By Cl. Ralston Joseph Rozario for BIS Mumbai

Don Bosco Senior Secondary School, Nerul organized its annual Students' Recollection for Classes 6 to 12 on September 7 and 9, 2026. Spread over two days, the recollection brought together 198 students in three groups, offering a prayerful pause from academics to reflect on holiness, healing and God's dream for their lives.

The recollection for senior students was held on September 7 and animated by two Salesians.

For Classes 9 and 10, comprising 60 students, Br Royston Colaco, SDB, led the session on the theme "Me, Myself and God." He presented holiness not as an optional pursuit but as the primary vocation of every Christian, rooted in Scripture from Leviticus to the New Testament. He framed his reflection around three challenges faced by young people today - Identity, Visibility and Credibility - each unpacked through a Gospel parable.

Identity was reflected upon through the Parable of the Prodigal Son. Students were reminded that before any achievement, they are first children of God, chosen and loved. Every vocation - to priesthood, religious life, marriage or dedicated single life - must flow not as an attempt to earn God's love, but as a response to a love already given.

Visibility was explored through the Parable of the Good Samaritan. Holiness, he stressed, becomes real only in everyday, unglamorous acts of love that cross boundaries and expect nothing in return. Vocation is tested and made visible in such quiet service.

Credibility was examined through the Parable of the Two Sons, contrasting a "personality ethic" built on image with a "character ethic" grounded in humility, patience and consistency. Vocations built on enthusiasm alone falter, while those rooted in character endure. As he summed up: Holiness is the seedbed of vocation. Before God asks "what will you do with your life," He first asks "will you let me tell you who you are?"

Simultaneously, for Classes 11 and 12, 48 students participated in a recollection by Br Bryce Fernandes, SDB, titled BANDAGE - Jesus, who binds up our wounds, inspired by Psalm 147:3.

Each student received a bandage as a symbol - not to hide a wound, but to cover, protect and allow healing, leaving behind a scar and a story.

The seven letters of BANDAGE named seven wounds youth carry: body image, shame, loneliness, fear of stepping forward, helplessness before another's suffering, grief, and the lie that suffering is deserved. Each wound was opened through a scene from The Chosen, a Gospel passage and silence.

The reflection culminated with Little James, who follows Jesus and still limps - a reminder that healing is not always removal. Jesus called Mary Magdalene, Matthew and Peter without waiting for them to become worthy. He binds the wound, then sends. In a moving gesture, students sealed their own bandage and offered their wounds to Jesus.

On September 9, Fr Velasi Bandya, SDB, led 90 students of Classes 6 to 8 on the theme "Realising Our Dreams." He emphasized that God has a unique dream for each person, highlighting Don Bosco's dream at age nine that shaped his mission for the young despite hardships. God's dream, he said, can be realized as a single person, married person, priest or religious - a call to be discerned prayerfully - leading to true happiness through being good human beings and serving neighbours.

The two-day recollection concluded with prayer, leaving students with a deeper sense of identity, healing and purpose.