Friendship is a gift we learn to see in the simplicity of daily life: with our neighbors, our coworkers, in unplanned encounters. Our mission takes flesh in the expectations, the care, the welcome, the respect, the generosity, and the sharing we put into our relationships.
Ceaselessly, Jesus invites us to “be his friends.” Thanks to our loving relationship with him, we dare to believe that “there can be true friendship, and deep affection, between people who don’t share the same religion, culture, or family background.”
All things grow from small beginnings: a hello, a smile, a little service, a kind word.
Friendship grows in the soil of reciprocity, in choosing to need other people.
It is nourished by the energy spent learning a language, welcoming another’s culture, customs, cuisine. Sharing the same living and working conditions makes it grow. Friendship ripens because we give it time, we persevere, we pray, and above all we are sure that it is God’s Grace that makes all things possible.