Hajja Salesjana July-September 2022

17 hajja In which way are you part of the Salesian Family? Most of my life as a Salesian of Don Bosco up till 2013 has been spent in formation houses, usually in rather large communities that welcomed a variety of nationalities. Inevitably, this also led to frequent contact with various other branches of the Salesian Family: all in all, a very enriching experience that has opened my horizons in many ways and led me to appreciate the unity and diversity of the Salesian charism around the world. 3. Who is Don Bosco for you and what strikes you most about him? He is certainly a model to look up to and imitate. What I find quite astonishing is Don Bosco’s single- mindedness and sheer dedication to the mission entrusted to him by God. He not only promised God that he would give of himself to his last breath for his poor boys, but he in fact kept that promise till the end. 5. What message would you like to pass on to the readers of Ħajja Salesjana? I would invite our readers to listen carefully to God’s voice speaking to us through his Word, through the stirrings of our own heart and the circumstances we find ourselves in. Young or old, whatever stage we’re at, the one question we need to be asking is: Lord, what do you want from me? At the hour of our death, nothing will give us peace and consolation more than knowing we have daily sought to carry out God’s will and to give of ourselves for the good of others. 6. Is there a phrase or a sentence from Don Bosco that inspires you in your life? There is one phrase of Don Bosco, among others, that helps me put into perspective my identity and mission as a Salesian: “Remember that education is a matter of the heart, of which God is the sole master, and we will be unable to achieve anything unless God teaches us and puts the key in our hands.” I love how these words focus on an essential aspect of our educative mission while reaffirming the primacy of God in that same mission. 4. Lulju - Settembru 2022