“You dear child!” said her mother, reaching out her hand to Winona where she sat by the sofa. “You’re bound to look on the bright side.”
“I’m bound to glorify work and be happy,” said Winona gayly. “Now, mother, I’d like some money. I’d rather not start with a regular housekeeping allowance till Monday. But right now I want a dish-mop, and a soap-maker, and some new white oil-cloth for the kitchen dresser. Can I have all that?”
“Certainly,” said her mother. “Keep the kitchen as spic and span as you can. The fresher the surroundings, the easier it is to work.”
So after luncheon, which wasn’t much trouble because there was no man to cook for, Winona and Florence went shopping, leaving Clay singing “Ma Honey Man” cheerfully over his dishes. The money their mother had given them bought not only the things Winona went after, but pink and blue chambray for aprons for herself and Florence, and red for Clay.
“The pretty aprons will make it more fun to be in the kitchen—don’t you think so, Florence?” asked Winona.
Florence, naturally, thought so, too, and they bought them and made them up before the day was over. Florence asked of her own accord for definite things to do. And an idea came to Winona—that they start a system of home honor-beads.
“Of course they won’t really count,” she explained to her little sister, “but they’ll always be there to remind us of our work.”
“That will be lovely!” said Florence, “but what will they be like?”
“Wait and see,” said Winona.
That day was all used up making the new long aprons and the mob-caps to match, dainty and Kate-Greenaway looking. But the next morning after the beds were done they went to sit with their mother. She said they could make the beads there with her. Winona ran out into the garden and brought back a handful of flowers that she put in water, and set beside her mother’s couch.