Lady Poverty was the symbol of the paradoxes of the gospel: richness in poverty, life in death, strength in weakness, beauty in the sordid and shabby, peace in conflict and temptation, fullness in emptiness and, above all, love in detachment and deprivation. She made everything hard soft, and everything difficult easy. If Lady Poverty were true to herself, she would also turn loneliness into companionship and sharing, once Francis could muster enough courage to give them up for her. If he gave Lady Poverty his need for love and companionship, she would give them back to him. Of that he was certain. It only remained for him to act on that conviction.
—from the book Francis: The Journey and the Dream
by Murray Bodo, OFM, page
//Franciscan Media//