Giacomo, slow down, stop what you are doing.
Come down and give me a hand.
Your brother wants to go to Sweden,
and you are always painting pictures.
We need you to help out.
You have to help. That’s all there is to it.
I don’t want to hear any complaints. I’m waiting for you.
Understood?
When he chose artistic courses at school
and now is studying at the academy of Fine Arts, learning how to paint,
it was something that my wife and I, when we first held him in our arms,
could never have imagined.
Everything has worked out differently than we dreamed.
And if I don’t like the career he chooses?
Things are going well.
Where?
Here, in our business.
Listen, I’m graduating in November,
but afterwards I don’t want to do my specialization here in Italy.
Not it Italy?
No, not in Italy.
Well... I hadn’t expected this.
We had thought,
especially my wife,
that our first child would study law, medicine,
one of the traditional fields,
or commerce, which is my wife’s profession.
And then when he told us
that he wanted to do simultaneous translations,
we found it hard to understand his choice.
Normally, we draw up a plan,
a plan for our children’s lives.
Perhaps it’s only natural.
But when there’s a gap between what you imagined
and what actually happens,
it’s hard, and makes a father suffer.
I like to learn new things,
things I never knew about before.
That’s why I decided to major in languages.
When I told my parents that I wanted to study painting,
at first my mother didn’t like the idea,
since she thought, along with my professor,
that my talents pointed more towards architecture.
But now my real passion is painting,
which gives me much more freedom than architecture.
I and Giacomo are closely united
and I’m very happy that he’s doing what he likes.
When young people have begun to decide on
the path they want to take in life,
perhaps it is good then to consider,
to find the strength, the courage,
to set aside our own expectations,
our own plans for them,
and leave them free to walk
and fly with their own wings.
You want what is good for your children.
Give them freedom
You don’t love your children if you don’t love their freedom.
So you should be happy to see them
traveling on the path they have freely chosen
with God’s grace.
So Giuseppe
has finally decided on the specialization he wants to pursue.
He wants to
leave Rome and
go to Sweden.
Sweden?
Sweden.
Listen,
our other son, the painter, doesn’t help me at all,
not at all...
He says he’s going to help but he doesn’t.
And if Giuseppe leaves and he doesn’t help out, what are we going to do?
Yes, he has to help me.
It’s a problem for us because
he won’t be able to help the family
being so far away.
It’s expensive,
but given what he has chosen it makes sense.
So, what should we do; do we help him or not?
Yes, let’s help him.
OK, then we have to speak with him, with them.
The greatest gift we can give our children
is the gift of freedom,
the possibility of discovering themselves
and developing their talents
in the way they choose.
So Giacomo,
your brother has decided to do his specialization in Sweden,
as you know.
Yes, he told me.
Good. Now the problem is that
someone has to replace him in the job he was doing here.
I’ll do it.
Thanks.
Giacomo?
Yes, yes...
you really need to do this, otherwise...
Yes, and you can’t neglect your studies at the university
and your classes. Your brother has managed to do this, and so can you.
OK.
In families there is something shared,
a similarity, something given by one’s blood.
But in the rest, freedom.
Personal freedom and personal responsibility.
I think I’ve always been very free
and we’ve had great freedom at home.
My parents taught me the importance of thinking and reasoning freely.
This importance of thinking freely,
also with respect to one’s own life and work.
At the beginning, all parents
want to see themselves in their own child,
but after some time has gone by they realize they have to leave their children free,
since they have different personalities and interests than theirs.
I see that you are happy in doing this.
I see a different light in your eyes
when you dedicate yourself to these things.
This is what all of us parents want
in our relationship with our children.
We want to see them happy.
I’ve learned that it was good that our son chose his future, and that we didn’t do this.
Parents need to establish a dialogue with their children,
getting to know each child better.
This has also helped me to respect their decisions