But when Laurie was gone , and peace prevailed again , the vague anxiety returned and haunted her . She had confessed her sins and been forgiven , but when she showed her savings and proposed a mountain trip , Beth had thanked her heartily , but begged not to go so far away from home . Another little visit to the seashore would suit her better , and as Grandma could not be prevailed upon to leave the babies , Jo took Beth down to the quiet place , where she could live much in the open air , and let the fresh sea breezes blow a little color into her pale cheeks . It was not a fashionable place , but even among the pleasant people there , the girls made few friends , preferring to live for one another . Beth was too shy to enjoy society , and Jo too wrapped up in her to care for anyone else . So they were all in all to each other , and came and went , quite unconscious of the interest they exited in those about them , who watched with sympathetic eyes the strong sister and the feeble one , always together , as if they felt instinctively that a long separation was not far away . They did feel it , yet neither spoke of it , for often between ourselves and those nearest and dearest to us there exists a reserve which it is very hard to overcome . Jo felt as if a veil had fallen between her heart and Beth 's , but when she put out her hand to lift it up , there seemed something sacred in the silence , and she waited for Beth to speak . She wondered , and was thankful also , that her parents did not seem to see what she saw , and during the quiet weeks when the shadows grew so plain to her , she said nothing of it to those at home , believing that it would tell itself when Beth came back no better . She wondered still more if her sister really guessed the hard truth , and what thoughts were passing through her mind during the long hours when she lay on the warm rocks with her head in Jo 's lap , while the winds blew healthfully over her and the sea made music at her feet . One day Beth told her . Jo thought she was asleep , she lay so still , and putting down her book , sat looking at her with wistful eyes , trying to see signs of hope in the faint color on Beth 's cheeks . But she could not find enough to satisfy her , for the cheeks were very thin , and the hands seemed too feeble to hold even the rosy little shells they had been collecting . It came to her then more bitterly than ever that Beth was slowly drifting away from her , and her arms instinctively tightened their hold upon the dearest treasure she possessed . For a minute her eyes were too dim for seeing , and when they cleared , Beth was looking up at her so tenderly that there was hardly any need for her to say , `` Jo , dear , I 'm glad you know it . I 've tried to tell you , but I could n't . '' There was no answer except her sister 's cheek against her own , not even tears , for when most deeply moved , Jo did not cry . She was the weaker then , and Beth tried to comfort and sustain her , with her arms about her and the soothing words she whispered in her ear . `` I 've known it for a good while , dear , and now I 'm used to it , it is n't hard to think of or to bear . Try to see it so and do n't be troubled about me , because it 's best , indeed it is . ''
`` Is this what made you so unhappy in the autumn , XXXXX ?
Beth Jo Laurie hours minute people society treasure visit weeks