“ Work is a blessing, a gift from God. Work gives vigor to the body and refreshes the mind. If God had not given us work, man would have become moldy. Those who are diligent continue to work into their old age. If they stop working while they still have strength, they become melancholy; it’s like death for them. I remember an elderly man in Konitsa, almost ninety years old, who was constantly working. In the end, he died out on the field, two hours from his home.  Besides, even this bodily comfort, which some people strive for, is not a permanent situation. It is enough to forget their anxiety for that one hour – have their food, their dessert, their bath, their rest. But just as soon as these things come to an end, they seek some other form of comfort. So, they are constantly distressed because I here is always something that they’re wanting; they feel an emptiness, and their soul is seeking to fill it. On the other hand, the person who wearies himself from work feels a constant joy, a spiritual joy.”

– ‘Family Life’