Dear Brothers and Sisters and Friends,

Thanh-Thuong and Khoi had the opportunity to attend the 22nd Life Renewal of Marriage course in Philadelphia two weeks ago. Today they had the opportunity to sit down to reflect and share thoughts about this course.

The two of them currently live in Seattle, Washington and just celebrated their one-year wedding anniversary on September 8. On this occasion, they were blessed with a private retreat and then a Thanksgiving Mass with their families. The family was led by a Jesuit Father at a small retreat house in Portland. Then the two of them plan to go to a vacation place near Seattle, possibly via Victoria, B.C. or Friday Harbor on a weekend. But then we postponed it to arrange another time where we had more time and the price could be cheaper.

A week later, during a retreat for Lay Catechists with Father Nguyen Viet Hung, ICM in Waller, Texas, the two of them had the opportunity to meet An Huong and they introduced them to the course DSHN 22. You shared about the service and usefulness of the Red Riverine Program courses in the United States and Vietnam. The two of them loved their passion for serving this family and promised to pray about the invitation to attend the course held in the next two weeks. The day after returning to Seattle, plane tickets were booked to go to Philadelphia and "Dong Hanh's Hotel" was also arranged.

The two of them really like the service life and also like to go to many different places. Perhaps this is also what impressed them at first because they also like to serve. But is it true that what I want to serve is what I need? One day before leaving Seattle to go to Philadelphia, if it weren't for their choice but just for their feelings, they probably would have canceled the trip because of a disagreement, leading to an argument and both of them being sad. . When we overcame this difficulty, we clearly realized that we needed to pay more attention to our married life and perhaps this trip was the anniversary gift we needed.

So after spending one night on the plane, the two of them arrived in Philadelphia on Friday morning to the warm welcome of Hao Hang, aunt and uncle Phuong Chuong. In the afternoon, the course begins at St. Helena Parish. It was touching to see so many members attending, there were over 30 couples, from newly engaged to married for nearly 60 years. Most of the participants are Catholic brothers and sisters, but not limited to them. The longest married couple is nearly 60 years, but I can only remember the wedding year and the current year. I can no longer calculate mentally to know how many years my sister and I have been together. Maybe that's not important because up to now I'm still holding my sister's hand going up and down the stairs and the two of us are still renewing our married life.

The renewal course program has a total of nine topics and is shared from the practical experiences of the organizers and spiritual director. There are many brothers and sisters who have participated in helping the Red Riverine Program for many years, right from the beginning. There are also brothers and sisters who are participating members of previous courses. Each couple has different stories and valuable lessons. You come with the spirit of sharing, not teaching. After the speakers shared, the participants continued to share the topic and discuss with each other in groups in a warm and safe setting. The shared articles are truly related to married life, so necessary and so practical. Featured are the two precious gems that the two children received: Forgiveness and Dialogue.

After a year of living together, my husband and I encountered many difficulties in these two areas. The two children grew up from two very different families in their ways of sharing, conversing, living as well as their habits, customs and traditions. Before meeting each other, both children lived independently and made their own decisions, activities and time. Therefore, when living together, the two of them were not familiar with how to live and make decisions together. Parents and relatives around them often advise them to practice tolerance when encountering difficulties and disagreements. This advice is very valuable because in the first year, if we don't tolerate each other, we don't know what will happen. After attending the program, the two of them felt more and asked themselves: "If we just endure without forgiving, I wonder what life will be like? If we forgive without dialogue, will we understand each other and will life be harmonious?

All other topics are very useful for married life that young couples seem to be less prepared for or less talked about in their families before entering married life such as: God's Plan, Foundation , Sexual Life and Service in Marriage. In addition to the topics, the Liturgy sections are also the foundation of the course for couples to share, confide in each other and confide in God.

By the end of the course, all the participants, including the presenters and organizers, experienced the gifts that God gave through this Redemption Program through many different aspects and realized that they needed to share and disseminate them. variable for other couples. So, the above article is a sharing from two students, Thuong Khoi, to all of our brothers, sisters and friends about the course they just attended. And this is also an invitation and encouragement for you and your friends to create conditions, first of all, to participate in renewing your married life as a gift to each other; And hopefully then, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, you and your friends can share and contribute to organizing the Redemption Program in many different places, perhaps right in your local area.

To end, we would like to share a poem and a cherished concept that we gained from this class 22.

Verse:

“A hundred years, just one love,

Thousands of years will still be this image!”

Mind:

“Living the present moment full of love.”