The Catholic bulletin. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1911-1995, 1918-08-31
ouse at all TO- ear I might miss

house at all TO- ear I might miss |
him.
Nc 5dy looked at Annie Lee all of |
this time, and nobody made any signs |
at all of expecting anything of her, |
but still she felt sort of uncomforta-
BILE. i,slisssEs,
Her knee was not sprained she was
not expecting anyone to call her over
the telephone, and she was almost as
old and as tall as Bobby Brown; be-
sides it was neither very far to Aunt
Sarah's nor yet very dark outside.
Annie Lee was learning how to read,
and she could read stories in story
papers when she tried very hard. She
was trying quite hard now, and I am
sure would have succeeded only that
she couldn't keep her eyes fixed on
the page. Her sight kept wandering
to the open doorway, and through it,
out into the gathering dark outside
Annie Lee did not like the dark at
all. 1t gave her queer feeling, as
if something big and smothery were
closing in all around her, so that she
couldn't get out at all.
She understood just how queer it
made her feel, but maybe other people
might think she was afraid, for she
noticed that they never asked her to
run out in the dark any more.
She didn't at all like people to think
that she was afraid, but she was more
and more sure every minute that some
people did think that
Everything was quite still and no
body in the room said a word, and yet
Annie Lee thought that she could feel
them thinking, Don't ask Annie Lee
to co. she's afraid of the dark
1t isn't at all pleasant to feel that
people are criticizing you in their
minds, and Annie Lee couldn't get in
terested in the story she was trying to
read, so she sat quite still and did
nothing at all.
Then she heard a noise outside,
strange, wonderful, beautiful noise.
"Oh!" she gasped, and leaning Gag
erly forward in her chair she asked,
What is that, aunty?"
What is what, child?" said Mrs.
ing. 4
"She means the hooking Bird said
Bobby. They have no mocking birds
where she lives"
Where is he?" asked Annie Lee,
gazing with new interest out into
the darkness.
ooh, he's outside in the trees some
where" answered Mrs. Brown care
lessly, as she went on with her read
ing.
Now, where Annie Lee lived they
were not used to hearing birds sing
outside at night.
. who's out there with him. she
asked at length.
Nobody, goosey," said Bobby; they
sing at night lots of times"
Il sh'd think he'd be afraid"
breathed Annie Lee in a whisper.
why should he be afraid?" asked
Mrs Brown, laying aside her paper
at last
Afraid of the dark" answered An
ME Lee, so softly that you hardly
could hear her. ..
Then Aunt Brown laughed merrily.
why, child she said, there. isn't
anything-it's just nothing at all
nothing but a big kind of shadow
that comes over the world to rest our
eyes, and why should anyone at all,
even a little bird, be afraid of a
shadow"
That was new thought for Annie
Lee, and she sat very still while she
thought about it, and listened to the
brave little singer outside in the
shadow.
Then she jumped up and said very
brightly:
"Fll run and get your pattern,
aunty."
Then before anyone could say a
word against it her willing feet we're
running down the path to Aunt Sar-
abs house and, all the way she was
| saying to herself, Thank you, little
| bird, for not being afraid of the dark,
| for not being afraid of a shadow"
Pretty soon she came safely back
into the lighted room with the wished
| for pattern in her hand.
Thank you, dear" said Mrs. Brown
gently. Weren't you afraid?"
| Course not" answered Annie Lee,
| smiling brightly. I'm good deal
bigger than little hooking bird
Then she sat down with her story
paper and enjoyed her story.