Relive the pain of others

“Our son, Matteo, was born with a serious respiratory problem, and we spent the first six months of his life in hospital. How can I describe the anguish we experienced during his respiratory crises, or when doctors were unable come up with the therapy that would meet his needs? Yet, we never doubted the Father’s love; thanks also to the support we received from our families and many friends. Overcoming the temptation of enclosing ourselves in our problem, we were enabled to share in the worries of others with children recovering in hospital, confronting the mystery of faith and suffering with them. Matteo is much better now. Recently, we were invited by the hospital department to belong to a group that reflects on issues related to young patients (the voice of the parents is important when it comes to difficult decisions). We accepted the invitation even though it would mean reliving our own pain, in the pain of others.”

M and S, Italy

The Cube of Love

“Mum and Dad don’t really get along. They often fight. Sometimes she doesn’t give in, and he becomes angry. To help them, even though I’m the smallest, the idea came to me of doing something at home that we do in school: learning how to love one another by rolling a cardboard cube with different phrases written on its six sides. I asked Mum and Dad to play it with me. We each had to take a piece of paper, copy down and do what they had read. If they didn’t do it, I would keep score of it in my score book. Mum got the side that said: “Love everyone,” and Dad got “Love your enemies.” By playing with me they had began to love one another again.”

D H, Philippines

An unexpected child

“Our daughter, Solange, a nurse at a clinic in Rio de Janeiro, was one day approached by a girl who was insisting on being admitted to hospital at least until she gave birth. She had neither documents nor money to pay for hospital care. Solange turned to the clinic director and other doctors, and finally the girl was admitted under the responsibility of my daughter. Everything went fine. A beautiful baby girl was born, Barbara. But a few days later, the girl disappeared leaving the newborn behind. The director and doctors got angry with Solange, to which my husband and I – even though we’re not so young anymore – offered to welcome Barbara as our fifth daughter, fifteen years after the birth of our youngest.”

A – Brazil