"A single sunbeam," he used to say, "is enough to drive away many shadows!" Little by little the man of the former days began to show himself, and at times the Sisters would hear, mingling with the murmur of the olive trees and pines, the echo of unfamiliar songs, which seemed to come from the cell of reeds.
One day he had seated himself at the monastery table after a long conversation with Clara.

The meal had hardly begun when suddenly he seemed to be rapt away in ecstasy.
"_Laudato sia lo Signore!_" he cried on coming to himself.

He had just composed the Canticle of the Sun.[17] TEXT[18] INCIPIUNT LAUDES CREATURARUM QUAS FECIT BEATUS FRANCISCUS AD LAUDEM ET HONOREM DEI CUM ESSET INFIRMUS AD SANCTUM DAMIANUM.
ALTISSIMU, onnipotente, bon signore, tue so le laude la gloria e l'onore et onne benedictione.
Ad te sole, altissimo, se konfano et nullu homo ene dignu te mentovare.
Laudato sie, mi signore, cum tucte le tue creature spetialmente messor lo frate sole, lo quale jorna, et illumini per lui; Et ellu e bellu e radiante cum grande splendore; de te, altissimo, porta significatione.
Laudato si, mi signore, per sora luna e le stelle, in celu l' ai formate clarite et pretiose et belle.
Laudato si, mi signore, per frate vento et per aere et nubilo et sereno et onne tempo, per le quale a le tue creature dai sustentamento.
Laudato si, mi signore, per sor acqua, la quale e multo utile et humele et pretiosa et casta.
Laudato si, mi signore, per frate focu, per lo quale ennallumini la nocte, ed ello e bello et jucundo et robustoso et forte.
Laudato si, mi signore, per sora nostra matre terra, la quale ne sustenta et governa et produce diversi fructi con colorite flori et herba.
Laudato si, mi signore, per quilli ke perdonano per lo tuo amore et sosteugo infirmitate et tribulatione, beati quilli ke sosterrano in pace, ka da te, altissimo, sirano incoronati.
Laudato si, mi signore, per sora nostra morte corporale, de la quale nullu homo vivente po skappare: guai a quilli ke morrano ne le peccata mortali; beati quilli ke se trovara ne le tue sanctissime voluntati, ka la morte secunda nol farra male.
Laudate et benedicete mi signore et rengratiate et serviteli cum grande humilitate.
TRANSLATION.[19] O most high, almighty, good Lord God, to thee belong praise, glory, honor, and all blessing! {To thee alone, Most High, do they belong, and no mortal lips are worthy to pronounce thy Name.} Praised be my Lord God with all his creatures, and specially our brother the sun, who brings us the day and who brings us the light; fair is he and shines with a very great splendor: O Lord, he signifies to us thee! Praised be my Lord for our sister the moon, and for the stars, the which he has set clear and lovely in heaven.
Praised be my Lord for our brother the wind, and for air and cloud, calms and all weather by the which thou upholdest life in all creatures.
Praised be my Lord for our sister water, who is very serviceable unto us and humble and precious and clean.
Praised be my Lord for our brother fire, through whom thou givest us light in the darkness; and he is bright and pleasant and very mighty and strong.
Praised be my Lord for our mother the earth, the which doth sustain us and keep us, and bringeth forth divers fruits and flowers of many colors, and grass.
Praised be my Lord for all those who pardon one another for his love's sake, and who endure weakness and tribulation; blessed are they who peaceably shall endure, for thou, O most Highest, shalt give them a crown.
Praised be my Lord for our sister, the death of the body, from which no man escapeth.

Woe to him who dieth in mortal sin! Blessed are they who are found walking by thy most holy will, for the second death shall have no power to do them harm.
Praise ye and bless the Lord, and give thanks unto him and serve him with great humility.
Joy had returned to Francis, joy as deep as ever.

For a whole week he forsook his breviary and passed his days in repeating the Canticle of the Sun.
During a night of sleeplessness he had heard a voice saying to him, "If thou hadst faith as a grain of mustard seed, thou wouldst say to this mountain, 'Be thou removed from there,' and it would move away." Was not the mountain that of his sufferings, the temptation to murmur and despair?
"Be it, Lord, according to thy word," he had replied with all his heart, and immediately he had felt that he was delivered.[20] He might have perceived that the mountain had not greatly changed its place, but for several days he had turned his eyes away from it, he had been able to forget its existence.
For a moment he thought of summoning to his side Brother Pacifico, the King of Verse, to retouch his canticle; his idea was to attach to him a certain number of friars, who would go with him from village to village, preaching.