Straight after a football match we started to get ready for the last dinner of the year 2017… We lit the wood fired oven and we started to prepare pizzas.

That, throughout the previous years, has become the favourite dish to give a warm welcome to the new year; with a table decorated for a feast where we welcome our guests: the friends closest and dearest to our fraternity. At the end of the meal we switched off the lights and brought in a lighted cake for Deacon John’s birthday.  Shortly after this we started the game of bingo with Samuele and Bruno enlivening the evening with their calling and prize giving.

We then moved to the chapel for a profound moment of Eucharistic Adoration during which we wrote down the new intentions for the coming year and put in the hands of God the failures and things which weighed us down in the past year.  It was very touching, especially the blessing with the invocation of the Holy Spirit from Fr Chris for each of us. After that we celebrated the holy mass and we welcomed in the new year right at the moment of the communion, receiving the body of Christ and asking for His intercession and His protection.  The night ended with a splendid bonfire on which we burned the resolutions we wrote earlier, followed by singing and dancing under a lovely moon, but also some rain.

We said goodbye and we thanked everybody for a good evening.  Thank you Lord Jesus for the gift of life, for all the good moments lived throughout the year, for all the difficulties met and overcome with faith.  Thank you for your presence and with the intercession of Mary your holy mother we put into your hands our fraternity, all our community and this new year with all its growth, healing, and hopes.