Sister Runita Borja, General Councillor for Youth Ministry FMA, sent this message to all participants of this year’s Games:
Dear Friends, Athletes, Managers and Coaches, Welcome to the annual PGSI Games. The theme “United by the field”, brings to my mind Don Bosco’s Dream at Nine. In that dream, Don Bosco found himself in a field with rowdy boys. And it is in this very same field that the boys’ transformation happens. This year’s PGSI Games is a wonderful opportunity to remember how sports is a way to reach many young people. You come from different countries, you speak different languages. But all of you are “united by the field”. The field represents a dream, sacrifice, patience, teamwork, perseverance, community. Not all of you will be champions, but all of you are winners because you have gone through the journey of preparation and putting yourselves out in the open. This, in itself, is already winning. As you play with other teams you will realize that there are more things that you have in common; more things that unite you. In Don Bosco’s Dream at Nine, the Lady introduced by the mysterious majestic person (Jesus) told little Johnny Bosco to make himself “humble, steadfast and strong”. This is the key to transformation, not only in this field but in the field of life. Humble, steadfast and strong: to accept that we are special and unique, but a part of a greater whole; to persevere in the ups and downs of life; to keep trying and to see that the journey itself is already a reward in life. I wish you a wonderful and enjoyable experience: playing sport and being united by it. Look at the faces of each person that you will meet and see not a competitor, but a fellow human being with the same dreams and aspirations as you have. Together, this is your chance to make of the world a place for all, a world where no one is excluded. Show to the world that it is possible to come together in our diversity, that we are all called to build communion starting from the most ordinary things in life.
Affectionately,
sr Runita Borja