Chapter-3
Winter had almost arrived and it was cold due to the chilly winds. Peter would come up early in the morning blowing on his fingers to keep them warm. But soon, he had to stop coming as there was heavy snowfall one night and the whole mountain was covered with it. Not a single little green leaf was seen anywhere upon it. There was no Peter that day and Heidi stood at the little window waiting for him but the snow was still falling. But things did not get bad as a few days later, the snowfall ceased. The grandfather went out and shovelled away the snow around the house and threw it into great heaps such that they looked like mountains standing at intervals on either side of the hut.
One afternoon Heidi and her grandfather were sitting on their stools before the fire. Suddenly, there was a great thump at the door and the door opened. It was Peter who made that noise to knock off the snow off his shoes. It was a week now since he had seen Heidi.
“Good-evening,” he said as he came in. He went and placed himself near the fire and his whole face was beaming with pleasure finding himself there.
“How are you?” said the grandfather, “now that you are not herding the goats, you must return to your pen and pencil.”
“Why must he return to his pen and pencil?” asked Heidi curiously.
“During the winter he goes to school,” explained her grandfather, “and learn how to read and write; it’s a bit hard, but useful sometimes. Am I not right, General?”
“Yes, indeed,” assented Peter.
Heidi’s interest was now awakened and she had so many questions to ask Peter about all that was to be done and seen and heard at school. The conversation took so long that Peter had time to get thoroughly dry. Peter had always great difficulty in putting his thoughts into words. So, by the time he had an answer ready to one of Heidi’s questions she had already put two or three more to him. Generally most of them required a whole long sentence in reply. The grandfather sat without speaking during this conversation.
“General, I guess you must have dried yourself by now. Would you like some refreshment? Come and join us,” he said at last. As he spoke, he rose and went to fetch the supper out of the cupboard and Heidi pushed the stools to the table. There was a bench fastened against the wall after Heidi’s arrival in the house as he was no longer alone and had put up seats of various kinds here and there long enough to hold two persons. It was a long time since Peter had had anything so nice to eat. He found the supper delicious. As soon as the meal was over. Peter began to get ready for returning home as it was already growing dark.
He was almost at the door of the hut when he turned and said, “I shall come again next Sunday. The grandmother sent word that she would like you to come and see her one day.”
It was quite a new idea to Heidi that she should go and pay anybody a visit. She could not get it out of her head. She said to her grandfather the next day, “I must go down to see the grandmother today; she will be expecting me.”
“The snow is too deep,” answered the grandfather, trying to put her off. But Heidi had made up her mind to go, since the grandmother had sent her a message. It was her daily routine now to say to the grandfather that, “I must certainly go today; the grandmother will be waiting for me.” The daily refusal disappointed her.
Within four days, the whole vast field was covered with snow as hard as ice. Heidi was sitting on her high stool at dinner with the bright sun shining upon her through the window. Again, she repeated her little speech, “I must go to see the grandmother today or else she will keep waiting too long.”
The grandfather rose from the table, climbed up to the hay-loft and brought down the thick sack and said, “Come along!” The child skipped out cheerfully after him.
The old fir trees were standing silent with their branches covered with the white snow. Heidi jumped out of joy at the sight and shouted, “Come; come here, grandfather! The fir trees are all silver and gold!”
The grandfather had gone into the shed and come out dragging a large hand-sleigh along with him. Inside it, there was a low seat, and the sleigh could be pushed forward and guided by the feet of the one who sat upon it with the help of a pole that was fastened to the side. He got into the sleigh and lifted her onto his lap and wrapped her up in a sack to keep her protected from the cold. He put his left arm closely round her to hold her tightly during the journey. He grasped the pole with his right hand and gave the sleigh a push forward with his two feet. The sleigh slid down the mountain side with a great speed that Heidi thought they were flying through the air like birds.
Suddenly, they stopped as they reached Peter’s hut. The grandfather lifted her out and unwrapped her.
“We have reached. But remember to return back before it gets dark,” said the grandfather. Then he left her and went up the mountain, pulling his sleigh after him.
Heidi opened the door of the hut and stepped into a tiny room that was very dark with a fireplace and a few dishes on a wooden shelf. She opened another door and found herself in another small room. The hut was unlike her grandfather’s hut and small too. As Heidi stepped in, she saw a woman sitting on a table close to the door. She was putting a patch on a waistcoat which Heidi recognized at once as Peter’s. There was an old woman sitting in another corner, bent with age. Heidi at once recognized that this was the grandmother.
She went up to the spinning-wheel and said, “Good day, grandmother. I have come to see you. I am sorry it took me so long.”
The woman raised her head and held Heidi’s hand and then said, “Are you Heidi? Are you Alp’s Grand-daughter?”
“Yes, yes,” answered Heidi.
“How did you manage to reach here alone in such snowy weather?” asked grandmother.
“The grandfather came along with me and he left,” replied Heidi.
Peter’s mother left her work once and the grandmother looked at Heidi with a surprise.
“I do not know, mother, whether Uncle came himself. I guess she is making some mistake,” said Peter’s mother.
Heidi looked steadily at the woman and said, “I know who wrapped me in my bedcover and brought me down in the sleigh. It was my grandfather.”
“So it was true what Peter kept telling us about Uncle Alp during the summer and we thought he was wrong,” said grandmother, “But it is still impossible to believe that the child survived three weeks there. What is she like, Brigitta?”
Brigitta thoroughly examined Heidi on all sides. Now, she was able to describe her to her mother-in-law.
“She looks like Adelaide but her eyes are dark and her hair curly like her father’s and the old man’s up there,” said Brigitta.
Heidi took a round of the room and examined each and everything kept there. Suddenly she spoke, “One of your shutters is flapping backwards and forwards. The grandfather would put a nail in and make it all right in a minute.”
“I am not able to see it, but I can hear that. Everything about the place rattles and creaks when the wind is blowing, and it gets inside through all the cracks and holes. At night, I often lie awake in fear and trembling, thinking that if the whole roof falls down, we shall get killed. There is no one around to mend anything for us, for Peter does not understand such work,” replied the grandmother.
“But why cannot you see, grandmother, that the shutter is loose,” Heidi said pointing to the particular shutter. “If you go outside among all the white snow, then surely you would find it light; just come with me, grandmother, and I will show you.”
Heidi took hold of the old woman’s hand to lead her along, as she was distressed at the thought of her being without light.
“Don’t worry, dear. It is always dark for me now—whether in snow or sun, no light can penetrate my eyes,” replied the grandmother with a sad tone.
“But during the summer it will when the hot sun will shine again and when he says goodnight to the mountains. They all turn on fire, and the yellow flowers shine like gold. Then, you will see it will be bright and beautiful for you again,” said Heidi.
“I can’t see the mountains on fire or the yellow flowers anymore. It will never be light for me again on earth, never,” replied the grandmother.
Heidi started crying at once. She kept sobbing out, “Who can make it light for you again? Is there anyone who can do this?”
The grandmother tried to comfort the child but it was not easy to quieten her. Heidi used to weep occasionally but when she did it was always difficult to make her quiet. The grandmother tried all methods to allay the child’s grief but she kept sobbing bitterly.
Finally, she said, “Let me tell you something. It is always a proud feeling to hear such kind words. It is such a pleasure for me to listen to you while you talk. Come and sit beside me and tell me something; tell me what you do up there, and how the grandfather keeps himself busy. I have known him since old days but for many years now I have not heard anything about him. Only Peter tells me something or the other.”
This made Heidi happy and she quickly dried her tears and said, “I will tell the grandfather everything. He will make it light for you again. He will also do something so that the house will may not fall; he will put everything right for you.”
The grandmother had no words. Heidi started telling her about her life with the grandfather and the time she spent on the mountain with the goats. She went on to tell her as to what she did now during the winter and how her grandfather was able to make all sorts of things—seats and stools.
The grandmother and her daughter kept listening to her showing complete enthusiasm. The conversation suddenly interrupted by a heavy thump on the door as Peter arrived. His eyes kept opened with astonishment as he caught the sight of Heidi and a smile enlarged his lips.
“Hey Peter, are you back from school?” exclaimed the grandmother, “How did you come home so early today? I hoped you would have something different to tell me by this time, as you are going to be twelve years old this February.”
“I know you are worried about my reading. It is going well but not that much great,” said Peter.
“I want you to learn to read a bit as soon as possible. There is an old prayer-book on the shelf with beautiful songs in it which I have not heard for a long time. I cannot remember to repeat to myself and I hope that you would learn enough to be able to read one of them to me sometimes.”
“It is getting too dark; I must get a light to see,” said Peter’s mother.
Heidi jumped up from her low chair and said, “Good-night, grandmother; if it is getting dark I must go home at once.”
Bidding good-bye to Peter and his mother she went towards the door.
The grandmother called out in an anxious voice, “Wait, Heidi; you must not go alone like that. Take Peter along with you. Peter, go along with her and take care of her; do you hear? Has she got anything warm to put around her throat?”
“I have nothing to put on,” said Heidi, “but I will be fine.” With that she ran outside and went off at such a pace that Peter had difficulty in overtaking her. The grandmother was worried about them, so she called out to her daughter, “Run after her, Brigitta. The child will be frozen to death in such cold. Take my shawl, run quickly!”
Brigitta ran out. But before the children reached a few yards, they saw the grandfather coming for them. And soon he reached them.
“I am proud of you, Heidi. You have kept your word,” said the grandfather.
He wrapped the sack firmly round her and lifted her in his arms and strode off with her up the mountain. Brigitta was just in time to see all this.
On their return to the hut both Peter and mother were talking about the grandfather. Peter expressed his astonishment to the grandmother. She was equally surprised but was happy for Heidi that the old Uncle Alp was good to the child. She asked Peter to invite Heidi again.
On her way back, Heidi was chattering away to her grandfather from inside her sack. Her voice could not reach him through many thick folds of her wrap but she kept on saying her story but it was impossible to understand a word she was saying. So, he asked her to wait till they reached home.
As soon as they got inside the hut, Heidi, having been released from her covering at once, began what she had to say, “Grandfather, tomorrow we must take the hammer and the long nails and fasten the grandmother’s shutter. We shall drive in a lot more nails in other places.”
“Who told you that?” asked her grandfather.
“Nobody told me; I have seen it myself,” replied Heidi, “The grandmother cannot sleep and lies trembling of fear because of the noise as she thinks that every minute the house will fall down on her head. Everything is dark for the grandmother and she does not think any one can make it light for her again, but I know that you can do it, grandfather. Tomorrow we must go and help her; we will, won’t we, grandfather?”
She clinged the old man and looked up at him with plead in her eyes.
The grandfather looked down at Heidi for a while. Without speaking, said, “Yes, we will do something to stop the rattling we can do that. We will go down tomorrow!”
Heidi was overjoyed hearing this. She ran through the entire house singing her own songs.
The grandfather kept his promise. The next afternoon, he brought the sleigh out. He set Heidi down at the door of the grandmother’s hut and said, “Go in now, and when it grows dark, come out again.” Then he put the sack in the sleigh and went round the house.
Heidi had hardly opened the door and entered the room when the grandmother called out from her corner, “She is back! The angel is back!” In her delight she dropped the thread from her fingers, and the wheel stood still as she stretched out both her hands in welcome. Heidi ran to her, and then quickly drew the little stool close up to the old woman.
Soon, there came the sound of heavy blows against the wall of the hut and the grandmother was shocked. She cried in a trembling voice, “My God, the house is going to fall upon us!”
Heidi caught her by the arm, and said calmly, “No, don’t worry, grandmother, do not be frightened. It is only grandfather with his hammer; he is mending up everything so that you may not have such fear and trouble anymore.”
“Do you hear, Brigitta? What is that noise? Did you hear what the child says? Now, as I listen, I can tell it is a hammer; go outside, Brigitta, and invite Uncle Alp inside the house and I must thank him,” said the grandmother.
Brigitta went outside and saw Uncle Alp fastening some heavy pieces of new wood along the wall. She stepped up to him and said, “Good-evening, Uncle. Mother-in-law and I want to thank you for doing us such a kind service. She would like to tell you herself how grateful she is.”
“No need,” said the old man, interrupting her, “I know what you think of me. Go inside again; I can find out myself where the mending is wanted.”
He repaired the entire hut. Meanwhile, it had been growing dark. He quickly finished the work and dragged the sleigh out from behind the goat-shed when Heidi appeared outside. He wrapped her up and took her in his arms back to the hut. So the winter went by.
After many years, the blind grandmother had at last found something to make her happy. She would daily wait for Heidi to come and when she knew the child was really there, she would call out and thank God that she came. Heidi would sit by her and talk and tell her everything she knew.
Heidi had also grown very fond of the old grandmother. When at last she knew for certain that no one could make it light for her again, she was overcome with sorrow; but the grandmother told her again that she felt the darkness much less when Heidi was with her.
So, every fine winter’s day the child came travelling down in her sleigh. The grandfather always took her, never raised any objection. Indeed he always carried the hammer in the sleigh with him, and spent many afternoons in making the goatherd’s cottage sound and tight. It no longer groaned and rattled the whole night through. The grandmother, who for many winters had not been able to sleep in peace, was more comfortable than ever and always said she should never forget what the Uncle had done for her.
