The Strawberry Girl
It was great fun hunting for them, and her basket was almost full when suddenly she heard steps. It was her uncle and two strange men who walked with him. She did not have time to hide, but stood there with her basket on her arm, waiting to hear what they would say.
At first she thought her uncle was going to scold her, and that is why she looks so shy and half afraid. But no, Sir Joshua soon guessed why she was picking the strawberries, and he was very glad he could offer some to his friends. One of the men called Offy "the little strawberry girl," and kept her with him all the rest of the day.
Sir Joshua seemed to like to look at her that day, and she was not surprised the next morning when he asked her to bring the basket and come into his studio, for he wanted to paint her picture. She had had her picture painted several times before, and knew just about what he would want her to do.
But this time he had a surprise for her. It was a large mirror which he placed in such a way that she could look in it and see every stroke of his pencil and brush as he painted her. He had her stand just as she did when he surprised her out in the strawberry patch.
As she watched him paint he talked to her about the garden and the strawberries. Then she told him how she used to gather wild strawberries out in the country, and that she and her sister and brother started very early in the morning because they wanted to find them while they were still wet with dew. There was one place not far from their house where there were many rocks, and one that was very large. The very largest, sweetest berries grew in the shade of this great rock. The children used to try to see who would reach it first; then they would divide the berries they found, for there were only a few of them, and all wanted a taste.
As Offy told about the rock Sir Joshua Reynolds sketched it in the background of his picture, just as he thought it must have looked.