On vacation time my dad didn't allow us to watch television. Many of you can laugh at this, but that is how vacation time was at home.
The first days without television were a great challenge. But from then on, we really enjoyed it.
Time was used to interact and to share, instead of sitting in front of the television. Those moments together created many beautiful and unforgettable family memories. We had moments in which we shared, played or fought. We were grounded, as well as rewarded. Going back to school after vacation was very hard for me.
As we share all these memories now that vacation is over and the new school year begins, we ask ourselves: What memories from this summer will we have of sharing time with family and friends?
Now the busy life of school starts again. There are extracurricular activities and sports where everyone is busy, parents are looking after their kids to ensure they complete all their chores and the commitments of what seems to be endless comings and goings. It’s a life that wears you out.
At the same time, life challenges us to maintain a family life and to live a home life that is the domestic Church, whose purpose is the formation of good men and women, who live continuously in the service of God, his Church, and our society.
The challenge that we are facing today is to ensure that we have our priorities well defined, remembering that the individual and family always come first and therefore emphasizing the importance of communicating and sharing.
The use of technology in communications is important, but it will never replace the sound of a voice. In this competitive, high-tech and individualistic world, God calls us to ensure that our priorities are family sharing, making time to listen and to be heard, and making time to relish the word of our neighbor.
Today is the time to create memories. It’s the time to put aside the noise and the distractions of the world and to focus on the symphony of the voice and, thus, to learn to appreciate the richness of others and also to learn that it is through sharing that one learns to live in love and discovers God, who is love.
Let's not allow the world to take away from us the opportunity to enjoy the greatest treasure we have: life and love toward family. Let's not live in the solitude of a life in the clouds, too busy doing too much to reach the top, a hollow top, that - at the end - leaves us tired and with emptiness in the heart.
Which are our priorities? What should we turn off or disconnect from? What separates us from our neighbor and from God? What prevents us from sharing, living, and knowing love?
The desires of the heart are not fulfilled by the world, only by God and his love. In the midst of the challenges faced by parents and children with the start of a new school year, let us embrace as a family the challenge of sharing, thus not allowing loneliness to govern our lives.
Over the daily challenges, you will always find that family is there to support you and move forward. The family, which is the domestic Church and the educator in dedication, service and love, is the school that helps us discover God, the true Love.