Charles Wallace went up to Mrs Whatsit. "I see. Now I understand. You were a star, once, weren't you?"
Mrs Whatsit covered her face with her hands as though she were embarrassed, and nodded.
"And you did -- you did what that star just did?"
With her face still covered, Mrs Whatsit nodded again.
Charles Wallace looked at her, very solemnly. "I should like to kiss you."
Suddenly she was aware of her heart beathing rapidly within the cage of her ribs. Had it stopped before? What had made it start again? The tingling in her arms and legs grew stronger, and suddenly she felt movement. This movement, she felt, must be the turning of the earth, rotating on its axis, traveling its elliptic course about the sun. And this feeling of moving with the earth was somewhat like the feeling of being in the ocean, out in the ocean beyond this rising and falling of the breakers, lying on the moving water, pulsing gently with the swells, and feeling the gentle, inexorable tug of the moon.
"And we're not alone, you know, children," came Mrs Whatsit the comforter. "All through the universe it's being fought, all through the cosmos and my, but it's a grand and exciting battle. I know it's hard for you to understand about size, how there's very little differnce in the size of the tiniest microbe and the greatest galaxy. You think about that."
Mrs Whatsit covered her face with her hands as though she were embarrassed, and nodded.
"And you did -- you did what that star just did?"
With her face still covered, Mrs Whatsit nodded again.
Charles Wallace looked at her, very solemnly. "I should like to kiss you."
Suddenly she was aware of her heart beathing rapidly within the cage of her ribs. Had it stopped before? What had made it start again? The tingling in her arms and legs grew stronger, and suddenly she felt movement. This movement, she felt, must be the turning of the earth, rotating on its axis, traveling its elliptic course about the sun. And this feeling of moving with the earth was somewhat like the feeling of being in the ocean, out in the ocean beyond this rising and falling of the breakers, lying on the moving water, pulsing gently with the swells, and feeling the gentle, inexorable tug of the moon.
"And we're not alone, you know, children," came Mrs Whatsit the comforter. "All through the universe it's being fought, all through the cosmos and my, but it's a grand and exciting battle. I know it's hard for you to understand about size, how there's very little differnce in the size of the tiniest microbe and the greatest galaxy. You think about that."
