Departures, visits, etc.

 

 

 

Departures, visits, etc.
Last Friday I accompanied my sister Marisa, her husband Flavio and Paolo to the airport.

Marisa and Flavio have been with me for 2 months, and together we shared life in the Mission, with its joys and difficulties. Paolo has been with us the last 3 weeks, and with him and the others we have been able to experience the Bozoum Fair.

Departure is always a difficult moment, even for those who have been doing it for a lifetime, like a missionary. But it is a necessary step, and friendship and sharing help with the distance and kilometers we are apart.

Saturday morning I returned here to Baoro, and in the afternoon I went again to Bouar, to visit the Agricultural Fair there. Started in 2010 by Caritas, it is now continuing thanks to a women's association and the help of an Italian organization, Jiango Be Africa.

On Sunday I went to celebrate Mass in Samba Bougoulou, 38 km from Baoro. I realized that there were few people, and a lot of fear. I found out that the military in the nearby village forced the population to stay back and build a house for them. Not only that: on the first day, the military beat a dozen young people!

After Mass, I went to visit the beaten young people, and listen to their story. As I left, I passed by the military, and I tried to make them understand that they cannot afford to treat the people like this. Will they have understood?

Over the past few days we did some home repairs, and started some construction on the home that burned down a few weeks ago.  The house belonged to Ata (the grandmother), Abigaellle and Patrick. Ata takes care takes care of the two of them, and their two older brothers, after the death of their parents.

Over the past few days I received some money from "Cuneo Volley", the men's volleyball team (who are playing the final of the Italian Cup Friday evening). It is one of the rare cases where Caritas Bouar is actually a sponsor (and a sponsor on the contrary ... in the sense that every year Cuneo Volley donates money for the construction of houses for the poor).

And yesterday I accompanied them, with the mason, to see how to rebuild it.

Thank you!

Bangui

Fieda di Bouar
Foire de Bouar

Vittime delle violenze dei militari a Samba Bougoulou
Les victimes des violences des militaires

Abigaelle, Patrick e la nonna