Freeland tribune. (Freeland, Pa.) 1888-1921, 1903-05-04
A HILL A N G E L


who was the happest of all the an
gels. So great and wonderful was the
joy that continually filed his heart
and showed itself in his face that his
Happiness.
This angel had the wonderful beau
ty of earthly children with the added
mystical loveliness that is divine and
that no earthly eyes have ever seen.
They have dreamed of it sometimes,
and the mere dream carried them to
the gates of heaven. His face was
fair, with a rose flush in his cheeks;
his eyes were deep and tranquil, with
the tranquility that could only have
come from an eternity of peace and
innocence, and his hair was like the
gold rays of the sun at sunset.
One day he played with his compan-
ions-angels like himself, only not so
fair-in one of the broad fields of heav-
en-, where the flowers never fade or
die. He wandered away from them,
singing as he went, for lightness of
heart. To be alone was as great
joy as TO be with those he loved, for
the thought of God was so joyous and
perfect to him that he never felt lone
ly. AS he strayed he saw a beautiful
flower, star shaped and shining with
pure white light, a short distance
before him. He wanted to gather It
and ran forward few steps, but he
was stopped by a chasm in the mead
ow Just wide enough to prevent his
leaping across to gather the starry
flower.
He smiled, for he knew that there
We're other star blossoms as beautiful
and that some other angel would find
this one and love it as well as he did.
Then he lay down on the grass and
looked into the chasm. The sight OF
angels is far more wonderful than any
thing we know, and through the rent in
the meadow the angel beheld our world
and all that was happening here.
He lay there looking for a long time.
1t may have been only an hour in heav-
en-, but 1t was many years of time as
we count hours and days. Then he got
up and put both his hands over his face
and walked along slowly. his head
dropping. When he took his hands
away from his face, all the happiness
in it was gone. So unutterably sad did
he look that when he reached the other
little angels who were still playing in
the meadow they stopped and ran to
each other and whispered: See see
our Angel of Happiness! How strange
he looks, Why doesn't he smile and
sing?
They spoke to him, but he did not an
swer them. He walked on through the
meadows. through the pearl gates of
the Holy City to the throne of God him
self. When he stood there, he knelt be-
fore it, and looking up into the loving
face of the Father, whence all his JOY
had come he said:
"Oh, Father, | have seen all the sin
and sorrow, all the suffering and cruel
ty, that are happening in that beautiful
world where you sent your own Son. |
have seen into the hearts of all the peo-
pie on earth. | have seen their thoughts
and all that they have done. as we'll as
all that they are doing now. l have
seen those who suffer because they
have done wrong, and | have seen
those who suffer innocently. am very
little and young, but | have always
been so happy. Let me, pray. 20 to
the earth and at least make happy all
those heartbroken ones who suffer in
nocently and who cannot help them
selves"
But the Father did not answer. And
the child angel knew that he might not
go. He held out both his hands. and
his face was as full of supplication as
it had been before of happiness.
"Oh, Father" he said, you are so
loving and kind! VIII you not help
those poor people now? For so many
years the world has gone on suffering
in this sad and terrible way. Will you
not lift the burden from those who do
not deserve it?' And again God was
silent, and again the little angel knew
that the suffering must go on.
Then sorrow almost as great as
that upon earth overwhelmed him, but
he looked once more into the face of
the Father, and when he saw its love
and its power he cried aloud and said:
"Oh, Father, who art so loving and
strong and wise and who can do all
things, why do you let such misery
last through all the agesY' And as
the child angel stopped speaking lie
looked, and a gray cloud fioated be
tween him and the throne of God, and
the face of God was hidden from him.
Then he turned and ran far, far
away out of the gates of the city and
into the meadows again until he came
to the place where the chasm in the
meadow was, and he flung himself
down by the chasm and buried his
face in the grass. There he lay until
the other angels came and asked him
why he stayed there. And he looked
at them, and woe as deep as any
that has ever been seen upon earth
was imprinted on his face, and he
said:
sEVen in heaven 7 cannot he haDDV