Bit of Earth

“Is there anything you want?” (asked Mr. Craven.) “Do you want toys, dolls, books?”

“Might I,” quavered Mary, “might I have a bit of earth?”

In her eagerness she did not realize how queer the words would sound and that they were not the ones she had meant to say. Mr. Craven looked quite startled.

“Earth!” he repeated. “What do you mean?”

“To plant seeds in—to make things grow—to see them come alive,” Mary faltered.

—The Secret Garden, Frances Hodgson Burnett

I’m laughing at myself. I was reading ov