Chapter 5 The Visit to Grandmother Day after day, Heidi spent her time with Peter.
They went high into the meadows and among the rocks and the flowers.
When the weather finally grew cold and Grandfather told Heidi to stay home, Peter felt the same unhappiness as the young girl.
Not only did he miss the extra food at lunchtime, but he always had more trouble with the goats on those days.
The animals seemed to behave better when their kind Heidi was around to guide them.
When it grew very cold, Peter no longer took the goats out.
This was his time to go to school.
Heidi loved to ask him questions about his schooling, but Peter wasn't fond of answering the girl.
He liked his job as a goat herder far more than he liked school.
One evening, he gave Heidi a message instead of answering her questions.
"'Grandmother sent word that she would like you to come see her,' the boy said.
"'It was quite a new idea for Heidi that she would go visit anyone.
'For the next few days?
She bothered grandfather so much about going, 'that he finally gave in to her wishes'.
Grandfather rose from the table.
He climbed up to the hayloft and brought down the thick sack to wrap the young girl in.
Then he went to the shed and came out dragging a large sled.
After climbing into the seat, he placed the girl comfortably on his lap.
They took off like a bird gliding swiftly through the air.
Within minutes, they sailed to a stop in front of Peter's hut.
There you are now.
Go on in.
When it begins to get dark, you must start on your way home again.
Then he left her and went back up the mountain, pulling his sled behind him.
Heidi opened the door of the hut and stepped into the small, dark room.
It had a fireplace and looked like a kitchen.
In the corner sat an old woman bent over from age.
She was spinning wool into yarn on a big spinning wheel.
Heidi walked up to her.
Good day, Grandmother, she said.
I have come at last.
Did you think I would never get here?
The old woman raised her head and felt for the hand that the child held out to her.
Are you the child who lives at the top of the mountain?
Are you Heidi?
Yes, yes, answered Heidi.
I came down in the sled with Grandfather.
Is it possible?
Your hands are quite warm.
What does she look like, Brigitte?
The old woman asked her daughter, who was sewing in the corner of the room.
She's a beautiful little girl, much like her mother was, and I believe her grandfather must be taking care of her.
She looks quite well, the younger woman said.
During this time, Heidi had not been standing still.
She had been wandering around the room, looking carefully at everything there was to see.
All of a sudden, she exclaimed, Grandmother, one of your shutters is flapping back and forth.
Grandfather will come and make it right for you.
See how it keeps banging?
Dear child, said the old woman, I can't see, but I can hear.
There are many things wrong with this house.
It creaks and rattles so much that I lie awake at night thinking the whole place might just fall down.
There's no one to fix it for us.
Peter doesn't know such things.
Why can't you see the shutter?
Heidi asks.
Heidi, dear, I can't see anything.
But if I take you out into the snow, there will be more light.
Surely you will see it then.
It is always dark for me now.
Whether in the snow or the sun, no light can help me.
Heidi wouldn't give up.
But in the summer Grandmother, when the hot sun is shining down, it will be bright and beautiful for you again.
Oh, child, I won't ever see the sunshine gleaming on the mountains or the yellow flowers again.
At these words, Heidi broke into loud crying.
In her sadness, she kept saying, Why can't someone make it light for you?
Why can't you see?
Grandmother tried to calm the girl, but it was not easy to quiet her.
Heidi didn't cry often.
When she did, she could not get over her sadness for a long while.
At last, grandmother said, Come here, my Heidi.
Tell me how grandfather is.
Tell me what you do up there.
I knew him very well in the old days, but I have heard nothing of him for many years now.
All I know I learned from Peter, who never says much.
This brought a new and happy idea to Heidi.
She quickly dried her tears and said, Wait until I have told Grandfather everything.
He will make it light for you again, I am sure of it, and he will fix your house for you too.
He will put everything right.
Grandmother was silent.
Heidi began the lively tale of her life 'with Grandfather in the days she spent on the mountain with the goats.
'She told Grandmother what fine care the old man took of her?
'and all about the beautiful woodworking he did round the house.
"'Grandmother listened carefully.
'Both she and her daughter looked surprised 'at the wonderful things Heidi was saying about the old man.
"'The young girl talked until the door burst open.
"'Peter!' she cried when she saw the boy.'
Peter's smile was as big as the girl's.
He laughed as she danced about him in glee.
Peter, Grandmother said quickly, how is your reading getting along?
Just the same, was Peter's answer.
I had hoped he would be reading by now, Grandmother told Heidi.
There's an old prayer book on the shelf.
It has beautiful songs in it that I have not heard for a long time.
I can no longer remember them to repeat to myself.
I had hoped that Peter would soon learn enough to read one of them to me.
But wait, the old woman continued.
How can you be home so soon?
Surely the afternoon hasn't passed by so quickly.'
Oh, but it has and it's getting dark, said Heidi sorrowfully.
I promised Grandfather that I would start back at the first sign of night.
I must go.
Heidi gave Peter a smile and picked up her coat.
The old woman made a fuss about the child going out into the freezing air.
Finally, she sent Peter along to make sure Heidi made it up the mountain.
They hadn't gone far before Grandfather met them on the path.
Heidi immediately began telling him about her afternoon visit.
"'Grandfather, tomorrow we must take the hammer and the long nails.
We have to fasten Grandmother's shutter and do some other work.
Her house shakes and rattles all over.'
"'We must, must we?
Who told you that?' asked her grandfather.
Nobody told me, said Heidi.
But Grandmother lies awake at night and trembles with fear that the house will fall on their heads.
Everything is dark now for Grandmother and she doesn't think anybody will be able to make it light again.
But I'm sure you will be able to, Grandfather.
Think!
"'how awful it is for her to always be in the dark "'and to be frightened about what may happen.
"'No one else can help her.
"'Tomorrow we must go and make things right.
"'We will, won't we, grandfather?'
The child was clinging to the old man and looking at him in such a trusting way.
He looked down at Heidi for a long while without speaking and then said Yes Heidi, we will do something to stop the rattling and at the very least we can do that.
We will go tomorrow.
Grandfather kept his promise.
Each day he went and fixed something new, and so the winter went by.
After many years of joyless life, Grandmother at last had something to make her happy.
Her days were no longer filled with weariness and darkness.
She now could look forward to Heidi's visits.
