In spite of my good will to be obedient, I trust Your Excellency to permit me to withhold certain matters concerning myself, as well as Jacinta, that I would not wish to be read before I enter eternity. You will not find it strange that I should reserve for eternity certain secrets and other matters. After all, is it not the Blessed Virgin Herself who sets me the example? Do not the holy Gospels tell us that Mary kept all things in her heart? And who better than the Immaculate Heart could have revealed to us the secrets of the Divine Mercy? Nonetheless, she kept them to Herself as in a garden enclosed, and took them with her to the palace of the Divine King.
I remember, besides, a saying that I heard from a holy priest, when I was only eleven years old. Like so many others, he came to question me, and among other things, about a matter that I did not wish to speak. After he had exhausted his whole repertoire of questions, without succeeding in obtaining a satisfactory answer on this subject, realizing perhaps he was touching on too delicate a matter, the good priest gave me his blessing and said: “You are right, my child. The secret of the King’s daughter should remain hidden in the depths of the heart.”
At the time, I did not understand the meaning of what he said, but I realized that he approved of my manner of acting. I did not forget his words, however, and I understand them now. This saintly priest was at that time the vicar of Torres Novas. Little does he know all the good these few words did for my soul, and that is why I remember him with such gratitude. One day, however, I sought the advice of a holy priest regarding my reserve for such matters, because I did not know how to answer when they asked me if the most Blessed Virgin had not told me anything as well. This priest, who was then the vicar of Olival, said to us:
“You do well my little ones, to keep the secret of your souls between yourself and God. When they put that question to you, just say, ‘Yes, she did say more but it’s a secret.’ If they question you further on this subject, think of the secret that this Lady made known to you and say, ‘Our Lady told us not to say anything, so for this reason we are saying nothing.’ In this way you can keep your secret under the cover of Our Lady’s.”
How well I understood the explanation and guidance of this venerable old priest! I am already taking too much time with these preliminaries and Your Excellency will be wondering what is the purpose of it all. I must see if I can make a start with my account of what I can remember of Jacinta’s life. As I have no free time at my disposal, I must make the most of the hours when we work in silence, to recall and jot down, with the aid of paper and pencil which I keep hidden under my sewing, all that the Holy Hearts of Jesus and Mary want me to remember.