Part 2
You remember that little Geraldine first heard about the love of Jesus for little children from the sewing-girl, Mary Keats. But it was not very long ago that Mary herself had learned to know the Lord Jesus as her Friend and Saviour. A year or two before she had had to undergo a serious operation, and as she lay suffering in the hospital she felt very sad as she thought of her poor mother, and of her little orphan nephew, Willie, who depended entirely on her efforts. But just when she was feeling so friendless and forlorn, her case was undertaken by kind Dr. Gray, who not only cured her poor suffering body, but also told her about the good Physician who could cure her soul. She knew very well that she was covered with the black marks of sins, and when she learned that they could all be washed away by the blood of Jesus, if she would just believe in Him, she was so happy that ever since she had been telling others about the Saviour who loved her so much that He let Himself be killed that she might be clean and live with Him forever. More than that, she learned that she need not worry about her mother, for God would take care of her; and He did indeed care for her, for ever since Dr. Gray met Mary in the hospital, her home had been blessed by Mrs. Gray’s bounty!
You can imagine with what pleasure Mary Keats set out, the morning after her visit with Geraldine, for a day’s work at kind Dr. Gray’s. As she walked along the streets, she looked up at the blue sky, which reminded her of “things above.” The sparrows twittering on the eaves told her of our Father’s care; “not one of them is forgotten before God,” thought she, “and His own children are of more value than many sparrows.” Thus musing, the way did not seem long, though she had to walk through the city and out into the country to reach her destination.
Mary was just seated at work in the nursery when she heard a child’s merry laugh on the stairs. “There is my little song-bird,” thought she, and in another minute bright blue eyes were looking up into her face.
“O! Keats, I have so much to tell you,” said the eager little prattler. “I have a kitten of my own, and two new rabbits, and the boys are coming home for the holidays next week, and Edith got a letter from grandmamma yesterday, and she says I am to go and stay with her by the sea in the summer-time. Won’t that be nice? O, I’m so happy, I don’t know how to stand still for you to try on my dress, only I suppose I must, or you will have to undo your work again.”
This was little Katie, who was just seven years old. She was the youngest of Dr. Gray’s family, and as her only sister Edith was quite grown-up, and her brothers were all away at boarding school, she was a very lonely child. Also her extreme delicacy made it impossible for her to play much with other children, so no one in the house welcomed Mary Keats more eagerly than little Katie; in her the child found an unwearied listener to all her plans and stories; she it was who taught her how to dress her dolls, and brought her pretty scraps to work on.
The little girl’s chief pleasure lay in reading aloud to Mary, and teaching her the hymns and texts taught by mamma and sister on Sundays. Mary could not read very well herself, and therefore it was a mutual delight.
Today Mary had interesting news for Katie. “I have been working for another little lady since I was here,” she said.
“O! have you?” said Katie, “tell me where she lives, and what she is like, and all about her.”
“I must thank your mamma,” answered Mary, “for recommending me to 6 Albert Square, where I have been working all week. I was just beginning to be downhearted again, for rent day was coming on, and I was afraid we should not have enough to pay it. But only last Sunday, as I was reading to Willie about the storm at sea, and Jesus being in the ship, those blessed words went straight to my heart, ‘Why are ye so fearful? how is it ye have no faith?’ And the same evening there was a message left at our door desiring me to go to work on Monday, and now I wish I had trusted more, for ever since my eyes were opened to know God as my Father, and Jesus as my Saviour, I have never known what it is to want.”
Katie rose up quickly, and going to her treasure drawer took out a pretty card with the words, “The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want,” illuminated on it. “I have been keeping this for you a great many days, and you must nail it on your wall, and then you will never feel afraid again, will you?”
“Thank you, darling,” said Mary, “it will indeed be a treasure to me, and I will teach the beautiful words to little Geraldine. I said the pretty hymn you taught me to her last evening.”
“Is that the little girl you have been working for?” said Katie. “What a pretty name! Do tell me about her.”
So Mary described the happy, stolen interview at full length, and soon Katie was as interested in the little unknown maiden, as in a real friend and her pleasure in teaching Mary a new hymn was doubled by knowing it would be for Geraldine also.
How little do we know, when trying to do good even to one person, how far the blessing may extend. The small pebble drops into a pool of water, but circle after circle appears until we can scarcely discern the last. So even a little child may exercise an influence for good, and a word in season may prove to have been precious grain bearing ten, or a hundred-fold; and “what we know not now, we shall know hereafter.”
ML 01/16/1916