The Story of a Soul (L'Histoire d'une Âme): The Autobiography of St. Therese of Lisieux

by Thérèse of Lisieux

Earth seemed a place of exile, and I dreamed of Heaven.

One evening, during her illness, the Community had assembled in the garden to sing a hymn before an Altar of the Sacred Heart. Soeur Therese, who was already wasted by fever, joined them with difficulty, and, arriving quite exhausted, was obliged to sit down at once. When the hymn began, one of the Sisters made her a sign to stand up. Without hesitation, the humble child rose, and, in spite of the fever and great oppression from which she was suffering, remained standing to the end.