Longings

She never told anyone about her secret longings.

None of them was so full of longings as the youngest, the very one who had the longest time to wait, and who was so quiet and dreamy.

Yes, it was a sunny day; but for many days before, the sky had been veiled in gloomy clouds; and joyous indeed was it to look up into that blue vault, and see it unobscured by its sombre screen; and my heart fluttered, like a prisoned bird, with its painful longings for an unchecked flight amidst the beautiful creation around me.