There was a little boy named Francis who lived in a large city. One pleasant day, he went to the countryside to amuse himself in the woods. He spent the day gathering raspberries and other wild fruits which grew by the wayside.

Towards evening the sky began to be covered with thick clouds. Francis recognized the quiet before the storm, and wished he was nearer to home. Suddenly, flashes of lightning, followed by loud peals of thunder, made the boy tremble with fear. The rain began to fall in torrents.

Seeing a hollow oak-tree by the side of the road, he darted over to it for shelter. Once he was standing under it, he was startled to hear a voice calling out through the storm:

"Francis, Francis! Come, come! Be quick!"

Hearing himself called by a voice he didn’t recognize, he stepped out to see who it was. He had barely stepped away from the tree when it was struck by lightning and split in two! Seeing this, the boy said to himself:

"That voice came from Heaven! Oh my loving Father in Heaven, You have saved me!"

He dropped to his knees, thanking God for saving his life.

Then he heard the same voice calling as before:

"Francis, Francis!"

He looked and saw a countrywoman in the near distance. It was she who had been calling. She was looking for her son, whose name was also Francis.

Though she was a total stranger to him, Francis immediately went over to the lady. He told her how he’d stood under the tree, but left once he heard her call. He thought at first that it was a voice from Heaven, for no sooner had he left the tree than it was struck by lightning!

Impressed by his narrow escape, the good woman told Francis:

"Thank God, my child, that He has delivered you from this danger - for it was indeed He Who saved you. He arranged for me to call you by your name - without knowing anything about you - so that you could be freed from the danger of death to which you were exposed under the tree."