New Years in Loppiano (Florence)!

So in my last post I wrote that I celebrated New Years with around the world and I found a video on Youtube that shows a little bit of the 3 days of New Years!


This New Years was really special because we (everyone that lives in this community of Loppiano/Florence) organized a program that invited 250 youth from all over Italy and parts of Europe to participate in different workshops-dance, singing, creative writing and figurative arts. So I was part of the dancing one....YEAH...although clearly I can't dance I tried.
It was just an opportunity to share this movement of the Focolare that I'm part of without really ever mentioning words about God or about religion, but to put our Ideal into actions. Actions by working together and always being ready to lose our own idea (since it was a dance, somebody might have one idea and another might think differently).

So in this video it shows a little bit about the 3 days, including the preparation beforehand, the actual practicing in the workshop, the performances (2 of them) one on the 31st, and one on the 1st which included a special performance demonstrating the life of Beautified Chiara Luce, and also the New Years Dance party (we turned one of the halls in the church into a club).
and I'm in the video at 1:51, the person in the center left of the picture, you can't see my face, but I'm the biggest figure in this frame.



Sorry it's in Italian...but I can translate it a little...
the voices are the impressions of the 3 days from the youth/young adults.


First one spoke about feeling at home with all of you, the second I don't know everyone very well but I feel in a big family that each person isn't afraid to show their weakness without being afraid to be judged and I have never found this anywhere. Third, I was surprised by the contributions that each one brought even in the silence, because these youth came only to celebrate New Years, their depositions and works were done with great concentration attention, and passion, Fourth in spanish (don't know) Fifth, there was a certain level of quality all the events, the festas, performances, and the mass, I work with Salesian youths and something to be learned. Sixth, referring to the life of Beautified Chiara Luce, we can also arrive to be beautified, without doing something great, but by saying our Yes day by day, and loving God with all our hearts. Seventh, there is a voice inside of me that says you are here to change the way of your idea, and I can't leave here like the same way I came!

Enjoy!





Here is the dance workshop I was part of!
I`m on the left side behind the boy in the red shirt!