Patchwork: A Story of 'The Plain People'Myers, Anna Balmer
General
Patchwork: A Story of 'The Plain People'
Myers, Anna Balmer
Amish -- Fiction
At the appointed hour the pipe-organ pealed out. The June sunlight
streamed through the open windows, fell upon the banks of roses, and
gleamed upon the fountain that played in the midst of the crimson
flowers. Peace brooded over the place as the last strains of music died.
There was silence for a moment, then a prayer, a hymn of adoration, and
then the chosen speaker stood before the crowd and delivered his
message.
Phœbe listened to him until he uttered the words, "True life must be
service, true love must be giving. No man has reached true greatness
save he serves, and he who serves most faithfully is greatest in the
kingdom."
After those words she fell to thinking. Many things that had been dark
to her suddenly became light. She seemed to see Royal Lee fiddling while
the world was in travail, but beside him rose a vision of David in
sailor's blue, ready to do his whole duty for his country.
"Oh," she thought, "I've been blind, but now I see! It's David I want.
He's a man!"
She heard as in a dream the words of the one who presented the red rose
to the heir. "Once more the time has come to pay our debt of one red
rose. It is with cheerfulness and reverence we pay our rental. Amid
these bright surroundings, in the presence of the many who have come to
witness this unique ceremony, do we give to you in partial payment of
the debt we owe--ONE RED ROSE."
The heir received the flower and expressed her appreciation. Then
silence settled upon the place and Phœbe rose to sing.
As the organ sent forth the opening strains of music the people in the
church looked at each other, surprised, disappointed. Why, that was the
old tune, "Jesus, Lover of my soul." The tune they had heard sung
hundreds of times--was Phœbe going to sing that? With so many impressive
selections to choose from no soloist need sing that old hymn! Some of
the town people thought disdainfully, "Was that all she could sing after
a whole winter's study in Philadelphia!"
But Phœbe sang the old words to the old tune. She sang them with a new
power and sweetness. It touched the listeners in that rose-scented
church and revealed to them the meaning of the old hymn. The dependence
upon a divine guide, the utter impotence of mortal strength, breathed so
persuasively in the second verse that many who heard Phœbe sing it
mentally repeated the words with her.
"Other refuge have I none,
Hangs my helpless soul on Thee:
Leave, ah! leave me not alone,
Still support and comfort me;
All my trust on Thee is stayed;
All my help from Thee I bring;
Cover my defenceless head
With the shadow of Thy wing."
Then the hymn changed--hope displaced hopelessness, faith surmounted
fear.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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