From Sister Marie‑Dosithée to Mr. and Mrs. Guérin. September 17, 1871.
V. + J.
From our Mother of Le Mans
the 17 September 71
My dear brother and my dear sister,
It is the sincere affection you have for me that gives you so much pleasure in receiving my letters, for my puny person and everything that depends on it is assuredly very insignificant; but in the end, whatever it may be, I'm going to satisfy you right away, especially since if I was late I would have to wait a fortnight because of my retirement before I started.
My dear little sister, I assure you that I sympathize well with your position, there is nothing so painful as to see oneself powerless to go about one's business and not being able to watch over one's household (Mme Guérin is waiting a third child for October) but finally courage, time is advancing and you will once again have the consolation of finding yourself in the midst of your family, try to take advantage of this time of trials which is certainly very meritorious and can attract many blessings on your home; you see, immolations are necessary and it is you whom God has chosen as a victim, but you know that he only wants pure and spotless victims; but we should feel ourselves well honored, when he casts his eyes on us, it is a sign that we are pleasing to him. [1 v°] Put all your trust in the Lord, he himself will watch over your affairs and lead everything well; you see that your business is prospering, your children are growing (Jeanne is now three and a half years old, and Marie is thirteen months old) and console you and he has provided you with a treasure in this maid because today it is difficult to find someone on who can be counted.
My dear brother, I do believe that you are very wrong to spend part of your nights working, your health sustains you, it is true, but in some time you will fall down without being able to get up, be sure once you are sick, you will not not hand over; I did the same, I had a flourishing health which in no way yielded to. yours, and by imprudences I arrived where I am, and if I had not been strong a long time ago that I will not be any more; I'm afraid something similar will happen to you, you'll get your blood boiling and it will fall on your chest, you're already doing like me, it was through your eyes that it started; be careful and do not learn the experience at your expense; what a misfortune for your poor little ones if they were going to lose their father Your way of seeing and your feelings greatly consoled me; yes you are right, France must be regenerated, but I am convinced of it, God will not abandon it and it will become great again; our dear Fatherland loves the Blessed Virgin too much to perish (since January 17, pilgrimages to Pontmain continue to multiply), she will be punished but she will rise again, renewed and purified; she made great mistakes, she fell very low; the good ones, because there [2 r°] are still a large number of them, are there inactive, seeing the bad ones moving in all directions to upset everything and they are content to groan instead of acting; they strike me as the Apostles that N. S. had taken with him the night of passion: they slept, says the text, their eyes were heavy with sadness (Luke 22, 45); yes they were sleeping, and the enemies of Jesus were not sleeping they were agitated like the furies of hell. . . Jesus wasn't sleeping either, he was preparing the sweet lamb to drink the bloody chalice; now do not be afraid he still watches over us as he watched over the poor sleeping apostles, but like them let us wake up! and above all don't be afraid for me; it is quite true that the bad ones would do us all possible harm if they could, but they will only do us what God will allow them, he holds them back, for me I fear nothing, in any case I would have no hard to end in this way and I sometimes find myself envying the fate of the Victims of Paris; what do you want me to do here? Every day I feel more and more the troubles of exile, I feel that it is not for the earth that I am made; In vain they surround me with kindness and care, and being as happy as one can be in this life, I sigh after my country. . . what is life? it's a constant death where we have to fight continually against this evil self which dominates in our poor fallen nature, so pray for me during this retreat I want to work in earnest at my [2v°] perfection; if I had done it well, I am sure that I would no longer be of this world. N. S.
Léonie was not going to return immediately (it was only in the first months of 1874 that a new attempt at boarding school was attempted for Léonie). Zélie is not happier about it; but our good Mother doesn't want me to do it this winter, she fears for my health; I'm doing well but the bad weather always gives concern,
I thank you, I don't need money or anything of the things of this world and yet it is necessary that the asks you for advice, I have confidence in your science. It's about a stomach ache that hardly leaves me, especially for 4 years, that I took an emetic that completely derailed me; believe that I am not 6 days in a year without having pain. I'm not vomiting, it's the digestion that isn't happening, and heaviness as if I had eaten stones. I took a lot of remedies that didn't help me, quassia, dove, rhubarb, another very expensive little white powder whose name I can't remember (it's Bismuth). Now I drink hops and I find that it does me good; if you are more skilful than the doctor tell me if you know something, for me I am convinced that there is no cure, and it is not a great misfortune, do not write to me on purpose to that, in your first letter only.
In the end, however, we must end it, kiss the dear little ones well and give them tender caresses from their aunt from Le Mans.
I embrace you with affection
Your devoted sister
Sr. M. Dosithee Guérin
From the Von Ste Marie.
DSB
[1 r° tv] For the annals of S. Coeur it is 5 frs. For the stamps I don't know where I'm from, maybe there's still some, when you send some I'd rather have only one at a time I don't remember when there's a lot when it's over.
