Prayer of an Anonymous Abbess
by ― Margot Benary-Isbert
Lord, thou knowest better than myself that I am growing older and will soon be old. Keep me from becoming too talkative, and especially from the unfortunate habit of thinking that I must say something on every subject and at every opportunity.
Release me from the idea that I must straighten out other peoples’ affairs. With my immense treasure of experience and wisdom, it seems a pity not to let everybody partake of it. But thou knowest, Lord, that in the end I will need a few friends.
Keep me from the recital of endless details; give me wings to get to the point.
Grant me the patience to listen to the complaints of others; help me to endure them with charity. But seal my lips on my own aches and pains — they increase with the increasing years and my inclination to recount them is also increasing.
I will not ask thee for improved memory, only for a little more humility and less self-assurance when my own memory doesn’t agree with that of others. Teach me the glorious lesson that occasionally I may be wrong.
Keep me reasonably gentle. I do not have the ambition to become a saint — it is so hard to live with some of them — but a harsh old person is one of the devil’s masterpieces.
Make me sympathetic without being sentimental, helpful but not bossy. Let me discover merits where I had not expected them, and talents in people whom I had not thought to possess any. And, Lord, give me the grace to tell them so.
Amen
― Margot Benary-Isbert
Posted for Cin’s Feb Challenge/Witchy Rambles Day 6 – Pray
But I like to complain!
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Me too. But it makes people walk away for some strange reason. 🙂
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Lovely sentiment. Now if I can only take it to heart.
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I especially like the line – a harsh old person is one of the devil’s masterpieces – met some of those, don’t want to be one.
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Was a pessimist for years, till I realized I was heading for ‘bitter’ and became an optimist instead.
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I can’t begin to tell you how much I loved this post. I shared it with a special recent widower I know and he loved it too. Thank you…. Xo
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Excellent – thank you for sharing it. That woman speaks my mind! Xx
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“PS – Lord, make the sun to shine and birdies to chirp every other day in a New England February, because that allegedly melty little cat creation of yours who is so underfootedly, trippingly bored probably doesn’t deserve all those names generally reserved unto exes. Thank you.” (Well, with or without that addendum, amen! You find such great stuff!) 🙂
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