The embrace from Uganda

“Father Giussani’s tribe”

At the Meeting Point of Kampala, after reading the CL flyer, many women were  moved to collect money to send to Italy. Here’s what happened, in the words by Rose Busingye, nurse and center director, and her friend Alice.
On the Thursday following the earthquake, I received the Italian version of the Movement’s flyer and I read it to the 100 women of the Meeting Point of Kireka, the area of Kampala where the women grind stones to earn a few dollars. In Acholi (their native language), they told me, “They are our people; what happened affected our people. We have to do something.” They asked me if there was a way to go and help the people in Abruzzo, to get on a bus and go. The papers said that there were still people buried under the rubble, and the women wanted to go there to move the stones and retrieve the bodies. I told them that it was impossible because Abruzzo is very far and one can only get there by plane. They answered, “We have to do something because they belong to our people. At least we have to send them something to show them that they are part of our people, that they belong to us.” One of the women said, “They belong to Father Giussani’s tribe.” They were so moved that, as they were leaving, they gave me the equivalent of 250 Euros (approximately 330 American dollars), which is a very large sum for them. They asked me to send the money right away, maybe to pay somebody to help extract the people from under the rubble. That same day, we did not engage in our usual activities–making necklaces, dancing, and playing soccer–because the women wanted to discuss things. We talked, and when they understood that the people affected were Italians, they said that those people belonged to our same tribe, Father Giussani’s tribe. They consider themselves part of Father Giussani’s tribe. They are still raising money. They often ask me for news about our friends; they don’t have a clear idea of the exact location of Abruzzo, and they think that the earthquake affected the whole Italian peninsula, and therefore their friends too. They now want to write a letter. If you ask me to comment on these events, all I can say is that those women were moved. It is true that faith generates a method. When you are immersed in the Mystery, you can’t but notice what happens and be moved. These women challenged me to be moved. They didn’t spring into action because the Movement sent a flyer or a suggestion; they were moved and therefore they moved. If your heart is moved you move.
Rose

Dear Rose: Somebody opened my eyes so I could discover who I am, so precious and loved. I can say that we are the tribes of Father Giussani and the Pope, who loved us and would surely give—and have given—everything for our lives. We have learned from this. Those people who are suffering because of the earthquake are our tribemates, so I want to send my heartfelt love for them—and my contribution is a sign of this. Rose, you know that a person who has never experienced love can’t understand what we feel for those people because love is the movement of the heart that no one can explain. Those who have never loved can only respond mechanically, but what happened to us is such a great thing: somebody moved for us and cried with us, giving us a shoulder to cry on. I too want to give my shoulder so that somebody can cry on it. If you can, tell those people in Abruzzo that we love them and belong to them. We feel their pain because we ourselves have passed through it. May God be with them in this moment of trouble, and may He protect them and console them on our behalf.
Alice