Corner i DEAR Children: Don't you often wish we knew more about Jesus when He was a little boy? I often do, and I am sure the quaint old legends that we read sometimes in. books grew up among people who felt the same, and thought so much about His childhood that they made. these little stories that show, in all their different ways, what He must have been like.
I expect you all know the legend of the clay sparrows that the Boy Jesus made to fly; but there is an old German one that is not so generally known, about St. John the Baptist and Our Lord playing together as small boys. One day Jesus told John as a great secret that an Angel often came to play with Him, and that he sometimes had beautiful starlike flowers with him. The little John wanted so much to see this Angel, but he only came when Jesus was alone. So to comfort him, Jesus one day gave him a bright and shining seed which had dropped from one of the flowers. John ran home and planted the seed in his garden, and told Elizabeth, his mother, that he would soon have some flowers like stars to give her. And sure enough, In a few months' time, the young plants put out starry blooms. and John gathered them and called them Star flowers. And today we still call those same flowers "Asters," which means the same thing.
For the threes and fours LANE and Jeremy each had a J rosary given to them for Christmas. Jane's had dear little blue beads and a blue and silver Crucifix, and the beads on Jeremy's were red. (Jeremy called them rubies.)
Mummy explained that this was Mother Mary's Year and that everyone wanted to do something special for Her. So she thought the twins would like to start saying the Rosary.
"It's an awful lot," said Jeremy, who was rather fond of making objections. "Can we learn all that?"
"No," said Mummy, "I don't think you can. But that doesn't matter. The only thing that matters is that Mother Mary knows you want to talk to Her. Just to say 'Hail Mary' is enough."
"On all the little beads," said Jane. "I know."
"And Our Father on the big ones." put in Jeremy.
"There you are," said Mummy, "it's quite easy, isn't it." "Will Mother Mary be listening?" asked Jeremy.
"Of course She will," said Mummy, "And so will Jesus, too, because He loves us to talk to His Mother."
"That's Jesus on the little Cross," said Jeremy.
"Yes, and before you say 'Our Father' and 'Hail Mary' you can kiss the Cross and bless yourself with it."
"And when we finish, too," said Jeremy. "I know. I've watched Mrs. Brown in church."
Mummy laughed. "Oh, Jeremy," she said, "Mrs. Brown sits behind us. Now you have a rosary of your own, no more turning round."
Philomena