Welcome Dina!

Hello!  This is Dina speaking!

But who is Dina? I will tell you by means of this Blog.  Are you interested? If so read on and you won’t regret it.

Dina Belanger was born in Quebec, Canada on the 30^th April 1897; she lived for 32 years and died in 1929.  Perhaps she seems to you to be someone far away in time? Wait, I’ll tell you more and you’ll see. Time is not important when speaking of those who influence the lives of others – even though their life was short and apparently as ordinary as yours and mine.

Imagine to yourself a married couple who, loving but anxious, are expecting their first baby for whom they have dreamed great things. It is said that during her pregnancy Dina’s mother often asked God that the son or daughter, soon to be born, would achieve something good and worthwhile and that, if it was God’s will,  he/she would, become a monk or religious sister … and so it happened!  

At last the longed-for child arrived and her parents Séraphia Matte and Octave Bélanger, both of whom were deeply Christian, arranged to baptise her on the very  day of her birth; and so she was named Maria, Margaret, Dina, Adelaide. Why so many names? It was the custom at the time – but don’t be alarmed, they always called her just Dina.

Time passed by and 17 months later a little brother was born but, sadly, only to die after three months, leaving Dina once again alone.  Well, not entirely alone, for she had her adoring parents. But nevertheless they did not allow her to become a selfish, spoilt and capricious child; on the contrary they gave her a solid roots so that later on she would be able to fly. They educated her strictly, forming her character, because, do you know although Dina was shy, discreet, cheerful, precise, orderly and capable of forgetting herself, in order to be able to put others first, she also had  a tenacious and strong willed personality, which enabled her to persevere until she achieved the goals she had set herself.  She certainly inherited this from her parents.  Her father was an accountant of upright nature, tenacious, fond of detail and a lover of order. Her mother was pious, gentle and loving, simple. 

Sometimes, however, in the face of contradictions, Dina’s wilfulness got the better of her, even manifesting itself physically by tantrums.  I’ll tell you about this next time.