There once was a nunnery, where thirty nuns took there abode to worship as roman catholics. One day, as a new year was about to begin, the 'reverend mother' called all the nuns together. "I thinkest," said she, "That with the start of the new year, we should do something more holy and righteous than ever hath been done by us unto this date (not at all trying to attract attention to ourselves as this would be most prideful, but merely to reduce our years of purgatory and increase our glory in the next world.)." The surounding nuns in the vicinity of the nunnery voiced their agreement with eloquent words. "But!" saith she, "what shalt we do that is more holy than anything we ever hath done before (not at all trying to attract attention to ourselves as this would be most prideful, but merely to reduce our years of purgatory and increase our glory in the next world.)" So, they all thought on this for some hours, and sat up far into the night, thinking on holy things. And then, though some say it was due to lack of rest that caused her to say it, and others say that she had the thought put into her by a spirit, one of the nuns, rising from her seat, spake thus "I think that the most holy and righteous thing that could ever be done, wouldst be our taking on an vow, yea, even an vow of silence for the space of an whole year." The reverend mother looked on her with much awe and wondering. She rose also and, speaking as ever a nun shouldst speak, sayeth "Where the youth getteth her knowledge is no secret unto mine eyes. It is of a surety that an holy spirit put the words into her mouth." Thus spake she. So, it wast agreed, and in that selfsame hour, all of the nuns in the nunnery, yea, even all the nuns, took the vow, that wenst came the beginning on the first day of the first month of the year of our Lord 1654, they wouldst speak no word, whether to each other, nor to themselves, but only unto the mother Mary until the first day of the first month of the year of our Lord 1655. Then they took their rest and rose early in the morning on the day of the new year. Day in and day out, no eloquent speeches were to be heard. And they, thinking themselves most holy, wrote letters and sent them far and wide to other nunneries, telling them of their vow of silence, and telling them, with elaborate letters 'that they should also, if led by the mother Mary, take the vow (not at all trying to attract attention to themselves as this would be most prideful, but merely to reduce their years of purgatory and increase their glory in the next world.)' The year was almost through, in fact there were but eight days left until the new year, and the nuns bustled here and there preparing for a feast in honour of their acheivement. It was hard, because when the reverend mother wanted one of the nuns to do something, she tried to explain with hand signals, but she, understanding not that the reverend mother meant for her to dust the mantel, she lit the fire. And with a merry crackle, it lit the room. The reverend mother, exasperated, left the room hurriedly, lest she should, in her wrath speak to the nun. The nun she left alone in the room, then began setting the table, but as she stepped past the fireplace, her foot bumped a burning twig out of the fire. With a gasp, she tried to stamp it out, but, failing to do this and being dreadfully frightened, she burst out of the room, and ran to the reverend mother and pointing frantically to the room, tried to explain, but the reverend mother understanding her not, turned back to her work. Finally, she decided to run from the house, but, knowing that this was a cowardly thing to do and that she must warn them, brought a bucket of water to the reverend mother and flung it on the floor. The reverend mother gasped and flung a towel at her. She then, in her panic, fell to her knees, imploring the mother Mary to save her and her fellow nuns from the fate of the fire. The reverend mother bowed her head as she started praying, and when the nun was finished, the reverend mother said reverently "Ahmen." then she turned back to her work. It was almost three seconds later before she suddenly leaped high in the air and spun around, reaching up quickly, she flipped the calendar forward and said "There's a fire in the nunnery?!" "Yes, even so, reverend mother." So she running from room to room, waving the calender, shrieking to the startled nuns. "FIRE!" The nuns looked at the calender, and seeing that it was set to the first month of the year of our Lord 1655. They fled from the nunnery with shrieks of fear and clutching their roseries in their hands.