Wise words from the desert

A nun went to Abba Pambo and said to him:  ‘Father, I fast a lot and eat only once every seven days. I’m ascetic in other ways, as well. I’ve learned the Old and New Testaments by heart. What do I still need to do to achieve perfection?’  The wise elder said to her: ‘My child, when somebody curses or mocks you, do you feel, inside yourself, as though they’re praising you?’

‘No’.

‘When somebody praises you, do you feel, inside yourself, as if they’re cursing you?’

‘No, Father’.

‘Off you go, then, child. You’ve done nothing yet’.

Abba Pambo