The Catholic bulletin. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1911-1995, 1913-07-12

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nature seems to take long deep
breath and get ready for what is COM
ing? In one way, everything was the
same as usual. Work was going on;
the convent bells were reminding us
of hours and classes; saw the nuns
in the long halls, going about their du-
ties; yet every one seemed to be lis
tening. While / was wondering what
it meant, Sister Edna passed me, walk
| ing quickly. She was looking straight
ahead, so she did not see me. Her
face had the look had seen on all the
other faces had met that morning
strained look, wide-eyed and fright
ened, ~as if she expected to hear some
thing dreadful. The sound of my
heels on the polished floor of the hall
seemed to me to echo through the
whole building; found | was walking
on tiptoe, without knowing why I did
! it.
| When l opened the door of Sister
Irmingardes classroom, / think I had
begun to understand what it all meant
for this time did not expect to see
her at her desk She was not there,
but our French teacher, Sister Har-
mona, sat in her place. Her eyes were
red, and when she opened a book |
saw her hands tremble. The girls were
in their seats-Mable Blossom, Maude
Joyce, Kittie James, and dozens of
others-and as glanced at them, and
then away, afraid of what | saw, they
all looked alike, for every face had the
same expression. The girls were lean
ing little forward, as if they were on
the edge of their chairs, ready to
spring up. Their eyes were very wide
open, and they seemed to be afraid
| to speak The same queer hush lay
over the room that filed the whole
convent.
l went straight to Sister Harmonas
desk and spoke to her, but the voice l
heard saying the words did not seem
to be mine. 1t was cold and steady,
though could feel my heart pounding
against my side.
Sister," 1 said, please tell us. Is
Sister Irmingarde very ill?''
Sister Harmona looked at me, and
then looked away. She is plump little
nun who makes me think of fat
wren-her eyes are so dark and
bright, and she is so quick in all her
movements. Usually she is very gay
and cheerful Sometimes I have seen
her annoyed or excited over our
French verbs, but never sad. So if
could have felt surprised at anything
just then, / should have felt surprised
| to see her brown eyes fill with tears
and slowly brim over. l watched the
big drops fall, first on her cheeks, then
on her white linen guimpe, until she
bent her head and fumbled for her
| handkerchief in her long flowing
sleeve She tried to speak, but could
not; but it didn't matter, for now we
knew the truth. There was not a
sound in the room. 1t seemed to me
stood there for years, watching Sis
ter Harmona's tears falling and fall
ing and falling; but after the first
minute l don't think saw them at all.
Instead, l saw Sister Irmingarde sit
ting in her old place. l even thought
heard her voice.
"Oh, my girls, my girls, what will
you do next?'
How often she had said that to us,
in despair! How much she had done
for us! How little we had done for
her. AS | stood, dazed. remembered
it all. The years seemed to roll back
ward before my eyes, like moving pic
lures, but reversed, SO that the old
school days came first; and every pic
ture had Sister Irmingarde in it-Sis-
ter Irmingarde, who knew everything
and was willing to teach us all that
we could learn.
Then the door opened and Mabel
Muriel Murphy came in, crying.
"Oh, girls she said, and she
dropped into her seat and put her
arms down on her desk and buried her
face in them, and sobbed. "Oh, girls
Sister Irmingarde is dying!"
The words rolled about the big quiet
room as if they, too, were frightened,
and were trying to get out and away
from themselves. No one answered
them. No one could. went to my
seat and stared out of the window, and
tried to be calm and to understand
what it all meant. Two of the
minims were rolling their hoops along
a path that was too narrow for them
both, and / watched the hoops meet
and go down. An old gardener was
coming towards them wheeling a bar.
rowful of fresh earth for the early
fiower-beds. l watched him, too, and
wondered how these little things
could go on happening when Sister
Irmingarde was dying. Finally heard
Sister Harmona speaking.
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