He had loved Sara Stuart from childhood . He remembered vividly the day he had first seen her -- a spring day , much like this one had been ; he , a boy of eight , had gone with his father to the big , sunshiny hill field and he had searched for birds ' nests in the little fir copses along the crest while his father plowed . He had so come upon her , sitting on the fence under the pines at the back of Pinehurst -- a child of six in a dress of purple cloth . Her long , light brown curls fell over her shoulders and rippled sleekly back from her calm little brow ; her eyes were large and greyish blue , straight-gazing and steadfast . To the end of his life the boy was to carry in his heart the picture she made there under the pines . `` Little boy , '' she had said , with a friendly smile , `` will you show me where the mayflowers grow ? '' Shyly enough he had assented , and they set out together for the barrens beyond the field , where the arbutus trailed its stars of sweetness under the dusty dead grasses and withered leaves of the old year . The boy was thrilled with delight . She was a fairy queen who thus graciously smiled on him and chattered blithely as they searched for mayflowers in the fresh spring sunshine . He thought it a wonderful thing that it had so chanced . It overjoyed him to give the choicest dusters he found into her slim , waxen little fingers , and watch her eyes grow round with pleasure in them . When the sun began to lower over the beeches she had gone home with her arms full of arbutus , but she had turned at the edge of the pineland and waved her hand at him . That night , when he told his mother of the little girl he had met on the hill , she had hoped anxiously that he had been `` very polite , '' for the little girl was a daughter of Colonel Stuart , newly come to Pinehurst . Jeffrey , reflecting , had not been certain that he had been polite ; `` But I am sure she liked me , '' he said gravely . A few days later a message came from Mrs. Stuart on the hill to Mrs. Miller in the valley . Would she let her little boy go up now and then to play with Sara ? Sara was very lonely because she had no playmates . So Jeff , overjoyed , had gone to his divinity 's very home , where the two children played together many a day . All through their childhood they had been fast friends . Sara 's parents placed no bar to their intimacy .
They had soon concluded that little Jeff Miller was a very good playmate for XXXXX .
Jeffrey Miller Sara Stuart barrens copses day first mayflowers pineland