In winter, I observed a tree standing there, bare, without leaves – and yet in spring it will bloom and in autumn it will bear ripe fruit. This sight impressed me so deeply with the providence and omnipotence of God that it became indelibly etched into my soul. This touch caused me to completely detach from the world. It ignited such a love for God within me that I can hardly say whether the fervor and strength of it could have increased during those forty years that I have served the Lord.
(St. Lawrence of the Resurrection, 1st conversation)
