Verhovayak Lapja, 1943. július-december (26. évfolyam, 26-53. szám)
1943-08-26 / 35. szám
läge 8 . Verhovayak Lapja. August 26, 1943 Children^ Page Conducted by AMELIA NYERS ELIZABETH A small perfumed breeze touched the leaves of the trees in the garden and set them to whispering musically. The music suggested the song of the Earth Spirits who reveal the meaning of spring, a season of youth and beauty. The garden encircled a white cottage in a village of small, pretty houses laid out on a green velvet grass carpet. The lovely Lady and her husband lived in the cottage near a cool green forest, where they often went to see the wonders of nature. In their garden were many flower-beds. The Lady took care that harmful insects did not devour the pretty flowers. The Sun-Beam Fairy drifted on a rainbow and came to paint the earth with roseate hues. The spring flowers in the Lady’s garden raised their heads to greet the warm sun and absorb color. The grass was fresh and fragrant. Jack-in-the-Pulpit stood straight, and told a sermon to the bees who came in search of honey. The capricious beauty of the Lady-Slipper adorned the garden. Purple violets peeped shyly from behind their sheltering leaves. Heavenly blue morning glories climbed the trellis just outside the kitchen door, and opened lace petals that disclosed a dewcrowned fragile beauty. Butterflies danced merrily from flower to flower, sipping nectar In the center of the garden was a small round pond in which tiny fish darted to and fro, looking like flashes of silver and gold when touched by the bright sun. Birds often perched on the cement edge of the pool, preened themselves, and gazed into the water-mirror, pleased with the reflection. The garden was a wonderland. Flowers and fern rose from their beds to show their new loveliness. Earth had come to life, and there was a promise of dreams fulfilled when the garden would be in full bloom. The lilacs and stately hollyhocks were still in bud. They were waiting for the touch of a fairy’s magic wand to bring them to life. Often the Lady and her husband grew lonely. In the evening they made their way over the stone path that led from their cottage, and went out the small white gate. They went to the emerald forest, where they could watch the moon as it hung low over the horizon. Stars peeped through an indigo sky. The two of them enjoyed the beauties around them but there was something lacking in their lives. There was no little girl to tell them what the Moon-Beam fairies said. Sometimes the Dew-Drop fairies would come to see the Lady. But before she saw them, they vanished in the dawn and left behind tiny pearls to tell of their visit and suggest the freshness of the morning. The fragrance of the earth was everywhere. The whispering wind was soft and gentle when it caressed the Lady’s cheek. Big white clouds drifted lazily across the blue mirror sky. In the forest near the pretty Lady’s white house, the Wood Nymphs danced in ecstasy to the music of bluebirds singing in the dawn. Their song was a symphony of spring. But the Lady could not see the nymphs. One day Rain Fairy came and shook the clouds. The rain chased away the Wood Nymphs. While the gentle rain refreshed the earth, the Air Spirits grew lonely. They missed the Sprites who had danced so beautifully in the cool shade of the forest. They coaxed, but the nymps would not return. “Oh!” said the Rain Fairy, alarmed. “I did not mean to frighten the nymphs away!” “It is so lonely without them,” the Air Spirits said. “Perhaps the Sun-Beam Fairy will bring them back,” said the Earth Spirit. But the Sun-Beam Fairy could not bring back the Wood Nymphs. The flowers in the Lady’s garden missed the nymphs, too. They grew pale and drooped. The Lady watered them every day and watched over them tenderly. But still they hung listlessly on their stem. “We must. do something to help the flowers,” said the Dew-Drop Fairy. So all the fairies and spirits came together in the forest to decide what should be done. They had a long talk, and many suggestions were brought up for discussion. “There should be a little girl who would look after the flowers,” said the Rain Fairy. “She could talk to the Wood Nymphs and bring them back,” the Moon- Beam Fairy said. “Where would the little girl live? She could not live in the forest all alone,” Air Spirit said. “She could live with the pretty Lady in the white cottage in the village!” Earth Spirit exclaimed. “Yes!” joyfully cried the Sun-Beam Fairy. “Where will we find the little girl?” asked Rainbow Fairy. Í “I—I don’t know”, answered Air Spirit. “Perhaps Eros will tell us where to find her,” Rain Fairy suggested. They hastened to Eros, and told him of their difficulty, and asked him for help. “I’ll find a little girl for the Lady,” the god of love told them. “Thank you!” The fairies and spirits were grateful. “First she must be brought into being,” Eros. “Second, she must be the fairest child on earth.” “She must be the ideal child!” Dew-Drop Fairy said. “The earth child must be gifted and beautiful. Her heart must always be young, so she will never forget the language of the fairies,” Air Spirit said. “She should have access to the place where treasure is stored,” Earth Spirit suggested. “Her personality will be charming,” Rainbow Fairy said. “She will be happy all day long, for she will understand and be in tune with nature,” Moon-Beam Fairy said. “Who shall take the chile to the fair Lady?” asked Rain Fairy. “Liana, who roots plants in the earth, will take the child to the Lady,” Eros replied. “What name shall we give the beautiful child?” Sun-Beam Fairy wanted to know. Eros was deep in thought for a moment. “We will take the letter E from my name — for she is a symbol of love,” he said, finally. “Then we will add the letter L from Liana. Next the letter 1 from Ideal — for she must have ideals. Then we will take the letter .. ” “Z from my name,” interrupted Zephyr, the gentle west wind. “I will tell her secrets when she walks in the forest.” “Very well,” agreed Eros. “After Z will come A from alpha, the beginning of her life. B follows A, taken from beta — for' her fairness will be second only to the bright stars in the heavens. We need another E.” “E from Endymion!” exclaimed Sun-Beam Fairy. “He is the beautiful young man who was granted eternal youth and sleep. The earth child will need to remain forever young in order to understand our words.” “Good!” Eros said. “Thesaurus will supply the T; for she will have access to the place where the treasure of words and knowledge is stored. The last letter is H—H for happiness and, also, for harmony.” “Elizabeth!” cried the fairies, together. “A lovely name for a beautiful child!” Rain Fairy said. “Her eyes shall be brown and soft and deep as a pool,” Sun-Beam Fairy said. “They will mirror our dreams!” Moon-Beam Fairy exclaimed. “I will paint her hair a pale green color,” Rainbow Fairy said. “Oh, no!” cried Dew- Drop Fairy. “Earth people do not have green hair.” “Then it will be pink!” she answered. “I’ll wash out the pink color!” cried Rain Fairy. “Purple would be a pretty color,” suggested Air Spirit. “Orange!” came from Earth Spirit. “No!” cried Sun-Beam Fairy. “Those colors will not do at all.” “We must decide on the color of Elizabeth’s hair soon,” Eros said. “Much time has gone by since we decided to send the child to the lovely Lady. Look!” He pointed to earth. “The lilacs have been in bloom for many weeks. See how tall the hollyhocks have grown! The season is well past half-way in the summer moon.” “Perhaps we ought to take the child to earth, and later on we can decide what color her hair will be,” suggested Air Spirit. The fairies and spirits agreed to this. Earth Spirit made a small crib just large enough for a new baby. Moon-Beam Fairy made a lovely lace quilt of her silver gown and placed it in the crib. Rainbow Fairy made pale pink and blue ribbon bows and tied them to the corners of the quilt. Sun-Beam Fairy made a sheer white dress which Dew-Drop Fairy trimmed with exquisite embroideries. Eros brought forth the child and Rain Fairy dressed her. Air Spirit placed her gently in the crib and kissed her lightly lest she waken from dreams. “Who will take her to the Lady?” asked Moon-Beam Fairy. “It will soon be dawn and I must hasten away.” “I will take her to earth,” Liana said, coming forward. “I will blow gently to rock the crib,” Zephyr said; and a gentle breeze arose. When they reached earth, the fairies placed the crib on the arching rainbow, and moved it forward until it was safely in the Lady’s room. They stood in a ring around the sleeping child, until the first faint rays of the sun touched the pale dawn. The Lady wakened. Her eyes feil on the beautiful child sleeping in the small crib. She was delighted with the little girl and hugged her close to her heart. “Oh!” she exclaimed. “Isn’t she a beautiful baby?” “But she hasn’t any hair!” her husband said. “Never mind that now. She will have plenty in just a little while. I wonder what color it will be?” BE 100% WITH YOUR »
