Quite by accident , of course , some pretty , easy music lay on the piano , and with trembling fingers and frequent stops to listen and look about , Beth at last touched the great instrument , and straightway forgot her fear , herself , and everything else but the unspeakable delight which the music gave her , for it was like the voice of a beloved friend . She stayed till Hannah came to take her home to dinner , but she had no appetite , and could only sit and smile upon everyone in a general state of beatitude . After that , the little brown hood slipped through the hedge nearly every day , and the great drawing room was haunted by a tuneful spirit that came and went unseen . She never knew that Mr. Laurence opened his study door to hear the old-fashioned airs he liked . She never saw Laurie mount guard in the hall to warn the servants away . She never suspected that the exercise books and new songs which she found in the rack were put there for her especial benefit , and when he talked to her about music at home , she only thought how kind he was to tell things that helped her so much . So she enjoyed herself heartily , and found , what is n't always the case , that her granted wish was all she had hoped . Perhaps it was because she was so grateful for this blessing that a greater was given her . At any rate she deserved both . `` Mother , I 'm going to work Mr. Laurence a pair of slippers . He is so kind to me , I must thank him , and I do n't know any other way . Can I do it ? '' asked Beth , a few weeks after that eventful call of his . `` Yes , dear . It will please him very much , and be a nice way of thanking him . The girls will help you about them , and I will pay for the making up , '' replied Mrs. March , who took peculiar pleasure in granting Beth 's requests because she so seldom asked anything for herself . After many serious discussions with Meg and Jo , the pattern was chosen , the materials bought , and the slippers begun . A cluster of grave yet cheerful pansies on a deeper purple ground was pronounced very appropriate and pretty , and Beth worked away early and late , with occasional lifts over hard parts . She was a nimble little needlewoman , and they were finished before anyone got tired of them . Then she wrote a short , simple note , and with Laurie 's help , got them smuggled onto the study table one morning before the old gentleman was up .
When this excitement was over , XXXXX waited to see what would happen .
Beth Hannah Laurence Mother accident beatitude before day needlewoman weeks