Testimony of faith. A shift in my life

One Monday morning, a good twenty years ago, an elderly lady came into my office, with a broken wrist and a frown on her face. “What happened to you?” » “It’s because of the Little Brothers of the Poor!” she shouts, very angry. Yesterday I went out with them all day and they didn’t bring me home until 6 p.m. You realize, at my age! I’m already in bed at this time! I was so exhausted that I fell at home. It’s their fault I broke my wrist. » She is extremely upset against the association. Implausible, I thought. It’s definitely worth it! Volunteers give their Sunday for others and here is the answer… These unfair vituperations have stayed with me.

Surprisingly, this unpleasant event caused a shift in my life. It was the trigger for a later major decision: shortly after retiring, I contacted the Little Brothers of the Poor to join a team. I therefore commit to giving my time to break the loneliness of isolated people. Non-denominational, the association does not transmit any religious message. I meet wonderful volunteers there, rarely believers, it seems to me.

As a practicing Catholic, did I commit myself in response to the words of Jesus “I was sick and you visited me…” (Matthew 25, 36)? I don’t know, even if I make no secret of my faith within the association. My approach as a believer is to reach out to others and simply bring my presence. This commitment makes me deeply happy. I receive as much as I give and the Little Brothers have become a sort of second family. On Christmas Day, we organize a big, warm and festive meal, which we serve ourselves. Tiing the apron to put myself at the service of these isolated people delights me. Their joy and gratitude brings tears to my eyes. On Christmas Eve, I come home very tired, but deeply joyful! I participate faithfully every other year, with my wife, who joins the Little Brothers for the occasion. As I like to tell our children: “In the end, I always spend Christmas with my family!” »