The Old Sackcloth Habit
By Daniel Berry
Upon my first visit to the hermitage,
I made many friends. The brothers there showed nothing but pure love
and respect for others. I was shocked by how kind everyone was, especially
this one monk, whose name was Brother Ordelicidus. He was the habit
maker of the hermitage and with over thirty years at the same job, he could
make you a habit, without even measuring you. His favorite saying
was, "In peace... rest." He would say this every time he met me.
On one cool day in late August,
he looked at me and made me my first sackcloth habit. It was long
and warm. this was perfect for the cold winters at the hermitage.
The colour of the habit was dark brown. I loved it. I felt so much
peace inside there, that I never took it off, but to wash it.
One day, Brother Ordelicidus
told me a secret about how he would make those perfect habits for the brothers.
He said that no two brothers were alike and this was true for habits as
well. Each had its special quality, just like each brother had his.
The trick to all of this was matching the right habit with each monk and
brother. When I asked Brother Ordelicidus how he did this, he looked
deeply into my eyes and said, "God knows the heart of each man."
"But, I wanted to know how you know," I exclaimed. after a long pause,
he answered by saying this," This is my special quality."
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