![\"Fam\u00edlia](\"https:\/\/www.fraterinternacional.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/Familia-Aline-Kevison-CL-Figueira-FFHI-02.jpg\")
<\/a>Family Aline and Kevinson Light-Community Figueira<\/p><\/div>\n
Of course, the confinement makes everything more intense. Adults need to deal with the fear and tension arising from coronavirus and an uncertain future, resolve the problems emerging from a multi-sector crisis, assist with school education of their children, and entertain them in their free time, take care of the family health, keep on top of the housework, find new forms of leisure, and trim the rough edges coming about through prolonged co-existence.<\/p>\n
In this process, it is fundamental to keep up the faith and the hope that better days will come, for this will bring us the necessary peace to act more wisely and with discernment. We also know that at this planetary moment, all the events must be faced as a means for growing in unconditional love, transcendence, and solidarity.<\/p>\n
To find out how the families are going through the quarantine, the\u00a0Light-Community Figueira<\/a>, affiliated with\u00a0Fraternity \u2013 International Humanitarian Federation (FIHF)<\/a>, spoke with four mothers, who described what the adjustments were in their routines, as well as the challenges and the learning experiences brought about by the social distancing. It is important to highlight that one of the points in common among these families is the practice of prayer as a daily exercise.<\/p>\n Family Talita and Rodrigo Light-Community Figueira<\/p><\/div>\n Aline:\u00a0<\/strong><\/b>My family and I have lived for almost ten years in the city of Carmo da Cachoeira, Minas Gerais, Brazil.<\/p>\n Marcela:\u00a0<\/strong><\/b>We live in the\u00a0Light-Community\u00a0Figueira<\/strong><\/b><\/a><\/u>, in the Terras da Irmandade area.<\/p>\n Joana:\u00a0<\/strong><\/b>My husband,my children and I live in Carmo da Cachoeira. The current context caused us to look for changes in our life. We decided to live in the country to give ourselves more space for the children and have more experiences in the midst of nature. We feel that to be closer to nature became essential.<\/p>\n Talita:\u00a0<\/strong><\/b>We live in the rural area of Carmo da Cachoeira.<\/p>\n Family Joana and Eric Light-Community Figueira<\/p><\/div>\n Aline:\u00a0<\/strong><\/b>The quarantine has become a time for us to reinvent ourselves every day. We are always learning the best way to co-exist, in spite of the various challenges that appear.<\/p>\n Marcela:\u00a0<\/strong><\/b>Well, we are going through this period with a lot of challenges overcome, and others still to be defeated, with joy and willpower.<\/p>\n Joana:\u00a0<\/strong><\/b>The quarantine came in an unusual way, and what was most difficult was to deal with the restrictions imposed by the new context. The quarantine certainly brought many challenges, and together with those, many lessons learned. As a family, together we are learning to deal with the emotions, gaining new resources and being aware of inner processes. I always look to see the good and beautiful side of situations and pass that vision on to the children. We are more united and continuing in faith and in hope for better times. Together and daily, we emanate light to the whole planet, all beings and all kingdoms.\u00a0<\/strong><\/b><\/p>\n Talita:\u00a0<\/strong><\/b>In what is possible, we are in harmony with the children and with nature, because we are far away from the city.<\/p>\n Family Marcela Light-Community Figueira<\/p><\/div>\n Aline:\u00a0<\/strong><\/b>The rhythm has to be continuously modified, looking at what each one can offer. Tasks include taking care of the dogs, the chicken and the plants, cultivating the vegetable garden, assisting with the schooling, the attunements and the prayers, besides the activities carried out only by the adults.<\/p>\n Marcela:\u00a0<\/strong><\/b>In the morning, when waking up, we do a prayer to consecrate our day to Jesus, to the Virgin Mary, and to Saint Joseph. We eat breakfast together and afterwards we clean and tidy the rooms, before we begin the study routine. Then I focus on the tasks aruond the area. My children sometimes accompany me, sometimes they just play and interact with nature.<\/p>\n At midday, we do a group prayer and afterwards, we have lunch with everybody in the area. We participate in the cleaning and tidying of the kitchen, which is done by all of us, then we go to our room, where the children have their quieter activities. At 2:30 pm, I begin my task in organizing the ritual for the Divine Mercy Chaplet prayer and Communion, in which everybody in the area participates, at 3 pm. Afterwards, we again do our tasks on the farm, which include taking care of the garden, preparing some food, cleaning the spaces, gathering fruit, sewing and weaving, studies, music. At 6 pm, we eat and right after, we always have some \u00a0instructionional activity, such as the sharings or the teachings of the Divine Messengers. To close the day, we do a group prayer.<\/p>\n Joana:\u00a0<\/strong><\/b>Considering that the school was an important space for interactions, experiences and lessons gone through daily by the children, the cancellation of the classes produced a void in the daily family activity. It was necessary to reinvent the routine and open up a space with a fixed schedule for the children\u2019s school activities, setting up the schooling space in the house. The rhythm of the time to wake up, tidying the spaces of the house, taking care of the animals, morning coffee and preparation with everyone all together. To begin the morning activities with the children, we do an attunement: songs, verses and prayers at the altar. After that, either I or the father when available, guided by the script sent by each teacher, who develops the learning path to be followed by the child, we are access bridges that accompany, support and outline with references that indicate the way. When the morning ends, there is a free time for the children, and the mother goes to prepare lunch. Meals are taken together and we always have a moment of prayer. In the afternoon period, while the mother focusses on the tasks of managing the school and the home, the children have playtime, reading, cooking, manual arts. Isabela, the eldest child, found inspiration for her expression in art, and dedicates a lot of her time to painting, design, felting and other things. Gabriela is dedicated to playing, board games, riding games, ball games, she also likes cooking and manual arts. At the end of the day, bath, meal, storytelling, prayer and bedtime around 8 pm.<\/p>\n Talita:\u00a0<\/strong><\/b>Because we have little children, our routine is simple. Since the quarantine began, the children have never been to the city or been in places with a lot of people. I am always with them; my companion does the necessary trips. When he returns, he obeys all the hygiene protocols before entering the house and having contact with the children.<\/p>\n Our routine flows according to the day. At dawn, the children ask what they are going to eat and then begin to suggest dishes. Everything gets mixed in with the games and their world. At some point, I am asked to play together.<\/p>\n One day, we didn\u2019t have any electricity. In the evening, we began to pretend, sitting on the sofa, that we were in a spaceship, travelling through space. At a certain moment, we landed on a planet and went looking for a cave: it was the bedroom. Then we snuggled up and went to sleep very early.<\/p>\n I have noticed, more than ever, how at their age they imitate us. And so, our attitudes are very important. In the beginning, when my husband came back from the city, he always had to warn the children not to come close before he washed, because they would see him and run to greet him and hug him, missing him. So, one day, I heard my child saying: \u201cdon\u2019t come close, sis.\u201d I went to see what was going on and he says, sitting on his tricycle: \u201cI have come from the city and sis can\u2019t come close to me.\u201d At some time during the day, we also pray and sing. Each one takes up an instrument and we have a party! They are small moment with which we try to make the day unique and special. In the middle of routine activities, I feel that those moments make all the difference for them and for me.<\/p>\n Within the planetary context, the children are constantly bringing us into the present moment. It is important for us to seek \u00a0balance of body, soul, and spirit, and to be connected to nature, so that us and our children can learn to live in a more simple and real way.<\/p>\n Family Joana and Eric Light-Community Figueira<\/p>\n Aline:\u00a0<\/strong><\/b>For the children, it has been a challenge to not have so much contact with the rest of the family and friends. So that everything may be managed in the best way, the adults have to take on a lot of additional tasks. We are all going through purification, and as a family, we have mutually helped each other, with patience and empathy, to move beyond that process.<\/p>\n Marcela:\u00a0<\/strong><\/b>I came to the\u00a0Light-Community Figueira<\/a><\/u>\u00a0shortly before the pandemic began. Before, we used to live in our home in Argentina. Besides the pandemic, the biggest challenge was adapting to a new way of life, which set us in a different rhythm and made us co-exist with new people, who are now our family. After that, more everyday challenges emerged, relateing to the carrying out of our tasks.<\/p>\n Joana:\u00a0<\/strong><\/b>The quarantine brought many challenges. For the children, I consider that the greatest for them is the social isolation and lack of schooling, which provided socialization and rich learning experiences.<\/p>\n For my husband and I, what was most difficult was the isolation of the\u00a0Light-Community Figueira<\/a><\/u><\/strong><\/b>, which offered important impulses of connection through the liturgies, and opportunities for group experiences, reasons for which we moved close by.<\/p>\n In the face of so many challenges, to pay attention to the needs of each one was important in our trying to find ways and solutions. In the beginning, it seemed temporary, but little by little, it became the new reality, which was when a feeling of loneliness came over me. The lack of group work, of the liturgies that gave meaning to the purpose were a test of faith, and the understanding that the work continued in the invisible and that the building of access to the spiritual world had to be built within me was an important step. It was necessary to gather strength to be the support of the family and in the school task. The children also felt an immense lack of interaction with their friends. To take care of this demand, which saddened the hearts of the little ones, we opened up to meet with a few friends who are careful with the protocols. With some frequency, they met with their cousins and with their grandfather.<\/p>\n The yard became small for the children\u2019s need for movement. So, we began a rhythm with the children in the countryside, planting, walking, visiting the stream, playing outside, etc. The contact with nature and its elements became essential for restoration, connecting with life and with God!\u00a0<\/strong><\/b><\/p>\n Talita:\u00a0<\/strong><\/b>Our greatest challenges are to keep a balance and look for creativity to fill the day of the children, so that they can keep emotionally and mentally healthy. Besides that, we are learning to accept solitude and discover its benefits.<\/p>\n Figueira Family Talita and Rodrigo Light-Community Figueira<\/p><\/div>\n Aline:\u00a0<\/strong><\/b>There is a passage in Ecclesiastes 4:12 that well expresses what we are learning.<\/p>\n \u201ca man alone can be defeated, The book \u201cThe strength of Union\u201d, by Br\u00e1ulio Bessa, also transmits that lesson:<\/p>\n A wise man, already old<\/a>Interviewed families:<\/strong><\/h3>\n
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\nSometimes, we get organized to do something special for the whole day. On those days when we light a fire, we go out to gather wood and twigs and prepare something to do around the fire. They like to admire the work in which they participate and fille their day.<\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n\n
<\/a>\n
\nbut two manage to defend themselves.
\nA three-ply cord
\ndoes not easily break.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n
\nwith a vague and distant look
\nassembled his four children
\nand spoke for a minute:
\nat the bottom of the yard there are four sticks
\nplease go and fetch them
\nand even without understanding
\nwhat the father asked them to do
\nthey answered: for now
\nfour adults to the world
\nfor the father, four children
\nreceiving a lesson
\nfrom that weak and meek voice
\nfour children, four sticks
\nfront to front, face to face
\nand the old father ordered:
\nhat each one break theirs
\nthen they threw pieces of what was left on the street
\ngo and fetch four more sticks
\nsays the patient old man
\nand he said: however, now we are going to do it differently
\nhe gathered the sticks in his hand, tied them with twine
\nand says: break them
\nthey applied their strength, they groaned, but quickly understood
\nthat it was not going to work
\nand the old man says: my children
\nthat is my legacy
\nit is not imported cars
\nnor money in the savings account
\nI leave you this lesson
\nwalking united
\nis our best transportation
\ncontinue with your life united
\nfor you will never be defeated
\nfor together you are stronger.<\/p>\n