The Scarlet Letter - Chapter 19 - The Child at the Brook-side

In which a mother and a minister observe the singular nature of a wild and beautiful child whose presence binds their lives with a secret yet unspoken, set beside a forest brook that seems to mark a mysterious boundary between worlds. The child’s spirited resistance to familiar affection and the poignant emblem upon her mother’s breast cast a solemn shadow upon their meeting, entwining tenderness with an indefinable sorrow.