Hajja Salesjana July-September 2022

MY NAME IS SEAN CAYD The Story of an Unimaginable Gift THE MESSAGE OF THE RECTOR MAJOR Don Ángel Fernández Artime Dear Readers, friends of the Salesian Bulletin, and most especially friends of Don Bosco's charism, I send you my affectionate greeting. They always come with gratitude for the sympathy you have towards Don Bosco, the saint of the world's youth, and the closeness, respect, or curiosity you feel towards those of us who try to continue his mission in the Church and the world. With all my heart, I thank you! Today I am writing to share with you something I experienced just a short while ago when I was visiting the Salesian presences in Zimbabwe. More precisely, I was in a small town called Hwange. There I met with my Salesian confreres, other members of the Salesian Family, the educators from that place, and a group of about 200 young people both from there and others from far away, who had come from Malawi and Namibia with great sacrifice and generosity. The three days in Hwange were full of life, joy, encounters, and greetings. From the first moment, more than 50 boys and girls from the closest houses joined the gathering. In fact, they spent the day there among us, and, to a great extent, amazed by everything they saw and heard—the songs, the dances, and the joy. It can be said that one of the greatest riches of Africa are its children. They are all over and always happy and smiling (I would almost say unaware of the poverty in which they live). Now I would like to tell you about Sean. Among all the children, this one boy was almost always present, together with his friends. He is about twelve years old. There he was, about a yard away from everything that was happening, not keeping his distance and unafraid. He was watching everything that was happening because it was all new for him. Naturally, I greeted them all many times: in the morning, in the afternoon, and at night when they went home; and we spoke about things together. When the time came for me to leave to head to the next stop, several hours’ journey by truck, there was that young lad. Just as I was getting into the truck, he came forward and stood very close to me, extending his right Photo by Damian Patkowski - www.unsplash.com 32 Lulju - Settembru 2022 hajja