An Old-fashioned Girl
Inspirational book passage of the week!
This is from book called An Old-fashioned Girl, by Louisa May Alcott. It was a favorite of mine in Jr. High and is still in my top 10 list. Highly inspirational and rather humbling at the same time. Definitely makes me want to clean up my act and be a better person– and more of a lady.
Scene: a young woman named Polly Milton, who is living and working as a music teacher in Boston around 1870, has met a girl named Jenny who has just attempted suicide but was saved and taken in by Polly’s spinster land-lady, a philanthropist and womens’ rights advocate. Jenny is an orphan, and worked as a seamstress, but she got ill and therefore couldn’t get work, and was so desperately poor that she could see no way out but to die, or turn wicked in order to support herself. (Basically, she considered suicide as a sin, but at least a lesser sin than stealing or prostitution.)
Polly had fully intended to be very miserable, and cry herself to sleep; but when she lay down at last, her pillow seemed very soft, her little room very lovely, with the fire-light flickering on all the home-like objects, and her new-blown roses breathing her a sweet good-night. She no longer felt an injured, hard-working, unhappy Polly, but as if quite burdened with blessings, for which she wasn’t half grateful enough. She had heard of poverty and suffering, in thevague, far-off way, which is all that many girls, safe in happy homes, ever know of it; but now she had seen it, in a shape which she could feel and understand, and life grew more earnest to her from that minute. So much to do in the great, busy world, and she had done so little. Where should she begin? Then, like an answer came little Jenny’s words, now taking a new significance to Polly’s mind, “To be strong, and beautiful, and go round making music all the time.” Yes, she could do that; and with a very earnest prayer, Polly asked for the strength of an upright soul, the beauty of a tender heart, the power to make her life a sweet and stirring song, helpful while it lasted, remembered when it died. Little Jane’s last thought had been to wish with all her might, that “God would bless the dear, kind girl up there, and give her all she asked.” I think both prayers, although too humble to be put in words, went up together, for in the fullness of time they were beautifully answered.
April 1st, 2005 at 2:55 pm
Wow I totally got an error message on this post and then when I checked afterwards it wasn’t there. I refreshed several times and it still wasn’t. And now it is. I have no idea why it posted. Arrg. I now feel completely computer illiterate!