1. A
Summer
With
Great-Aunt
Rose

2. There are two important things you
should know about Eva.
One is that she was 11 years old in
this story.
And the other is that she absolutely,
positively did not wan to go and live
with her great-aunt Rose. Not at all.
No way.
A girl named Eva

3. No amount of arguing or
eye-rolling could change
the decision.
Long
Drive…
So Eva packed up a suitcase and took
the long drive with her Father to Great-
Aunt Rose’s House.

4. Everything was so old.
Every inch was packed with old
books, strange-colored bottles.
Great-Aunt Rose lived alone, with
the exception of a gray cat
Everything was so old…
From the moment Eva stepped inside the house, she hated it.

5. Great-Aunt Rose quite
possible the happiest person she
had ever known.
Everything about her was
large, embarrassingly big hats,
even a bigger laugh
Evenings were saved for
scripture time
In town everyone would flock
around her
Over time, Eva made a
surprising discovery:

6. One day Eva asked
“Why are you always so
happy?
Aunt Rose looked at her
carefully and then
guided her to a painting
that hung in the front
room.
“What do you see?” she
asked.

7. “It is a pioneer girl
skipping along happily,”
But there were many
dark and dreary days for
the pioneers.
Their lives was so hard -
we can’t even imagine.
But in this painting the
girl has a spring in her
step.

8. From sad to happy…
“But,” Eva said, “you can’t just flip a switch and go
from sad to happy.”
“No, perhaps not, “ Aunt Rose smiled gently, “but God
didn’t design us to be sad. He created us to have
joy!...”

9. From sad to happy…
“But,” Eva said, “you can’t just flip a switch and go
from sad to happy.”
“No, perhaps not, “ Aunt Rose smiled gently, “but
God didn’t design us to be sad. He created us to
have joy!...”

10. Never the Same…
“And what is that?” Eva asked.
“It is love – the pure love of Christ,” Rose said.
“And that is what makes us happy?” Eva asked.
Great-Aunt Rose nodded and smiled, her eyes filling with tears.
“Yes, my dear. That is what makes us happy.” The next day Eva
hugged her great-aunt Rose and thanked for everything she had
done. She returned home to friends and family.
But she was never quite the same.