FRANCE – COLOMBIA: ONE FAMILY ONLY

An announced visit

An announced, awaited, prepared visit, from one culture to another… from one generation to another. Hospitality is the mission of our house and community, always open to welcome all those who come to visit us or request our services. We accepted the proposal to receive for a few days this group of young people and teachers from the San Gabriel School in San Lorenzo, France.

Our experience as Daughters of Wisdom, as older sisters, made us feel that we still have something to contribute to young people, despite the limitations such as the language and the short time available for sharing. But we could perceive their joy, youth, confidence in the moments when we were able to be with them; it was also very pleasant to get to know Marie-Pierre, Vanesa and Liliana, their simplicity and desire to exchange experiences and knowledge. We appreciate their visit; our home will always be their home.

“The essential is invisible to the eye” Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

‘The essential is invisible to the eye’ … says the famous author of ‘The Little Prince’, that famous book that has made both adults and children dream of having a friendship that transcends borders, that does not distinguish between tastes, nationality, hair color or customs. And it is precisely something like what the protagonist of that story told us that happened to the young Colombians and French people who took part in the cultural exchange last January. Apparently the essential was not invisible only to the eye, but also to the hands, the feet, and if you like to all the senses, which, amid smiles, united them beyond nationality.

And so, regardless of the color of their flag, some were the attentive ‘Little Prince’ and others the advising ‘Aviator’, some symbolized the ‘Fox’ who in the book taught how to appreciate the small things in life, and others learned the wisdom of seeing beyond the superficial. United in the blessing of God, and in the teachings of the blessed Marie Louise de Jésus, saint Louis-Marie Grignion de Montfort and the community of the brothers of Saint Gabriel, a marvelous experience took place, and who better than them to tell us about it:

• « My experience with the cultural exchange between the students from France and us students from Colombia was totally enriching for them and for us. For me personally, I think it has been the best experience since I have been at school, because they made an effort to communicate so that we could understand each other. The atmosphere between them and us was very pleasant for getting to know each other and sharing tastes or traditions. My classmate Mateo was very kind and friendly to me, and I tried to be the same with him, so much so that we are still in touch to continue exchanging knowledge, experiences, tastes and traditions ». Ana María and Mateo
• « A pleasant experience, being able to teach you some phrases in Spanish and seeing how you repeated them, socializing with a new culture was also something beautiful, I await your return and hope to see you soon ». Juan Diego and Juliette
• « When the French arrived for the first time, I was nervous about what was going to happen, what they were going to be like. I met Victor, the student I exchanged letters with, and he was a nice guy, like all the others. At first it was a bit difficult to communicate with them because I didn’t know any French and they knew very little Spanish, but I managed to communicate with them in English being able to share experiences and questions with them, we taught them a few of our idioms such as ‘parce’, ‘bacano’ etc. And we managed to show them a little of our culture, just as they told us a lot about their culture and their country, and in the end we managed to exchange gifts with each other. » David and Victor
• « This experience was very beautiful as I had the opportunity to get to know a completely different culture ». Gabriela and Rose

Sisters Maribel, Maria Estela, Hilda, Teresa and Laura, – Colombia