Ah, that return to the forest where Rima dwelt, after so anxious day, when the declining sun shone hotly still, and the green woodland shadows were so grateful! The coolness, the sense of security, allayed the fever and excitement I had suffered on the open savannah; I walked leisurely, pausing often to listen to some bird voice or to admire some rare insect or parasitic flower shining star-like in the shade.

There was a strangely delightful sensation in me.

I likened myself to a child that, startled at something it had seen while out playing in the sun, flies to its mother to feel her caressing hand on its cheek and forget its tremors.

And describing what I felt in that way, I was a little ashamed and laughed at myself; nevertheless the feeling was very sweet.

At that moment Mother and Nature seemed one and the same thing.