Beloved Family:
“Every opportunity we have to be happy should be welcomed with all the enthusiasm we have.”
This quotation is from the lips of a man named Sammy Basso. In the words of an article appearing in Aleteia, an online Catholic magazine, Basso “was an Italian man of deep faith. Born with progeria -- a disease that meant he was a young man living in an elderly man's body, with heart trouble, skin and bone problems, and high blood pressure -- he was known for his exceptionally positive outlook on life.”
On this Gaudete Sunday weekend—taking its name from the opening antiphon for the Mass of the Third Sunday of Advent: “Gaudete in Domino semper” (“Rejoice in the Lord always”)— I believe Sammy’s testimony is a wonderful expression of the distinctive spirit of joy Christians are meant to embody. As the article continues:
Despite his condition, and all the physical suffering that accompanied it, Basso wanted to use his time on earth to study and carry out research on the disease. Although he lived a long life compared to others born with the genetic condition, he finally succumbed unexpectedly to the disease at the age of 28 during the wedding celebration of a couple of his friends. He died October 5.
Here is a translation of excerpts from the letter Sammy composed for his own funeral:
I want you to know first of all that I have lived my life happily, without exception, and I have lived it as a simple man, with the moments of joy and the difficult moments, with the desire to do well, succeeding sometimes and sometimes failing miserably. Since childhood, as you well know, progeria has deeply marked my life. Although it was but a very small part of who I am, I cannot deny that it has greatly influenced my daily life and, not least, my choices…
I do not know why and how I will leave this world, surely many will say that I have lost my battle against the disease. Don't listen! There was never any battle to fight, there was only a life to embrace as it was, with its difficulties, but still splendid, still great, neither reward nor condemnation, simply a gift given to me by God…
If in life I have been worthy, if I have carried my cross as I was asked to do, I am now with the Creator. Now I am with my God, the God of my fathers, in his indestructible House. He, our God, the only true God, is the first cause and end of all things. In the face of death nothing makes sense but Him. Therefore, although it goes without saying, for He knows everything, as I have thanked you I also want to thank Him. I owe my whole life to God, every good thing. Faith has accompanied me and I would not be what I am without my Faith. He changed my life, He picked it up, He made something extraordinary out of it, and He did it in the simplicity of my daily life...
Never grow weary, my brethren, of carrying the cross that God has assigned to each one, and do not be afraid to get help in carrying it, as Jesus was helped by Joseph of Arimathea. And never give up on a full and confident relationship with God, willingly accept His Will, for it is our duty, but do not be passive either, and make your voice heard loudly, make your will known to God, just as Jacob did, who because of his having shown himself strong was called Israel: He who struggles with God.
May the same Holy Spirit who so enlivened the heart of Sammy Basso thrive in our souls. Rejoice!
Let His Peace be with you,
Fr. Stephen
