“Try not to die,” Pope Francis told his cousin, whom he will visit for her 90th birthday.

Pope Francis will travel Nov. 19 to the northwestern Italian city of Asti to attend the 90th birthday of Carla Rabezzana, his cousin, and meet relatives on a private visit. It should be noted that there, in the region of Piedmont, lived the father and paternal grandparents of the Supreme Pontiff.The announcement, according to Vatican News, was made last Wednesday by the bishop of the diocese of Asti, Marco Prastaro, who also announced that Francis will remain in the Piedmontese city until Sunday 20, day in which from 11 in the morning – Italy time – he will preside at Mass in the cathedral of Asti and He will meet the community from which his paternal family comes.” We are very happy with this news,” said Monsignor Prastaro, according to the online newspaper ATnews. He added: “We will do everything possible to welcome Pope Francis while also respecting the wishes of the private part of the visit.” In view of this long-awaited visit, a secondment is working to define all the organizational details of the visit, which must be shared and approved by the Prefecture of the Pontifical Household.Francis’ return to the Vatican is scheduled for Sunday afternoon, after lunch. Although he is a few months away from turning 10 years since he became Pope Francis, for Carla Rabezzana her cousin is still “Giorgio”, and in a recent interview with a local media he could not hide the happiness that the future reunion produces for him. When he called me two months ago to say he was coming to celebrate my birthday, I was thrilled. He asked me to keep it secret. That’s what I did. After respecting the request of the Supreme Pontiff and having the visit to Asti confirmed from the Vatican, the lady who resides in an apartment in the town of Portacomaro was finally able to confirm the news and provided details of her relationship with “Giorgio.” We have known each other forever, our families are originally from Portacomaro. When I lived in Turin, Giorgio, I have always called him that, came to stay with me because I had an extra room in the house. And so we maintained that relationship. We always joke. When he told me he was coming to celebrate my 90th birthday, I replied that it made my heart beat. And in response he told me: try not to die. Then we laughed,” she recalled excitedly. When asked how she learned of the Pope’s visit for her birthday, Carla confirmed that he himself called her and told her his idea. Although he admitted: “But I didn’t expect such a good gift. I’m happy to see it. We were supposed to meet two years ago, everything was ready. Then the pandemic broke out. But before I was used to seeing him every year.” During another part of the report, Carla said that her relationship with the Pope has lasted for several years. “He still lived in Argentina, he went to Frankfurt to study, but as soon as he could he spent a few days with me in Turin. He stopped before returning to Argentina. We had a goldsmith workshop, I worked with my husband. And Giorgio, when he arrived in Piedmont, was our guest. We never stop feeling,” he said. Meanwhile, Carla appreciated that her cousin “Giorgio” has not modified his personality or his ways since he is the head of the Vatican. “It’s always been like that, even now that he’s pope: joking, spontaneous. A smart man who loves to be around people. He remained a humble person, I can tell you,” he concluded. I’m going to scold him because I didn’t want to be celebrated. But then I’ll hug him. I’m happy to see him,” she reiterated about what she plans to say to Francis when she sees him after so long.

Original source in Spanish

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