HIDDEN TREASURES 

By Tessa Harvey


    It was very quiet in the small room just off the main ward. Alice lay still as Jess watched over her. She remembered all the times she had had fun with her grandparents. Trips to the seaside, fairs, markets, playgrounds. Once was a visit to a circus.
    But also she thought of the quiet evenings doing her homework at the kitchen table once the evening meal was cleared away and dishes done.
    Sometimes, if it was too hard, her grandfather had helped her or his wife - with schoolwork. Then they had watched a child-friendly program before her bed-time.
    Hours later, Alice opened her eyes and looked at her. "Do you remember Psalm 23?" she asked Jess softly. "You memorised it for a school project." The word 'memorised' was slurred slightly.
    There was a pause, then "do you know that we always go THROUGH the dark valleys?"
    Jess smiled and held her hand gently. It was a while before Alice spoke again. "We loved you as our own, Jess! God has treasures of love when times are dark. Look for them, dear one. He loves you."


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