Darlings, We Love Sister Simplice!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

                                                Now, you may rightly ask, "Who is Sister Simplice?"  Well, getting back to
"Les Miserables," she is, basically, the male counterpart of the Bishop of Digne.

                                                  In the very beginning of the classic epic, before meeting Fantine, Jean
Valjean is a convict just released from a 19 year prison term. He is on the run, and has to stay such, because
no decent place will receive him.  Until he knocks on the door of the Bishop of Digne.  This man not  only
puts Valjean up for the night, but when apprehended the next day for having some stolen some items, the Bishop sets him free by denying he is a thief and giving him two silver candlesticks, claiming he forgot to take what was given to him as a gift.  And this puts Jean Valjean on the path to redemption.

                                                   Later, when he rescues Fantine from the streets, he places her in a
hospital, staffed by the Sisters of Charity.  Sister Simplice is more charitable than most.  Her other peers
pull that Gladys Copper routine, expressing their disdain over having to care for someone like Fantine, a denizen of the streets.  Only Sister Simplice administers care to the dying woman equal to that given also by Jean Valjean.

                                                   Sister Simplice cannot bear to tell a lie.  And she never has. But she is put to the test for the greater good, when she is forced to lie about Jean Valjean, in order to help Fantine.

                                                      Now, I am not asking any of my girls to take the veil--unless, of course, you want to--but Sister Simplice is a nun among nuns.   None of that Debbie Reynolds jazz, just pure, undistorted and straightforward simplilcty. And--emphaiss on this--non-judgemental!!!!!!!!!!!!

                                                          How can one not love Sister Simplice????? She may not rate a TV show, like Sister Bertrille (played by Sally Field) but she is a role model for all us to follow.  She is a minor character in Hugo's tapestry, but like so many others, she is unforgettable.

                                                            As we say in the theatre,darling, there are no small parts--only small actors!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!