My wretched feet, flayed and swollen to lameness by the sharp air of January, began to heal and subside under the gentler breathings of April; the nights and mornings no longer by their Canadian temperature froze the very blood in our veins; we could now endure the play-hour passed in the garden: sometimes on a sunny day it began even to be pleasant and genial, and a greenness grew over those brown beds, which, freshening daily, suggested the thought that Hope traversed them at night, and left each morning brighter traces of her steps.
Le notti e le mattinate non ci ghiacciavano più il sangue nelle vene e le ricreazioni in giardino erano tollerabili, anzi quando brillava il sole erano anche piacevoli. Dai rami scuri e spogliati spuntavano ogni giorno nuove foglie, come se la speranza le traversasse durante la notte, lasciando ogni mattina tracce visibili del suo passaggio.