nd her hair was so lovely that Sister Marie-Aimee
would never have it cut short like that of the other girls.

At last the great day came. My general confession had passed off all
right. It gave me the same feeling that a bath does. I felt very
clean after it, but I trembled so when I was given the holy wafer that
a bit of it stuck in my teeth. A sort of dizziness came over me, and I
felt as though a big black curtain had dropped in front of my eyes, I
thought I heard Sister Marie-Aimee's voice asking "Are you ill," and I
seemed to know that she went with me as far as my fald-stool, and that
she put my taper into my hand and said, "Hold it tight." My throat had
grown so tight that I could not swallow, and I felt a liquid dropping
from my mouth into my throat. Then I was wildly frightened, for
Madeleine had warned us that if we bit the holy wafer the blood of
Christ would stream from our mouths, and that nobody would be able to
stop it. Sister Marie-Aimee wiped my face and whispered quite low,
"Take care, dear. Are you ill?" My throat loosened, and I swallowed
the wafer. Then at last I dared to look down to see the blood on my
dress, but I saw only a little grey spot like a drop of water. I put
my handkerchief to my lips and wiped my face. There was no blood on
it. I did not feel quite sure yet, but when we got up to sing I tried
to sing with the others. When M. le Cure came to see us later in the
day Sister Marie-Aimee told him that I had almost fainted at Communion.
He took my chin in his hand and tipped my face up towards him. Then,
after looking into my eyes, he began to laugh, and said that I was a
very sensitive little girl.

After our first communion we did not attend class any more. Bonne
Justine taught us to sew. We made caps for peasant women. It was not
very difficult, and as it was something new I worked hard. Bonne
Justine said that I should make a very good needle-woman. Sister
Marie-Aimee used to kiss me and say, "So you would, if you could only
get over your laziness." But when I had made a few caps and had to go
on doing the same thing over and over again, my laziness got the better
of me. The work bored me, and I could not make up my mind to do it. I
could have remained for hours and hours without moving, watching the
others work. Marie Renaud never spoke to us while she was sewing. Her
stitches were so small and so close together that one needed good eyes
to see them. I