Towards Christmas “I knew that the company I was working for would soon close shop and I would soon be jobless. Despite this, as Christmas neared, my colleagues and I thought of setting aside a part of our salary for the poorer people. So we went to visit a family that lived in a shanty, deprived of all necessities. Besides the envelope with the money we also brought toys for the children. We departed happily: it seemed to us that it was best preparation for the birth of the Lord. But before the day ended, some good news arrived: we were ensured that we would work for another five months.” (J.L.V. – Mexico) Hunger «One day at school, I saw a little girl who was all alone in a corner. I immediately went and asked her, “Why are you crying?” She told me that she had stomach ache because she had not had breakfast and had nothing for lunch. I thought: “It is Jesus who is hungry” and gave her my sandwich. After a while that girl said to me: “Now my stomach is no longer aching.” I was so happy. (S.S – Philippines) I forgive! «I was playing with a friend of mine when a boy arrived and with no reason hit me on the head, and I had to go to the hospital to be treated. On returning home I had only one thought: revenge. The day after, that boy’s father came to ask forgiveness. And he added: “I give you my permission to do to my son what he did to you. Perhaps he will understand how badly he behaved!” At that point I remembered Jesus’s invitation to love one’s enemies and I answered him that I forgave him. Surprised, the father called his son, and so we made up and now live in peace.”  (Dionisio – Angola) Stolen drillers While I was working in the office together with my colleague, Benda, who is Muslim, we heard a crash from outside. We went to look: someone had broken the glass of our van and had stolen three drillers. It was the first time a thing like that happened and we were inconsolable. Then the thought of forgiving the author of that act came to my mind, and who probably was pushed by necessity. Recalling a phrase of the Koran Benda added: “When a person forgives, what he was robbed of will be returned by someone else.” That evening, at home, while I was recounting the episode, one of my relatives offered me three drills which he wasn’t using anymore. The next day, he brought them, and one of them was similar to the more expensive drill that had been stolen.   (A.G. – Italy)