Noon
Then must she arise , for the day was dawning ; make the porridge and the pancakes while the men went to the stable to care for the animals , wait upon them when they returned , wash the dishes , sweep the house . What time she attended to these things , Maria was ever raising a little higher toward heaven the monument of her Aves ; but the rosary had to be laid aside and it was hard to keep a true reckoning . As the morning advanced however , no urgent duty calling , she was able to sit by the window and steadily pursue her undertaking . Noon ; and already three hundred Aves . Her anxiety lessens , for now she feels almost sure of finishing in time . It comes to her mind that fasting would give a further title to heavenly consideration , and might , with reason , turn hopes into certainties ; wherefore she ate but little , foregoing all those things she liked the best . Throughout the afternoon she must knit the woollen garment designed for her father as a New Year 's gift , and though the faithful repetition ceased not , the work of her fingers was something of a distraction and a delay ; then came the long preparations for supper , and finally Tit ` Bé brought his mittens to be mended , so all this time the Aves made slow and impeded progress , like some devout procession brought to halt by secular interruption .