Long ago there lived two hermits, an old man and a young one.

One day they were busy at work digging in the forest for soil that would be good for plant growth. They were going to plant a small vegetable garden near their cells.

Unfortunately, the dirt they needed was some distance away. And since they had no cart or horse to help bring the sacks of dirt back to their cells, they had to walk the whole way back, with the heavy sacks over their shoulders.

The younger hermit found the work very hard to bear. The sun’s rays beat down on him, the constant swarm of flies buzzing in his face annoyed him, and with so much work yet to do, there was no hope of relief any time soon.

Indeed, it was a long day for both of them. But while the older one worked quietly, his young companion complained bitterly the whole time.

At last, the old man spoke.

“I beseech you, my brother, try and labour more patiently.”

But the poor young man was too frustrated to even try to calm down. He explained his problem to his fellow hermit.

“I have over and over again, prayed to God to grant me the gift of patience. But He has not yet given it to me.”

The old man made no answer, but continued to work in silence. When his sack was full, he said to his companion,

“Help me, brother, to raise the sack upon my shoulders.”

The young man grabbed hold of the sack and started to lift it. But at the same time, the older fellow pressed down with all his strength, trying to keep it on the ground. All the young man’s efforts to lift the sack were useless. It remained on the ground between the two hermits.

Finally, the young hermit blurted out in exasperation,

“Why are you doing that? How do you think I will ever be able to raise that heavy sack if you do all in
your power to keep it on the ground?”

The wise old hermit simply replied,

“That is how people resist the grace of the Holy Ghost. They ask Him to help them, and He is always ready to do so. But if, instead of co-operating with His grace, they do all in their power to resist it, how can that grace benefit them?”

The young hermit now saw that God had not refused his many prayers for the grace of patience. But up until now, the poor young man had not been using the graces God had tried to give him to fight his hot temper.

Now that he had explained the problem, the kind old hermit gave good advice for fixing it.

“So, my son, pray to God every day to give you the grace you need to spend that day doing what He wants of you. And when He offers the grace to you, be sure never to resist it.”