From Sister Marie‑Dosithée Guérin to Mr. and Mrs. Guérin.
Source: autograph fd 20,8 x 13,3 cm.
V. + J.
From our Mother of Le Mans
octobre the 25 1868
My dear brother and my dear sister,
Your letter gave me great pleasure, I was worried about Isidore's health; I had seen him so ill on his last trip to Le Mans; but now I am completely reassured, it is not so about this poor Zélie, she is not easily consoled for all the losses she has made this year, she finds herself in heartbreaking loneliness; when she goes up to my poor father's room and hears nothing but dead silence (M. Guérin senior died on September 3, 1868), she then remembers the vigils of yesteryear, animated by the games of all his grandchildren, the good grandfather was there by a good fire, roasting chestnuts and taking part in the games of the little family, now nothing; the good old man is dead and the children are gone.
I am very much afraid that in the end her health will suffer from so many shocks, however what reassures me a little [lv°] is her spirit of faith and her truly incredible and prodigious courage, what a strong woman! adversity does not bring it down, prosperity does not elevate it.
I am very happy to have my dear little nieces with me, I hope to do something good with them, Marie has difficulties with her character, but it's nothing, it will pass, she studies well and has good will . As for Pauline, she is a charming little girl who appeals to everyone, so far she has studied quite well, but I don't really know if this will continue, I will do my best; they love me very much and are afraid of hurting me it is a terrible punishment for them when I refuse to kiss them so I will only use it on special occasions. They got the rosette last week and I think they'll get it again this week: it's a decoration that we give to those who didn't get a mark (bad point) during the week. They are quite advanced for their age.
So let's talk a bit about our dear little Jeanne (born February 24): all the details you give me about this dear child give me so much pleasure I will be very happy when I have the opportunity to see her with her good [2r° ] little mother whom I love so much; I assure you my dear sister that I share your happiness and that I thank the Lord for having given you this beautiful little angel that you only wish to raise for his glory and his service, I hope that you will be granted and that this dear child will be virtuous and holy. As for what you tell me, my beloved sister, that you have my rosary, I am very happy about it, I think that each time you say it you will not forget me in your fervent prayers; I assure you that I have great need of it because it is not the habit that makes you religious but the practice of the virtues.
I thank you, dear little sister, for all the trouble I have given you to find me horsehair; I don't make any more flowers now, and I don't know if I will from now on, so don't send me anything, it's better that I ask you if I need them later.
I believe that you have not received all the issues of the year until October of ND du Sacré-Coeur; when my Sr Marie Dominique sent your address to Issoudun, she asked that we send you all the numbers for the year, and instead [2 v°] she was the one who received them, she intends to put them at the Post Office and send them to you, but for greater certainty, I told him not to send them to you until next Sunday, so if you already have them, all 9 issues, which I do not believe, I will receive a letter from you before the 1st of September and if you don't have them, I won't receive anything and in this case they will be mailed to you.
Since you have the kindness, dear brother, to offer me benzoin (dental benzoin) I accept with gratitude.
Marie thinks that you want to give her a parishioner for her New Year's Eve and she would like not to have one, she's right, he will be at his first communion soon enough and in the meantime, please give him something she would have need a pair of scissors.
However, I have to finish the time I lack to continue longer. I'm doing very well now I'm afraid of living too long, I was made to take a kind of drug which did me an extraordinary good,
Dear brother and dear sister, I embrace you with all my heart as well as my dear little niece.
Your devoted sister
Sr. Marie Dosithee Guérin
of the Von Ste Marie
DSB
