MY ANTONIA
lapped up the dew in the early morning, like
the rabbits.
Antonia had opinions about everything, and she was soon able to make them known. Almost every day she came running across the prairie to have her reading lesson with me. Mrs. Shimerda grumbled, but realized it was Important that one member of the family should learn English. When the lesson was over, we used to go up to the watermelon patch behind the garden. I split the melons with an old corn-knife, and we lifted out the hearts and ate them with the juice trickling through our fingers. The white Christmas melons we did not touch, but we watched them with curiosity. They were to be picked late, when the hard frosts had set in, and put away for winter use. After weeks on the ocean, the Shimerdas were famished for fruit. The two girls would wander for miles along the edge of the corn fields, hunting for ground-cherries.
Antonia loved to help grandmother in the kitchen and to learn about cooking and house keeping. She would stand beside her, watching her every movement. We were willing to believe that Mrs. Shimerda was a good house wife in her own country, but she managed
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