Sister Faustina Kowalska: Her LIfe and MIssion

S ister F au s tin a a t all times, easy or difficult, p reserv ­ ed h e r inner peace. I t did no t scare h e r when she had too much work or when she h ad insufficient assistance, which frequen tly happened , because th e houses of the Congregation contained up to 200 or more wards, and the re were too few s is te rs for all th e duties. S ister F au s tin a was no t one of those who pe rs is ten tly com­ plain. She would ask for help, b u t no t insist, waiting pa tien tly for h e r superiors’ decision, for h e r superiors to h e r represen ted the will of God. W ha t usua lly happens is th a t th e person who is less forceful receives less, because superiors tend to th in k t h a t because she is s ilen t i t m u s t mean t h a t she can manage. I t therefore indeed happened th a t she received less help th an other nuns in a sim ilar situation . Bu t she did not complain. She had found h e r own method of dealing with a difficult situation . I f she did not feel capable of per­ form ing h e r duties, she "went for advice" to Je su s in the Blessed Sacram ent, a fte r which, hav ing prayed, she s ta r ted work. She worked hand ily and peacefully. S is te r F au s t in a did n o t make a division into serious and triv ia l when discussing m a t te rs with God. H er life was an ideal practical application of the L ittle Way of St. Therese of the Child Jesu s . She included p ray e r in th e most triv ia l occurrence, especially i f i t was any th ing causing h e r some difficulty, We lea rn from h e r own words th e details of one of th e "trivial" daily m a tte rs about which she applied to Je su s , and of the lesson He tau g h t her: "One time during the novitiate, when Mother Directress sent me to w o rh in the wards' kitchen, I was very upset because I couCd not manage the pots, which were very barge. Dhe most difficuCt to sh fo r me was draining the potatoes, and sometimes I spiCt h a i f o f them zvith the water. ‘When I told this to Mother Directress, she said that zvith time I woubd g e t used to it and gain the 401