by Sr Maria Jose, MMM                             Brazil                      15.12.2023

Christmas is a time to celebrate the reunion of families and relatives. There is such joy when some children are close or part of any Christmas celebrations. At home there are very few of them now, children have grown up and some parents don’t want any more children. The environment and the economic situation don’t encourage families to keep enlarging their families in numbers. I have experienced some of these moments of joy being a friend and being able to be closer to children, sharing their innocence and how deeply they trust and relate to one another. We have a lot to learn from the spontaneity and simplicity of children.

This Christmas we are celebrating a new life. A blessed young lady received the grace of conception, and a baby girl was born. The young lady filled with joy called her baby Alice. I imagine that the waiting time was like a dream. Everybody was waiting for Alice to come… and then there she was, the tiny little most welcomed girl to this young family. Her mother was like the family of Nazare. She is studying at the university and living with her uncle closer to her school. When the baby was born, she went to stay with the family of the father of the baby. Eventually she came to stay with her mother for another few days. Now she is back with her uncle where she used to stay. They are all experiencing a deep joy among the family with the presence of the baby girl.

Looking at the unconditional love between the child and the mother, it shows evidence of the deep sense of God’s presence among ourselves. Let us take this time at Christmas to learn from them the essence of life and living well. Happy Christmas and a very blessed New Year for all of us.