Sunshine Factory

Excerpt

"Oh, dear! it always does rain when I want to go anywhere," cried little Jennie Moore. "It's too bad! Now I've got to stay in-doors all day, and I know I shall have a wretched day."

"Perhaps so," said Uncle Jack; "but you need not have a bad day unless you choose."

"How can I help it? I wanted to go to the park and hear the band, and take Fido and play on the grass, and have a good time, and pull wild flowers, and eat sandwiches under the trees; and now there isn't going to be any sunshine at all, and I'll have to just stand here and see it rain, and see the water run off the ducks' backs."

"Well, let's make a little sunshine," said Uncle Jack.

"Make sunshine," said Jennie; "why how you do talk!" and she smiled through her tears. "You haven't got a sunshine factory, have you?"

"Well, I'm going to start one right off, if you'll be my partner," replied Uncle Jack.

"Now, let me give you three rules for making sunshine: First, don't think of what might have been if the day had been better. Second, see how many pleasant things there are left to enjoy; and, lastly, do all you can to make other people happy."

"Well, I'll try the last thing first; and she went to work to amuse her little brother Willie, who was crying. By the time she had him riding a chair and laughing, she was laughing too.

"Well," said Uncle Jack, "I see you are a good sunshine-maker, for you've got about all you or Willie can hold now. But let's try what we can do with the second rule."

"But I haven't anything to enjoy; 'cause all my dolls are old, and my picture-books all torn, and—"

"Hold," said Uncle Jack; "here's a newspaper. Now let's get some fun out of it."

"Fun out of a newspaper! Why, how you talk."

But Uncle Jack showed her how to make a mask by cutting holes in the paper, and how to cut a whole family of paper dolls, and how to make pretty things for Willie out of the paper. Then he got a tea-tray and showed her how to roll a marble round it.

And so she found many pleasant amusements; and when bedtime came she kissed Uncle Jack, and said:

"Good-night, dear Uncle Jack."

"Good-night, dear little sunshine-maker;" said Uncle Jack.

And she dreamed that night that Uncle Jack had built a great house, and put a sign over the door, which read:

Sunshine Factory,

Uncle Jack and little Jennie:

She was on the way to the grocery. She had a broken-nosed pitcher, and was going for two cents' worth of molasses. Her face was bright, but it grew sober as she passed grandfather. His white head was bowed over his hand, and the blue old eyes were dim with tears. Mollie stopped and laid a little hand lovingly on his white head.

"It will be a nice dinner, grandpa;" she said, and her voice was sweet and loving.

"We've got a little meal, and a little sour milk, and I can make a lovely johnny-cake, and there are two cents for molasses to eat it with, and there are two potatoes to roast, and maybe I can get an apple to bake for sauce. Grandpa I think it will be a nice Thanksgiving dinner."

"Poor darling!" said grandpa, wiping his eyes, "you are something to be thankful for, if the dinner isn't....