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hearts the supreme reality of Thy participation and Thy benediotion in our daily, hourly life. For all this mercy we humbly, gratefully, reverently render our warmest thanks unto Thee. Blessed, blessed, blessed be Thou now and for ever!
We would recount unto Thee, with the thanks of our hearts and the praise of our Souls, these numerous tokens and manifestations of Thy love and mercy, even through this, the very dear, lovingly-cherished gift of our darling. With what aching eagerness of the heart we besought Thy mercy to be made manifest unto our eyes and our hearts— how we wept and implored, how we sighed and supplicated, to be vouchsafed a light to be illumining, cheering, adoring this House! Then the darling—the response unto our prayers and the recompense unto our tears—came, not as nature's normal product, but as God's special boon; and we bowed before Thee and we sang Thy praise. And now, with the liveliest memories, we recall that auspicious moment of his advent—a star, a
