By Fr. Flavie Villanueva, SVD
When you look at the origins of the word “gratitude”, it actually comes from the Latin “gratus”, which means “pleasing, agreeable, thankful.” What is more interesting is that the word is loosely related to the word “grace.” So beautiful and how fitting! To be grateful is actually to have grace. To find oneself grateful is a grace—and yet another reason to be grateful!
The last 3 months have indeed been a quarter of gratitude for us. There has been an abundance of things to thank God and each other for. We celebrated yet another milestone in July: the Arnold Janssen Kalinga Center (AJKC) is 9-years old! What started as a venture into the unknown for the sake of God’s little ones became a foundation that would embrace two of the most neglected sectors in society: the street dwellers and the drug war victims.
To be grateful is actually to have grace. To find oneself grateful is a grace—and yet another reason to be grateful!
The theme for AJKC’s 9th anniversary was taken from John 15:16, “It was not you who chose me, but I who chose you”, which highlighted how all the good we are able to do and every good thing happening in the Foundation’s mission does not come from us or our efforts but solely from our Lord.
From July to September, aside from the anniversary, we had two medical – dental missions, the Paghilom youth’s first recollection, as well as the debut performance of “Himig Paghilom” at the Swiss National Day, August 29, held at the Enderun Colleges where they sang the Swiss national anthem in English. We are not just thankful for all the amazing developments in both of our programs but even more so for the depth of gratitude we feel because we have been called to be part of this mission.
What a privilege!