He used to celebrate his mass early in the morning, and he headed to work without lingering after having received the order of the superior or the supervisor. He went to work in a field or the vineyard, without talking on the way, nor looking right or left. If someone greeted him by saying, " Glory to God," he replied: " may God bless you."

As soon as he reached his workplace, he took his picks and began to work energetically, with love, as if he were a well-paid servant who was looking to raise his salary. It did not matter whether the person in charge was a Priest, a Brother or a servant! All represented the authority established by God. If the others sat down to rest, drink fresh water and exchange a few words, he stood aside, without talking or drinking, waiting for the work to resume with impatience; if obedience did not force him to rest, he wouldn't be resting. The monks and the servants loved him deeply, respected his virtues and avoided idle talk in front of him. If the person in charge remained in the field late in the night, Father Charbel continued his work with the same enthusiasm. His zeal even increased throughout working hours, and should there be delays, he would take them with grace. He never uttered a single word of dissatisfaction: if the manager was slow to call Father Charbel and the other monks to lunch, he said nothing, and never complained of being hungry or otherwise tired. 

I saw him carrying a load of logs and stones in a hood on his back. He dig and worked until evening in the vineyard without resting or giving up work when his companion called him to eat or perform another job. If his assistant at work ordered him to carry a burden that was beyond his strength, he would not be upset; if he was given a painful task, he performed it with joy and patience, without grumbling; he never reacted, or shirked, and kept working while hiding his head under a hood that was down to his eyes; he didn't lift it, not even to wipe his sweat. 

Saint-Charbel, help us and help the volunteers perform their tasks with rigor, enthusiasm, and tenacity, just as you did. In Jesus' name, Amen.