Ellen Harmon was a happy little girl. She had a kind father and mother. She had a twin sister named Elizabeth. She had six other brothers and sisters, too.
They had such good times together! Little Ellen went to school. Elizabeth went to school, too. They liked school very much. They liked to read. They liked to write. They liked arithmetic and spelling.
One day Ellen, Elizabeth, and another little girl were on their way home from school. An older girl was walking behind them. She was not a kind girl. She wanted her own way. She was angry and said cross words.
Ellen and Elizabeth hurried as fast as they could, while the older girl followed behind.
The three little girls hurried as fast as they could. Ellen turned to see how far the big girl was behind her.
Just then the big girl threw a stone. The stone hit little Ellen’s nose. She fell to the ground.
It made Ellen very sick. Elizabeth and the other little girl carried her home. For many weeks she lay sick in her bed. Many people thought she would die. , Her thin face was no longer pretty. Her father had been away on a trip. When he came home he did not know his little girl.
He asked: “Where is Ellen?” Then he remembered about the accident. He felt sorry for his dear little girl.
When she was better she went to school again. She tried to read. She tried to write, but her hand shook. She could not see the letters on the page. Her teacher said: “Poor little Ellen. You are too sick to go to school.” Ellen was sad, for she wanted so much to go to school.
She went back to school several times, but each time she had to stop. Many of Ellen’s friends felt sorry for her. They were kind to her. They tried to help her. Other children said: “We do not like Ellen as much as we did. She is not pretty now.” This made Ellen very sad. Often she felt lonely.
One day a minister came to the town where Ellen lived. His name was William Miller. He preached to the people.
Ellen went with some of her friends to hear him preach. He talked about the loving Jesus. Ellen’s heart was happy as she heard the story of the loving Jesus. Ellen loved Jesus.
She said: “I’m glad Jesus loves me even though I am not pretty. He loves me even though I cannot go to school.
He knows all about me.” The love of Jesus made little Ellen happy again.
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Honey for Sweetness 