Day 54 of 80

A Nice Little Salad

Chapter X·Manuscript C·Littleness & Humility
Context
When her novices praised her too much, Thérèse craved criticism instead — calling it a 'nice little salad, well spiced with vinegar.' She was genuinely delighted when they pointed out her faults. Humiliation was not her punishment; it was her feast.

At times my soul tires of this over-sweet food, and I long to hear something other than praise; then Our Lord serves me with a nice little salad, well spiced, with plenty of vinegar--oil alone is wanting, and this it is which makes it more to my taste. And the salad is offered to me by the novices at the moment I least expect.

God lifts the veil that hides my faults, and my dear little Sisters, beholding me as I really am, do not find me altogether agreeable. With charming simplicity, they tell me how I try them and what they dislike in me; in fact, they are as frank as though they were speaking of someone else, for they are aware that I am pleased when they act in this way.

I am more than pleased--I am transported with delight by this splendid banquet set before me.

St. Thérèse of Lisieux — Story of a Soul, Chapter X (Manuscript C). Taylor translation, 1912 (public domain).
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