Today I learned from Mr. Vital Romet, to whom you announced your decision, that you plan to take over the pharmacy in Lisieux [of his future father-in-law, Mr. Fournet].
I did not write to you on Thursday, because I was very embarrassed about what I could have told you. I did not want to advise you, not knowing enough about it. On the other hand, I didn’t want to turn you away.
I left everything to the will and grace of God. Now, everything is concluded and, good or bad, you mustn’t worry about it anymore, it wouldn’t do any good.
I feel sorry for you, my poor friend, you are going to begin real life which will be full of misery, worries, and work. You really need to have courage and patience, because you haven’t finished toiling; you will work as hard as the Trappists, and the reward will be much less.
I assure you that my heart has been in my throat all day thinking about you. I would like to see you happy and it seems to me that it isn’t going to happen.
If only you could have the chance to meet a woman like I want you to, she would make you happy but they are very rare and I hardly know any; only the good God can put his hand on her, to give her to you.
I was very surprised that you didn’t tell our sister [Marie Dosithée] in [the Visitation Monastery of] Le Mans, I thought you had more faith, I would have thought that you would have recommended yourself to her prayers for something like this, on which your future depends. I wrote to her on Thursday so that she would pray for you, and I told her that you were about to buy a pharmacy. Poor Elise [Sr. Marie Dosithée, VHM] had written to me a fortnight ago, asking for news of you, complaining that she was not receiving any directly.
I don’t see anything more to say; I am not very cheerful, so I don’t feel brave enough to talk about others and have fun laughing.
Saint Zélie Guérin Martin
Letter CF 18 to her brother Isidore Guérin
22 April 1866
We always refer to the website of the Archives of the Carmel of Lisieux for the vast majority of our quotes concerning Saint Thérèse, Saint Zélie, and Saint Louis Martin, but if you would like to purchase any of the English translations that appear on the Archives website, please visit the website of our Discalced Carmelite friars at ICS Publications.
Translation from the French text is the blogger’s own work product and may not be reproduced without permission.
Featured image: Antique pharmacy containers written in French are captured in this photo of an old pharmacy. Image credit: elfrock / Adobe Stock
Carmelite Quotes 
I remember that feeling viscerally when returning from the hospital when my late husband had died in the night. People were laughing in the street as we went home. I remeber thinking “How can they laugh? Don’t they know??”…
Oh yes, that would be a visceral memory, for sure! Thanks for sharing, Kathie.