The Scarlet Letter 26

The Scarlet Letter

Chapter Sixteen

Entry Twenty-Six

"(The road) straggled onward into the mystery of the primeval forest. This hemmed it in so narrowly, and stood so black and dense on either side, and disclosed such imperfect glimpses of the sky above, that, to Hester’s mind, it imaged not amiss the moral wilderness in which she had so long been wandering."

Hester Prynne and Pearl are on their way into the forest because Hester wants to reveal Dimmesdale the truth. In this moment, the forest represents a mysterious, unfamiliar and looming. She doesn't know what is going to happen after he learned the truth so she is in an uncertain mood.
The forest reflects all that by holding off its rays of sunshine. Pearl notices this and says to her mother:

“Mother,” said little Pearl, “the sunshine does not love you. It runs away and hides itself, because it is afraid of something on your bosom. Now, see! There it is, playing, a good way off. Stand you here, and let me run and catch it. I am but a child. It will not flee from me; for I wear nothing on my bosom yet!”

The sunshine stays away from Hester because it is afraid of the dark and evil vibrancy of the "A". Pearl associates sunshine with something lovely that everyone should possess. One of her favorite games is trying to catch it. By offering her mother to go grab it for her she shows love. She doesn't want her mother to be sad and depressed (to remain in the shadow) but to feel happy and to enjoy her life (to step out into the sunshine). At the same time, she knows that she is not like her mother trapped in darkness but is able to stand on the bright side of life. So Pearl is able to be in sunlight and she wants to use it for making her mother stand there too.
There is another message behind this calling.

"I am but a child. It will not flee from me; for I wear nothing on my bosom yet!”

Adults are caught in a sad and lonesome life. They suffer under a heavy cloud hanging over them which carries around a big and unsolvable secret. Children are carefree and can live in joy. But as soon as they grow up their life gets dark. This is Pearl's view of the world. She expects this to happen for herself too.
But to me she doesn't sound like she is afraid of it. Why? Is she already so callous that she doesn't care about an unhappy life? Or did she already become so adult that she is able to deal with this knowledge?