The Secret Garden

The first part of Chapter 25 is an account of the children’s activities from the point of view of the robin and his mate, who are caring for a nest of eggs. The robin is puzzled by the children’s activities—especially Colin, who does not seem to be able to walk very far without sitting down to rest. Then the robin remembers when he was learning to fly and could only go short distances before resting. He explains to his mate that their eggs will probably behave the same way when they learn to fly. However, he assures her the eggs will not do anything like the strange flapping and bending exercises the children do every morning under the plum tree.

On rainy days, when they cannot go into the garden, Mary and Colin explore the house. Mary notices that Colin has opened the curtain that hung over his mother’s portrait. He tells her it no longer makes him angry to see her laughing; he now feels that she is laughing because she is happy he is there. He thinks she might have been a magic person.

Mary remarks that he looks so much like his mother that she sometimes thinks he is “her ghost made into a boy” (174).