St. Bernard of Clairvaux (1090-1153) was once traveling with a countryman, poor and simple. Now as it happened, the countryman noticed that, during the journey, his companion kept his eyes modestly lowered towards the ground. The man asked St. Bernard why he was not looking at the country around them. The holy monk answered that it was to avoid distractions during time of prayer.

"Well," scoffed the peasant, " when I pray, I pray. And when I walk, I look about."

"Have you any distractions at your prayers? " asked St. Bernard.

"None at all," the countryman boasted.

"I do not believe it, " the Saint told him. " Now let me make a bargain with you, if you can succeed in saying an Our Father without a distraction, I will give you this animal on which I am riding; but if you do not succeed, you will come to Clairvaux and become a monk."

The bargain was eagerly agreed upon. The confident man was delighted and began to recite the Our Father. But after only a few words, he suddenly interrupted the prayer and turned towards the waiting Saint.

"Father," the countryman asked, "will you give me the saddle and the bridle too? "

"Yes, I would have given you mule, saddle, and bridle," St. Bernard answered, a smile in his eyes. "But because you have been distracted, you have lost all, and must come with me to Clairvaux and become a monk."

And there, we can rest assured, the distracted gentleman learned from the Saint how to focus his mind in prayer.