Going for a long vacation to recover after a loss of my dad was a great gift from God. My project for summer vacation was doing nothing and watch most of the games of the World Cup Russia 2018.  Certainly, that project did not come to fruition.  The Lord had other plans for me.  I just watched barely 4 or 5 games.  I was called to do something for the People of God and my family in Venezuela.  Even though doing nothing seems that it is not a project, sometimes is necessary  (only under certain circumstances such as stress or overwork).  I found that exercising my soul even on vacation was healthy for my spirituality.  Yes, I was able to do nothing just for a few hours (leisure), but I was not able to keep quiet when I was seeing a lot of suffering, hunger, and inequality. Pictures are not enough to describe what happens in Venezuela.

Well, before getting to my country, I traveled to Mexico City to celebrate Mass at the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe.  It was also an opportunity to reconnect with long-time friends.  I visited my sister who is an industrial engineer now living in Bogota, Colombia. She decided along with her husband to abandon Venezuela due to the humanitarian crisis. I arrived the second week of June in my hometown in Venezuela. I had the opportunity to visit with some priests that are struggling to serve the People of God.  Some priests don’t even have enough wine to celebrate Holy Mass.  Thanks to God and private donations, I was able to give away a couple of boxes of wine.  I visited a Seminary, an orphanage, and a food pantry.  I also collaborate with some other social projects initiated by priests all for the glory of God.

This time, I did not lose my backpack, but I had issues with my flights…  I don’t want to talk about those incidents.  I consider those just a nightmare more.  What I keep in my mind are the great memories with family and friends. Visiting my dad’s tomb and installing a Marmol headstone and bringing flowers to him gave me some sort of closure after all this grieving process.  I prayed for a while for the dead while in the cemetery.  I also visited a place in particular that caught my attention: this is a convent that it is about an hour drive from my household.

I don’t have any regrets after this visit.  I did what the Lord asked me to do.  Yes, I did not rest as I supposed to, but I was able to keep exercising my soul.  Even though I did not exercise physically because it was raining almost every day, I kept my soul active doing God’s work.  That is what the Lord is asking us to do. A couple of weeks ago the Gospel of Mark read for Sunday Mass was telling us on how the Lord was ready to take some rest with his disciples, when he encountered people who were in need and he was able to teach even when he was tired… and YES: sometimes the Lord is saying: “Come away by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while.” (Mark 6,31). Probably, that while would not be too long…   Meanwhile, do your part.  I am trying

to do mine.