Smiles, wonder, silence. These are the first images that come to my mind when I close my eyes and think back to the past few days spent sailing, from April 28 to May 4, in the company of perfectly lovable strangers and an extraordinary spiritual guide.

“Spiritual exercises on a sailing boat to find… the right course!”—this was the title of the experience I was fortunate enough to take part in, an experience that allowed me to restore meaning and direction to my path. Departing from the port of Marsala (TP), eighteen other adventurers and I set sail on two sailing boats toward the three main islands of the Egadi archipelago, rediscovering a natural heritage almost entirely untouched by humankind.

We navigated, however, using an unconventional and completely personalized map; in fact, on a whimsical pirate-style map given to us before the journey began, each of us marked our own starting point and the destination we wished to reach, tracing the path we would take to get there.

With the guidance of Francesco Cavallini, a Jesuit priest and our spiritual leader, and Tommaso, his faithful assistant, we retraced the stages of our lives, rediscovering inner treasures we had long forgotten. Reading passages from the Bible, reflecting on Tommaso and Francesco’s insights, and engaging in meditations led by Francesco at sunset in the silent vastness of the sea brought us to an encounter with God and a deeper understanding of ourselves. We reflected on the meaning of our lives, questioned whether they were fruitful—whether they were generating goodness—and whether they were unfolding as we had hoped.

We asked ourselves what fears had, at times, influenced our choices, preventing us from making meaningful decisions and, in many cases, paralyzing us. We also pondered the courage we sometimes lacked to break away from the past. Francesco reassured us, however, asking us to imagine ourselves as clay in the hands of a potter—it is God who shapes our existence, who mends us when we break, because our fractures, just like those of a shattered vase, become opportunities to be reshaped.

Life is our first and truest talent, and to understand whether we are making the most of it, we can rely on two very clear signs: joy and fulfillment. We must follow our feelings of happiness because, on the other hand, if we give in to fear, it will take hold of us and prevent us from moving forward. Each of us is called to build a life that is beautiful and authentic, and for that reason, we cannot keep consuming the same fruits that have harmed us. We should learn to change the situations that do not resonate with us… we should learn to dare.

We discovered all of this while sailing on calm waters, carried by a surprisingly pleasant wind that filled our sails and propelled our boat forward, keeping us in constant connection with true beauty. Even dolphins came to visit us! I am immensely grateful to the organizers of this experience, Lorenzo and Annachiara, to the skippers, including the wise Luca, to Francesco, Tommaso, and to all those who bravely opened themselves up and lovingly shared their life experiences with others…

I believe that now we all have new and wonderful reasons to dedicate ourselves to making our lives beautiful and meaningful.