One day poor widow Reagan, who was a washerwoman, was hard at work over her tubs. As she scrubbed away at the clothes, she got to thinking about her many troubles, until one after another the tears were falling into the soap suds; but still she kept on with her work. Nobody was near to see her sorrow, but her little boy Jack, about five years old, who was playing with his blocks on the floor. He looked at his mother a moment, surprised to see her weeping, and then under the influence of his love and pity, he pushed a chair up to the washbench, climbed up on it, put his rosy, laughing face close by his mother’s sad one, and throwing his arms round her neck kissed her kindly. It made a pretty picture.
Just then, Mrs. Reagan’s minister happened to enter the cottage. He paused a moment, and gazed on the interesting sight before him. Then he said, “Now, Mrs. Reagan, you have rain and sunshine both together in this room. The rainbow of promise must be very near.”
At this little Jack laughed aloud, and his mother smiled through her tears, and while she handed the minister a chair, she said “Yes, pastor. You never spoke a truer word. My Jack is a rainbow that the Lord Himself has given me. And when I look into my darling’s face and see his sweet smile, I know, by that same token, that the Lord will not let my troubles overwhelm me.”
I suppose the good minister probably told the story of the widow’s tears, and her boy’s smiles, for after that, Jack was always spoken of in the village by the name of “Rainbow Reagan” and he proved by his conduct to his mother, that he well deserved that name.
Here we see what a blessing Jack was, by making sunshine in that home, which would otherwise have been made gloomy and sad by the tears of sorrow.
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