NOW you shall hear!

Out in the country, close by the roadside, there was a country house: you yourself have certainly once seen it.Before it is a little garden with flowers, and a paling which is painted. Close by it, by the ditch, in the midst of the most beautiful green grass, grew a little daisy. The sun shone as warmly and as brightly upon it as on the great splendid garden flowers, and so it grew from hour to hour.One morning it stood in full bloom, with its little shining white leaves spreading like rays round the little yellow sun in the centre. It never thought that no man would notice it down in the grass, and that it was a poor despised floweret; no, it was so well pleased, and turned to the warm sun, looked up at it, and listened to the lark carolling high in the air.

The little daisy was as happy as if it were a great holiday, and yet it was only a Monday. All the children were at school; and while they sat on their benches learning, it sat on its little green stalk, and learned also from the warm sun, and from all around, how good God is. And the daisy was very glad that everything it silently felt was sung so loudly and charmingly by the lark. And the daisy looked up with a kind of respect to the happy bird who could sing and fly; but it was not at all sorrowful because it could not fly and sing also.

“I can see and hear,”it thought:“the sun shines on me, and the wind kisses me. Oh, how richly have I been gifted!”

Within the palings stood many stiff aristocratic flowers----the less scent they had the more they flaunted. The peonies blew themselves out to be greater than the roses,but size will not do it; the tulips had the most splendid colours, and they knew that, and held themselves bolt upright, that they might be seen more plainly. They did not notice the little daisy outside there, but the daisy looked at them the more, and thought,“How rich and beautiful they are! Yes, the pretty bird will certainly fly down to them and visit them. I am glad that I stand so near them, for at any rate I can enjoy the sight of their splendour!”And just as she thought that----“keevit!”----down came flying the lark, but not down to the peonies and tulips----no,down into the grass to the lowly daisy, which started so with joy that it did not know what to think.

The little bird danced round about it, and sang,

“Oh, how soft the grass is! And see what a lovely little flower, with gold in its heart and silver on its dress!”

For the yellow point in the daisy looked like gold,and the little leaves around it shone silvery white.

How happy was the little daisy----no one can conceive how happy! The bird kissed it with his beak, sang to it, and then flew up again into the blue air. A quarter of an hour passed, at least, before the daisy could recover itself. Half ashamed, and yet inwardly rejoiced, it looked at the other flowers in the garden; for they had seen the honour and happiness it had gained, and must understand what a joy it was. But the tulips stood up twice as stiff as before, and they looked quite peaky in the face and quite red, for they had been vexed. The peonies were quite wrong-headed: it was well they could not speak, or the daisy would have received a good scolding. The poor little flower could see very well that they were not in a good humour, and that hurt it sensible. At this moment there came into the garden a girl with a great sharp shining knife; she went straight up to the tulips, and cut off one after another of them.

“Oh!”sighed the little daisy,“this is dreadful; now it is all over with them.”

Then the girl went away with the tulips. The daisy was glad to stand out in the grass, and to be only a poor little flower; it felt very grateful; and when the sun went down it folded its leaves and went to sleep, and dreamed all night long about the sun and the pretty little bird.

Next morning, when the flower again happily stretched out all its white leaves, like little arms, towards the air and the light, it recognized the voice of the bird,but the song he was singing sounded ............