He traced the words on the page slowly, expecting revelation, correction, maybe even rebuke.
Instead, he found a simple, almost practical encouragement: to keep moving forward, to lift one’s eyes beyond the immediate, to look past what lies directly in front.
In that instant, all the tension he had built in his mind collapsed into a burst of laughter at his own seriousness.
What amused him most was how his imagination had turned her gentle reminder into a drama that never existed.
She had spoken casually; he had heard mystery. That quiet car ride became a mirror,
showing him how easily meaning can be twisted by unspoken assumptions.
He realized how many worries in life are born the same way—out of things never asked, never clarified.
Walking back to the rectory, he promised himself one small change: next time, he would simply ask, “Sister, what do you mean?”
