p. 20 | Shiny and Bill-Jack by Addie C. Webb

Review and Herald Publishing Association · Takoma Park Station, Washington, D. C. · Nov 25, 1915

Shiny and Bill-Jack

By Addie C. Webb

A BEAUTIFUL mother of a beautiful boy, whom she calls Shiny, has an original idea for teaching the little fellow self-control. As in all affectionate, emotional children, the tears lie near the surface, and he is inclined to come to mother oftener than is good for him for sympathy and comfort. When the hurt is real, or the trouble very great, he gets sympathy in abundance; but when the cause is slight, and he has wasted good tears, the program is different.

On the nursery wall upstairs the mother has pinned two pictures, one of a field full of daisies, where the sun shines and the birds sing; in the other picture, the rain pours, the birds are gone, and the flowers droop their heads. A little boy, cut out of paper, dressed spick-and-span, is always pinned to his place in one of these pictures. When Shiny is happy, the little paper doll, whose name is Bill-Jack, is kept pinned in the sunshine picture. But when Shiny comes in with a grievance and tears that are not necessary, he must himself march straight upstairs and take poor little Bill-Jack out of the sunshine picture, and pin him in the one where the rain pours.

So great is Shiny's love for Bill-Jack, that he can't bear to have him run the risk of getting his new clothes wet and muddying up his new shoes, so he goes reluctantly up the steps, and seldom gets farther than the top before his tears change to smiles, and he flies down to mamma for a hug and a kiss—which means her approval of another victory over himself.—Addie C. Webb.