When we live the Word we are bound to go out of ourselves and meet our brothers and sisters with love. We start with the ones closest to us: in our cities, our families, wherever we are in everyday life. This friendship becomes a network of positive relationships, that aims at living the commandment of mutual love, which builds fraternity.
Finding the right words
My two children, seven and five years old respectively, were out playing without any thought of danger. I was not quick enough to reach them, when a grenade exploded and both were bleeding. We picked them up and ran off to hospital. I felt a great turmoil inside me: dismay, fear, pain … but I had to take care of the children and instill peace in their hearts.
My son had splinters in his head and he had to be operated on immediately; my daughter was not in such a bad state. At night, I watched over their bedside. Every now and then they complained and had nightmares: “Why did they do this to us?” I looked for the right words to explain to them that the one who threw the grenade was someone who had suffered a lot, who might have no parents, and who just wanted to destroy the weapons on our side. When the children dozed off, I began to pray. I entrusted them to God while I prayed that they would be free from any hatred in their hearts. Decades passed since that painful episode, and today my son considers it as an incentive to contribute towards world peace.
(R. S. – Lebanon)
Change of apartment
When we asked the owner of the apartment where we were staying for permission to make some renovations at our expense, she said nothing about her intention of selling the flat. Of course, when we finished the work and came to know about her decision, we felt bad and betrayed. Moreover, the new owner asked for a much higher rent. So, from one day to the next, we found ourselves on the street. But we trusted in providence; we were certain that God would not abandon us.
In fact, shortly afterwards, we were offered a possibility that fitted our family needs even better. But the most important thing was to have no hard feelings and maintain a good relationship with the former landlady. We could feel that she was sorry about what happened, even though she did not express it outright. We were friends again and forgot all about the past.
Edited by Stefania Tanesini (Source: www.focolare.org)