"It has, indeed," Mrs. Pring replied, smiling at the little girl.
"She is looking very well," observed the Vicar, who stood side by side with his brother-in-law on the hearth-rug. He peered at Felicia in his near-sighted way as he spoke.
And then Uncle Guy added his comment—
"Our ditch flower is beginning to bloom," he said.
After all, Felicia did not find dining with her relations such a trying experience as she had anticipated; nevertheless, she was relieved when the meal was over. Mrs. Pring gave most of her attention to her brother, being genuinely delighted at his presence. He was in the best of humours, and it astonished Felicia to see how amusing he could be when he chose.
"If only Guy would think less of his affliction and take more interest in the world at large he would be so much better and happier," she overheard the Vicar whisper to her grandfather after dinner, when the brother and sister were carrying on a lively conversation. "I wish we could get him to the Vicarage sometimes."
Once during the evening Felicia had a conversation alone with Uncle Nathaniel, as she had learnt to call the Vicar. She had stepped out of the drawing-room window into the garden when he joined her.
"A beautiful night," he said, drawing a long breath to drink in the fragrance of the flowers. "Do you see that glow in the east? The moon is about to rise."
"Uncle Guy says it makes him melancholy to watch the sky," remarked Felicia; "I wonder why it should. I love to see the moon rise, and the stars come peeping out like eyes. On fine nights at home—I mean where we lived in Bristol—we used to watch for the moon to rise from behind the chimneys, and I used to say, 'Let us guess which chimney-pot the moon will come out of to-night,' for it really looked as though the moon did come out of the chimney." She laughed, then grew suddenly grave. "When mother died I thought I should never laugh again," she went on in a troubled tone, "but somehow, lately, I've found myself smiling over the little jokes she and I used to have together—it's not that I forget she's gone—oh, it's not that!"
"Why should you not smile, my dear child? Your mother is not lost to you altogether; you are only separated from her for the time. Be happy if you can, enjoy the good things God sends you, and accept them as blessings with a thankful heart."