“OH, I wish, how I do wish I could find a bird’s nest or two!” cried Jamie Haynes. “Hannah, if you see one about the garden, come and tell me, will you?”
“Yes, I will,” replied little Hannah; then, recollecting some of her brother’s mischievous pranks, she added, earnestly, “But you won’t hurt the birdies, will you, Jamie? What do you want to do with them?”
“Oh, that’s none of your business,” said Jamie rudely; “you must tell me if you see one, though—you promised!”
“Oh, dear! I wish I hadn’t promised,” sighed little Hannah, as Jamie ran off; “I’m so afraid he will hurt the birdies. But I mean to try not to see any; I hope I shall not!” And in this hope little Hannah rested. But the very next day, as she was playing at ball in the garden, her ball bounded off into some bushes, and, as Hannah was searching for it, she came upon a nest of little fledglings.
“Oh, dear! Oh, dear me!” sighed Hannah once more. “Poor little wee birdies, I wish I hadn’t seen you! now I must go and tell Jamie, because I promised, and perhaps he will kill the birds!” And tears filled the eyes of the tender-hearted child. Replacing the branches, she slowly walked back to the house, thinking whether it would be very wrong not to keep her promise this one time; but she knew that if Jamie should ask her she must tell the truth, and then it would be worse, for he would be vexed with her.
“I wish mamma were at home,” she said to herself; “what shall I do?” Just then a sweet verse came into her mind, that she had learned a few days before, which tells us, that not a sparrow falls to the ground without our Father. Hannah felt comforted.
“Then our heavenly Father cares for the birdies; I can go and tell him about it,” she murmured. With a brightening face she went up to the nursery; no one was there, and shutting the door, the child kneeled down and prayed: — “Heavenly Father! I have found some poor little birdies, and I must tell Jamie; please, God, give Jamie a kind heart, so that he will not hurt God’s little birds. Amen.”
No one was in the room, I said; but Jamie was in the closet, getting some twine, and he heard his dear little sister’s prayer. Jamie felt very strangely, for, although he had been as carefully taught as Hannah, he did not often feel that God was so near, and that he might pray to him at any time. He felt sorry, too, that he had been so naughty and cruel; indeed Jamie’s heart was much softened. He kept quite still in the closet, until he heard Hannah leave the room, ruing down stairs, as he knew, to find him; then he followed her.
“Jamie,” said Hannah, when she saw him, “I have found a bird’s nest; do you want me to show it to you?”
“Yes,” replied Jamie, hardly knowing what to say. So Hannah led the way, and showed James where the nest was. She leaned over his shoulder, as he sat for some time looking at it, and gathering courage from his quiet manner, said, at length, “What did you want to see them for, Jamie?”
“I did not want the little birds,” said Jamie; “I wanted the eggs to put on a string. But I don’t want them now, Hannah,” he added, his face growing red as he spoke. “I shan’t hurt the birds’ nests again, ever!”
Little Hannah looked up in surprise, delighted at these words; and deep in a grateful little heart she treasured the remembrance of her answered prayer! Let us all copy little Hannah, and remember, whenever we have anything to trouble us, to take it to God, and he will hear any prayer offered in the name and for the sake of our precious Saviour. — (Extracted.)