Resolute Determination

   I stopped walking, intrigued by a painting.
   It hung inside the hallway of a hospital in New Hampshire. What attracted me to the portrait was a resoluteness in the subject's expression.
   She is Marguerite d'Youville, a widow who founded a congregation of nuns in Montreal during 1737.
  When she undertook this endeavor, people ridiculed her. One reason for their contempt was the simple style of her nuns' habits. Another reason was her sheltering of the poor.
   d'Youville hung tough against this abuse. Her congregation grew and outlived her. Two centuries later a pope canonized her.
   Resolute determination leads to mockery, followed later by respect.