'It has been one of the discouraging days. Lisa was wilful1; the twins had a moral relapse; the young minister came again, and, oh, the interminable length of time he held Rhoda's hand at parting! Is it not strange that, with the whole universe to choose from, his predatory eye must fall upon my blooming Rhoda? I wonder whether the fragrance2 she will shed upon that one small parsonage will be as widely disseminated3 as the sweetness she exhales4 here, day by day, among our "little people all in a row"? I am not sure; I hope so; at any rate, selfishness must not be suffered to eclipse my common- sense, and the young minister seems a promising5, manly6 fellow.
'When we have had a difficult day, I go home and sit down in my cosy7 corner in the twilight8, the time and place where I always repeat my credo, which is this:-
'It is the children of this year, of every new year, who are to bring the full dawn, that dawn that has been growing since first the world began. It is not only that children re-create the world year by year, decade by decade, by making over human nature; by transforming trivial, thoughtless men and women into serious, earnest ones; by waking in arid9 natures slumbering10 seeds of generosity11, self- sacrifice, and helpfulness. It is not alone in this way that children are bringing the dawn of the perfect day. It is the children (bless them! how naughty they were to-day!) who are going to do all we have left undone12, all we have failed to do, all we might have done had we been wise enough, all we have been too weak and stupid to do.
'Among the thousands of tiny things growing up all over the land, some of them under my very wing--watched and tended, unwatched and untended, loved, unloved, protected from danger, thrust into temptation, among them somewhere is the child who will write a great poem that will live for ever and ever, kindling13 every generation to a loftier ideal. There is the child who will write the novel that is to stir men's hearts to nobler issues and incite14 them to better deeds. There is the child (perhaps it is Nino) who will paint the greatest picture or carve the greatest statue of the age; another who will deliver his country in an hour of peril15; another who will give his life for a great principle; and another, born more of the spirit than the flesh, who will live continually on the heights of moral being, and, dying, draw men after him. It may be I shall preserve one of these children to the race--who knows? It is a peg16 big enough on which to hang a hope, for every child born into the world is a new incarnate17 thought of God, an ever fresh and radiant possibility.'
Another day.--'Would I had the gift to capture Mrs. Grubb and put her between the covers of a book!'
'It tickles18 Rhoda's fancy mightily19 that the Vague Lady (as we call her) should take Lisa before the Commissioners20 of Lunacy! Rhoda says that if she has an opportunity to talk freely with them, they will inevitably21 jump at the conclusion that Lisa has brought HER for examination, as she is so much the more irrational22 of the two! Rhoda facetiously23 imagines a scene in which a reverend member of the body takes Lisa aside and says solemnly, "My dear child, you have been wise beyond your years in bringing us your guardian24, and we cannot allow her to be at large another day, lest she becomes suddenly violent."
'Of late I have noticed that she has gradually dropped one club and society after another, concentrating her attention more and more upon Theosophy. Every strange weed and sucker that can grow anywhere flourishes in the soil of her mind, and if a germ of truth or common- sense does chance to exist in any absurd theory, it is choked by the time it has lain there among the underbrush for a little space; so that when she begins her harvesting (which is always a long while before anything is ripe), one can never tell precisely25 what sort of crop was planted.
'It seems that the Theosophists are considering the establishment of a colony of Mahatmas at Mojave, on the summit of the Tehachapi Mountains. Their present habitat is the Himalayas, but there is no reason why we should not encourage them to settle in this country. The Tehachapis would give as complete retirement26 as the Himalayas, while the spiritual advantages to be derived27 from an infusion28 of Mahatmas into our population are self-evident. "Think, my sisters," Mrs. Grubb would say, "think, that our mountain ranges may some time be peopled by omniscient29 beings thousands of years old and still growing!" Up to this last aberration30 I have had some hope of Grubb o' Dreams. I thought it a good sign, her giving up so many societies and meetings. The house is not any tidier, but at least she stays in it occasionally. In the privacy of my own mind I have been ascribing this slight reformation to the most ordinary cause,--namely, a Particular Man. It would never have occurred to me in her case had not Edith received confidential31 advices from Mrs. Sylvester.
'"We're going to lose her, I feel it!" said Mrs. Sylvester. "I feel it, and she alludes32 to it herself. There ain't but two ways of her classes losing her, death and marriage; and as she looks too healthy to die, it must be the other one. She's never accepted any special attentions till about a month ago, when the Improved Order of Red Men held their Great Council here. You see she used to be Worthy33 Wenonah of Pocahontas Lodge34 years ago, when my husband was Great Keeper of the Wampum, but she hasn't attended regularly; a woman is so handicapped, when it comes to any kind of public work, by her home and her children.--I do hope I shall live long enough to see all those kind of harassing35 duties performed in public, co-operative institutions.--She went to the Council to keep me company, mostly, but the very first evening I could see that William Burkhardt, of Bald Eagle No. 62, was struck with her; she lights up splendidly, Mrs. Grubb does. He stayed with her every chance he got during the week: but I didn't see her give him any encouragement, and I should never have thought of it again if she hadn't come home late from one of the Council Fires at the Wigwam. I was just shutting my bedroom blinds. I tried not to listen, for I despise eavesdropping36, of all things, but I couldn't help hearing her say, "No, Mr. Burkhardt, you are only a Junior Sagamore, and I am ambitious. When you are a Great Sachem, it will be time enough to consider the matter."'
'Mrs. Sylvester, Edith, and I agreed that this was most significant, but we may have been mistaken, according to her latest development. The "passing away" so feelingly alluded37 to by Mrs. Sylvester is to be of a different sort. She has spoken mysteriously to me before of her reasons for denying herself luxuries; of the goal she expected to reach through rigid38 denial of the body and training of the spirit; of her longing39 to come less in contact with the foul40 magnetism41 of the common herd42, so detrimental43 to her growth; but she formally announced to me in strict confidence to-day her ambition to be a Mahatma. Of course she has been so many things that there are comparatively few left; still, say whatever we like, she has the spirit of all the Argonauts, that woman! She has been an Initiate44 for some time, and considers herself quite ready for the next step, which is to be a Chela. It is unnecessary to state that she climbs the ladder of evolution much faster than the ordinary Theosophist, who is somewhat slow in his movements, and often deals in centuries, or even aeons.
'I did not know that there were female Mahatmas, reasoning unconsciously from the fact that an Adept45 is supposed to hold his peace for many years before he can even contemplate46 the possibility of being a Mahatma. (The idea of Grubb o' Dreams holding her peace is too absurd for argument.) There are many grades of Adepts47, it seems, ranging from the "topmost" Mahatmas down. The highest of all, the Nirmanakayas, are self-conscious without the body, travelling hither and thither48 with but one object, that of helping49 humanity. As we descend50 the scale, we find Adepts (and a few second-class Mahatmas) living in the body, for the wheel of Karma has not entirely51 revolved52 for them; but they have a key to their "prison" (that is what Mrs. Grubb calls her nice, pretty body!), and can emerge from it at pleasure. That is, any really capable and energetic Adept can project his soul from its prison to any place that he pleases, with the rapidity of thought. I may have my personal doubts as to the possibilities of this gymnastic feat53, but Mrs. Grubb's intellectual somersaults have been of such thoroughness and frequency that I am sure, if anybody can perform the gyration54, she can! Meantime, there are decades of retirement, meditation55, and preparation necessary, and she can endure nothing of that sort in this present incarnation, so the parting does not seem imminent56!
'She came to consult me about Soul Haven57 for the twins. I don't think it a wholly bad plan. The country is better for them than the city; we can manage occasional news of their welfare; it will tide to get over the brief interval58 of time needed by Mrs. Grubb for growing into a Chela; and in any event, they are sure to run away from the Haven as soon as they become at all conscious of their souls, a moment which I think will be considerably59 delayed.
'Mrs. Grubb will not yield Lisa until she is certain that the Soul Haven colonists60 will accept the twins without a caretaker; but unless the matter is quietly settled by the new year I shall find some heroic means of changing her mind. I have considered the matter earnestly for many months without knowing precisely how to find sufficient money for the undertaking61. My own income can be stretched to cover her maintenance, but it is not sufficient to give her the proper sort of education. She is beyond my powers now, and perhaps-- nay62, of a certainty, if her health continue to improve--five years of skilful63 teaching will make her--what it will make her no one can prophesy64, but it is sure to be something worth working for. No doubt I can get the money by a public appeal, and if it were for a dozen children instead of one I would willingly do it, as indeed I have done it many times in the past.
'That was a beautiful thought of Pastor65 Von Bodelschwingh, of the Colony of Mercy in Germany. "Mr. Man" told me about him in one of the very few long talks we had together. He had a home for adults and children of ailing66 mind and body, and when he wanted a new house for the little ones, and there was no money to build or equip it, he asked every parent in Germany for a thank-offering to the Lord of one penny for each well child. Within a short fortnight four hundred thousand pennies flowed in--four hundred thousand thank-offerings for children strong and well. The good pastor's wish was realised, and his Baby Castle an accomplished67 fact. Not only did the four hundred thousand pennies come, but the appeal for them stimulated68 a new sense of gratitude69 among all the parents who responded, so that there came pretty, touching70 messages from all sides, such as: "Four pennies for four living children; for a child in heaven, two." "Six pennies for a happy home." "One penny for the child we never had." "Five pennies for a good wife."
'Ah! never, surely, was a Baby Castle framed of such lovely timber as this! It seems as if heaven's sweet air must play about the towers, and heaven's sunshine stream in at every window, of a house built from turret71 to foundation-stone of such royal material. The Castle might look like other castles, but every enchanted72 brick and stone and block of wood, every grain of mortar73, every bit of glass and marble, unlike all others of its kind, would be transformed by the thought it represented and thrilled with the message it bore.
'Such an appeal I could make for my whole great family, but somehow this seems almost a private matter, and I am sensitive about giving it publicity74. My love and hope for Lisa are so great, I cannot bear to describe her "case," nor paint her unhappy childhood in the hues75 it deserves, for the sake of gaining sympathy and aid. I may have to do it, but would I were the little Croesus of a day! Still, Christmas is coming, and who knows?
"Everywhere the Feast o' the Babe,
Joy upon earth, peace and good-will to men!
We are baptized."
Merry Christmas is coming. Everybody's hand-grasp is warmer because of it, though of course it is the children whose merriment rings truest.
'There are just one or two things, grown up as I am, that I should like to find in the toe of my stocking on Christmas morning; only they are impalpable things that could neither be put in nor taken out of real stockings.
'Old as we are, we are most of us mere76 children in this, that we go on hoping that next Christmas all the delicious happenings we have missed in other Christmases may descend upon us by the old and reliable chimney-route! A Santa Claus that had any bowels77 of compassion78 would rush down the narrowest and sootiest chimney in the world to give me my simple wishes. It isn't as if I were petitioning nightly for a grand house, a yacht, a four-in-hand, a diamond necklace, and a particular man for a husband; but I don't see that modesty79 finds any special favour with St. Nick. Now and then I harbour a rascally80 suspicion that he is an indolent, time-serving person, who slips down the widest, cleanest chimneys to the people who clamour the loudest; but this abominable81 cynicism melts into thin air the moment that I look at his jolly visage on the cover of a picture-book. Dear, fat, rosy82, radiant Being! Surely he is incapable83 of any but the highest motives84! I am twenty-eight years old, but age shall never make any difference in the number or extent of my absurdities85. I am going to write a letter and send it up the chimney! It never used to fail in the long-ago; but ah! then there were two dear, faithful go-betweens to interpret my childish messages of longing to Santa Claus, and jog his memory at the critical time!'
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wilful
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| adj.任性的，故意的 | |
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fragrance
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| n.芬芳，香味，香气 | |
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disseminated
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| 散布，传播( disseminate的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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exhales
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| v.呼出，发散出( exhale的第三人称单数 )；吐出（肺中的空气、烟等），呼气 | |
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promising
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| adj.有希望的，有前途的 | |
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manly
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| adj.有男子气概的；adv.男子般地，果断地 | |
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cosy
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| adj.温暖而舒适的，安逸的 | |
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twilight
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| n.暮光，黄昏；暮年，晚期，衰落时期 | |
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arid
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| adj.干旱的；(土地)贫瘠的 | |
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slumbering
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| 微睡，睡眠（slumber的现在分词形式） | |
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generosity
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| n.大度，慷慨，慷慨的行为 | |
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undone
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| a.未做完的，未完成的 | |
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kindling
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| n. 点火, 可燃物 动词kindle的现在分词形式 | |
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incite
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| v.引起，激动，煽动 | |
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peril
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| n.(严重的)危险；危险的事物 | |
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peg
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| n.木栓，木钉；vt.用木钉钉，用短桩固定 | |
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incarnate
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| adj.化身的，人体化的，肉色的 | |
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tickles
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| （使）发痒( tickle的第三人称单数 )； （使）愉快，逗乐 | |
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mightily
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| ad.强烈地；非常地 | |
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commissioners
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| n.专员( commissioner的名词复数 )；长官；委员；政府部门的长官 | |
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inevitably
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| adv.不可避免地；必然发生地 | |
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irrational
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| adj.无理性的，失去理性的 | |
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facetiously
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| adv.爱开玩笑地；滑稽地，爱开玩笑地 | |
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guardian
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| n.监护人；守卫者，保护者 | |
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precisely
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| adv.恰好，正好，精确地，细致地 | |
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retirement
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| n.退休，退职 | |
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derived
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| vi.起源；由来；衍生；导出v.得到( derive的过去式和过去分词 )；（从…中）得到获得；源于；（从…中）提取 | |
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infusion
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| n.灌输 | |
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omniscient
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| adj.无所不知的；博识的 | |
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aberration
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| n.离开正路，脱离常规，色差 | |
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confidential
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| adj.秘（机）密的，表示信任的，担任机密工作的 | |
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alludes
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| 提及，暗指( allude的第三人称单数 ) | |
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worthy
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| adj.(of)值得的，配得上的；有价值的 | |
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lodge
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| v.临时住宿，寄宿，寄存，容纳；n.传达室，小旅馆 | |
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harassing
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| v.侵扰，骚扰( harass的现在分词 )；不断攻击（敌人） | |
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eavesdropping
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| n. 偷听 | |
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alluded
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| 提及，暗指( allude的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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rigid
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| adj.严格的，死板的；刚硬的，僵硬的 | |
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longing
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| n.（for）渴望 | |
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foul
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| adj.污秽的；邪恶的；v.弄脏；妨害；犯规；n.犯规 | |
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magnetism
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| n.磁性，吸引力，磁学 | |
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herd
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| n.兽群，牧群；vt.使集中，把…赶在一起 | |
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detrimental
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| adj.损害的，造成伤害的 | |
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initiate
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| vt.开始，创始，发动；启蒙，使入门；引入 | |
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adept
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| adj.老练的，精通的 | |
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contemplate
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| vt.盘算，计议；周密考虑；注视，凝视 | |
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adepts
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| n.专家，能手( adept的名词复数 ) | |
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thither
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| adv.向那里；adj.在那边的，对岸的 | |
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helping
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| n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的 | |
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descend
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| vt./vi.传下来，下来，下降 | |
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entirely
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| ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地 | |
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revolved
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| v.（使）旋转( revolve的过去式和过去分词 )；细想 | |
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feat
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| n.功绩；武艺，技艺；adj.灵巧的，漂亮的，合适的 | |
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gyration
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| n.旋转 | |
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meditation
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| n.熟虑，（尤指宗教的）默想，沉思，（pl.）冥想录 | |
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imminent
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| adj.即将发生的，临近的，逼近的 | |
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haven
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| n.安全的地方，避难所，庇护所 | |
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interval
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| n.间隔，间距；幕间休息，中场休息 | |
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considerably
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| adv.极大地；相当大地；在很大程度上 | |
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colonists
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| n.殖民地开拓者，移民，殖民地居民( colonist的名词复数 ) | |
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undertaking
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| n.保证，许诺，事业 | |
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nay
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| adv.不；n.反对票，投反对票者 | |
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skilful
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| (=skillful)adj.灵巧的，熟练的 | |
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prophesy
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| v.预言；预示 | |
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pastor
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| n.牧师，牧人 | |
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ailing
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| v.生病 | |
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accomplished
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| adj.有才艺的；有造诣的；达到了的 | |
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stimulated
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| a.刺激的 | |
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gratitude
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| adj.感激，感谢 | |
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touching
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| adj.动人的，使人感伤的 | |
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turret
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| n.塔楼，角塔 | |
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enchanted
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| adj. 被施魔法的，陶醉的，入迷的 动词enchant的过去式和过去分词 | |
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mortar
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| n.灰浆，灰泥；迫击炮；v.把…用灰浆涂接合 | |
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publicity
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| n.众所周知，闻名；宣传，广告 | |
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hues
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| 色彩( hue的名词复数 )； 色调； 信仰； 观点 | |
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mere
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| adj.纯粹的；仅仅，只不过 | |
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bowels
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| n.肠，内脏，内部；肠( bowel的名词复数 )；内部，最深处 | |
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compassion
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| n.同情，怜悯 | |
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modesty
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| n.谦逊，虚心，端庄，稳重，羞怯，朴素 | |
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80
rascally
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| adj. 无赖的，恶棍的 adv. 无赖地，卑鄙地 | |
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81
abominable
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| adj.可厌的，令人憎恶的 | |
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82
rosy
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| adj.美好的，乐观的，玫瑰色的 | |
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83
incapable
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| adj.无能力的，不能做某事的 | |
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84
motives
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| n.动机，目的( motive的名词复数 ) | |
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85
absurdities
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| n.极端无理性( absurdity的名词复数 )；荒谬；谬论；荒谬的行为 | |
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