A king held in prison two of his subjects who each owed him a large sum of money. When he saw that they were unable to pay their debts because they had nothing, he went to the prison and threw a purse full of gold on each of their heads; the blow they received made them both suffer greatly, but they did not both behave in the same way. One of them was seized with anger at having been struck in this way, and as a token of his displeasure, he took no notice of the purse; but the other, who was more reasonable, took the purse that had been thrown at him, thanked the king for it, and used the money in it to pay what he owed him, and by this means freed himself from prison. “We are in the same situation as these prisoners, said a Saint. We have all incurred great debts to God, either for so many blessings we have been showered with, or for so many sins of which we have been guilty. Touched with compassion on our condition, He sends us the gold of patience in the purse of tribulations; those who endure tribulations with patience satisfy God with this invaluable gold, and become His friends, while those who murmur and become impatient, instead of thanking the Lord, do nothing but increase their debts and become more and more His enemies.”