The Apparitions of La Salette (II)

The beautiful Lady was dressed in the local peasant garb, with a long dress, an apron nearly as long as the dress, a shawl that crossed over her chest and was knotted in the back, and a bonnet. A double wreath of light shone around her: the first extremely bright and narrow, and closely enveloped her; while the second extended three or four yards around her and encompassed the two children as well and erased all shadow. Her dress and the shoes were spangled with light. On her chest two chains of sparkling gold drew the children's attention. The first was large and flat, made of links placed side by side along the edge of the shawl. The second, much thinner, hung from her neck and held a cross with a corpus. The crucified Christ was incandescent and seemed the center of all her glory. Near the cross-beams, but detached from them and held by nothing, were the instruments of the Passion: a hammer on the left and tongs on the right as if she were offering the world the choice of nailing or of releasing her Son. The expression on her face was at once heart-rending and beatific. "She wept all the time she spoke to us," asserted Melanie. "I really saw her tears flowing. They flowed and flowed!" These mysterious tears never reached the ground, but disappeared in the light as they fell. Melanie noted that the tears never prevented the Lady's face from radiating an immense kindness.