The Little Sparrows by Al Lacy Read Free Book Online Page B

yesterday, honey, your mama asked me to make sure you get your daily naps. It’s good for little girls your age to get a nap in the afternoon. Come on, get up on your bed.”
    Lizzie obeyed, and when she lay on her back with her head on the pillow, she set her eyes on Frances. “If I should go to sleep, will you wake me up before Mary and Johnny come home from school?”
    “I’ll do that, sweet baby,” she said, bending down and planting a kiss on her forehead. “I have a feeling if you lie here real quietlike, you’ll be asleep in no time. Okay?”
    “Okay.”
    Frances crossed the room to the door. She paused and smiled at the little girl. “Sleep tight.”
    “I’ll try.”
    Frances closed the door and headed down the hall toward the parlor.
    She smiled to herself, thinking how much she enjoyed taking care of the Marston children. She loved all three, but little Lizzie had found a very special place in her heart.
    Bob and Louise had moved into this house on the day they were married, and Frances had been with Louise at the birth of all three babies. She had come to feel very much a part of the family. As old age had come upon her, she no longer had the energy nor the stamina she once did when caring for the lively youngsters, but since Mary was mature for her eight years, she was a help to her. Even then, by the end of each day since Bob and Louise had been gone, Frances was more than ready for bedtime, when she could crawl into the soft bed in the guest room and indulge in its comfort.
    As Frances entered the parlor and eased into the soft overstuffed chair by the window, she thought about Lizzie, and how she had been especially energetic today. It was time for Lizzie’s “nanny” to get a little rest too.
    It was the sound of a neighbor’s dog barking across the street that brought Frances out of her sound sleep. She opened her eyes, rubbed them gently, and looked out the window. Across the street, Mrs. Chelton was scolding her dog for barking, and with a grip on his collar, was leading him back inside the house.
    Frances glanced at the grandfather clock on the other side of the room, and noted that it was almost three-thirty. Mary and Johnny would be home from school in less than half an hour. She rubbed her eyes again, and with difficulty—which was now normal—she left the chair.
    Moments later, when Frances quietly opened the door of the girls’ room and peeked in, she saw Lizzie lying on the bed smiling at her. “I been awake for a while, Mrs. Roberts.”
    “Well, I’m glad you went to sleep, honey. And that was a good girl to stay on the bed till I came to get you up. Want to go out on the front porch and wait for Mary and Johnny to come home?”
    “Uh-huh.” Lizzie rolled over on her stomach, slid off the bed, and hurried to Frances’s side.
    Moments later, they stepped out onto the front porch. Frances stepped to the railing, and leaning on it, ran her gaze over the colorful flowerbeds that surrounded the porch. Lizzie was waiting behind the comfortable canvas chair where Frances liked to sit. When Frances moved to the chair, the girl took hold of it to steady it, which was Johnny’s job when he was home.
    Secretly, Frances was hoping the older two would do something to occupy Lizzie when they got home, so she could get a few minutes’ rest before starting supper.
    Smiling, Lizzie stood in front of Frances. “Is there anything I can do for you, Mrs. Roberts?”
    Frances smiled. “Not that I can think of, sweet baby. Just sit over here in one of these chairs so you can watch for your brother and sister.”
    “How about I sing for you?”
    “That would be nice, honey.”
    “I been learning a new song in Sunday school. It’s called ‘Jesus Loves Me.’ Wanna hear it?”
    “Sure.”
    Lizzie took her usual stance for singing—one foot a half-step behind the other—and splayed her fingers, holding her hands at waist level.
    Frances smiled. Lizzie loved to entertain, and it showed in her