for a moment.
We have had a whole week’s holiday, that we might take long walks with father, and that he might tell us about the places he has been to and the people he has seen.
Today father caught sight of my red book, and he asked what it was. So mother told him that it was a little history that I had written of all that had happened to us since we came to Ravenscliffe, but that no one had ever read it, because I kept it quite for myself And then father asked me if I would not let him read it, because he has not been here with us all the time, and he would like so much to know what we have been doing. So, when the book is finished, I am going to let father read it.
And now I have come to the very last page of the book. Mother says that she will buy me a new one, if I would like to go on with my story. And she says I must take great care of this red book, and keep it all my life, for she thinks I shall like to read it when I am grown up.
And mother says she is sure I shall always be thankful that, when I was a little girl at Ravenscliffe, I came to the Lord Jesus. She says it is so much easier to come when we are young, and before we get into the troubles and cares of the world. And mother says it will make me so much happier all my life.
And she says, too, that when she has to go back to India (which will not be for a long, long time now, as father has come home), but when she has to go, and leave me behind, she will not be afraid, because she knows now that Jesus will be with me, and will keep me from evil, and that will be her great comfort.
And I am sure that it will be my comfort too.
PART II. Olive’s Schooldays