There are, and indeed there are, people who would hardly be embarrassed if they knew they had lived for a long time under observation. This contradicts that old saying which, though false, faithfully expresses a certain amount of common sense. But it must be noted, and we must proceed with the necessary examination of conscience. It has been said that the requirement for holiness is nothing more than the desire to attain it. And even so, there is no doubt that it is reserved for the few. However, there is a mandatory minimum, without which the spirit cannot help but succumb. This is evident. Examples abound and prove that nothing is required to follow them: anyone, no matter how few virtues he may possess, cannot afford to forgo this minimum—and must therefore desire to become one of those men. Without this, everything else is of no value whatsoever.