We made it!
After a long and, thankfully, uneventful trip Maureen and I arrived in
Nairobi. My first reaction – It’s a
small world!
One of my earliest memories is being on a ride at the
World’s Fair and hearing the song, “It’s a Small World”. And although I have heard that tune many
times since then, I’m not sure that the lyrics really impacted me until
yesterday.Our flight to Nairobi was truly international with people from many countries, speaking many languages, all heading to this international city. Upon arrival we were met by Br. Teofilo, Portuguese by birth but a citizen of the world who took us to St. Joseph Center, our residence for the next two weeks. There we were greeted by Australian Brother Chris Wills, world traveler and resident of Rome. Both of them are familiar faces from other Marist events, great examples of Marist hospitality and evidence of how small our Marist world can be – or maybe just how big it is!
As I was exiting the plane, the woman seated next to me asked what brings me to Nairobi. When I explained to her about the Marist International Mission Assembly she smiled broadly and told me how she knows the Marist Missionary Sisters in her country of Burundi. She then shared a bit about her Catholic faith and her recent visit to Lourdes. The conversation reminded me that as Champagnat Marists we are also members of a larger Marist family and a universal Church. Our world is big but our commonalities and connections remind us just how small it really is.
There is more emphasis on the breath, depth and width
of the Institute these days but sometimes it can be hard to appreciate the
internationality of our Marist community, especially as an American. Even
though I have had a few opportunities to take a glimpse at that first hand I am
really looking forward to spending the next two weeks with 118 Marists from 45
different countries. I look forward to
this adventure. Let it begin!
