Final answer:
Uncle Henry feels pride and a relinquishing of control as Elizabeth Ann confidently drives the team of horses, marking a turning point in her capability and independence.
Step-by-step explanation:
As I, Uncle Henry, watched Elizabeth Ann take hold of the reins, a swell of pride rose within me, mingled with a twinge of apprehension. This was no small feat for a young city girl, far different from the mollycoddled niece I remembered arriving on our farm not long ago. Her hands, I noted, were no longer those of a delicate child but bore the calluses of hard work and determination. Today, she was to drive the team of horses, a task requiring not only skill but a deep understanding of the animals under her charge.
As the beasts inched forward at her command, I felt an unfamiliar sensation—a relinquishing of my own need for control. No more was I the instructor, the guide; I had become the observer. Peering from beneath my weathered hat, I saw the muscles in the horses’ backs tense and relax with each obedient step, and in Elizabeth's small frame, a confidence that belied her years.
"Steady now," I called out, more for my own comfort than for hers. The horses responded to her gentle tugs and soft-spoken words—a conversation I had long held myself but now heard from another voice. Elizabeth Ann was no longer the child in need of protection but a capable hand on this land, and I—well, I was witnessing a turning point in her life, something I would recount with pride in the years to come.