January (?) or October 1869
Letter from Mrs. Martin to Mrs. Guérin CF 49
My children often talk to me about your little Jeanne and ask me if she will be back soon. Léonie calls him little Jeanne, it's hard to make him understand that it's a little girl and not a boy. She understands things quite slowly, but she has always been sick and I hope she will develop later.
Hélène had the measles and was very ill from it; for three days I had worries, now she is doing very well, except for a sore eyes which remained after her illness; it was not, however, that she had left too soon, she kept the bed for eight days and the room for three weeks. Léonie had measles at the same time as her sister and for the third time; she carried her upright and hardly suffered from it.
Marie and Pauline returned to the Visitation on the 8th instant; they like it very much and love their aunt very much, but they like it even better with their mother. Marie shed many tears when it was time to leave, and so did I. I am very deprived of them and I am making a big sacrifice by keeping them away from me.
My eldest is becoming very reasonable, you can see that she is making efforts to correct her little faults, then she is so loving! When she realizes that she hurts me, she bursts into tears. Pauline is very cute and attracts all hearts, but she is unparalleled in exuberance, it's stronger than her, so her aunt reproaches me for it.
I received a letter from my sister last Thursday, giving me better news of her health; that doesn't prevent me from having concerns, I'm afraid we won't keep it for long. She will be delighted, because she looks at death with joy, but for all of us, it will be a great pain and a real misfortune for my children.
I'm doing very well so far; I'm too happy for it to last, because neither on one side nor on the other, I have great annoyances; my business is going neither well nor badly, I would like it to always be so; finally, for the moment, I lack only miseries!
