In a society that is becoming even more conscious of the lack of faith and of the fact that Christian values are being placed aside, the lifestory of a saint of our time is not something often heard about, let alone the life of a saint who hailed from a family that ended up with one parent. Indeed, the 68 year old Margaret Occhiena has a very interesting story to share with us.

At 24 she married Francis Bosco, a widowed man with a son, Antonio from his previous wife who died young. The marriage between Margaret and Francis was a a very happy one and Giuseppe and Giovanni were the fruit of their love. Alas Margaret did not enjoy her husband by her side for long as he died prematurely, even before little Giovanni was two years old. Margaret ended up in dire straits and she had to take care of her family all by herself with the eventual support of her children. Giovanni was always bright and wished to become a priest.

However his step-brother Antonio couldn't bear the fact that Giuseppe and himself worked tirelessly in the fields while Giovanni studied comfortably at home. Serious squabbling between Antonio and Giovanni was freqent enough to lead Margaret to send Giovanni to her neighbours. Time passed, myriad difficulties were overcome by the Bosco family thanks to God's intervention and the support of one another and eventually Giovanni was ordained a priest - Fr. Giovanni Bosco. Indeed he owed everything to his mother. The upbringing she gave him made him the Don Bosco we know today. Without Mother Margaret, Don Bosco would not be the holy priest we know today.

This year happens to be the bicentenary since the birth of Saint Jojn Bosco and the need to make known the life of Don Bosco's mum led and inspired Lino Ferris, a veteran ofthe Salesian Actors, to write and share with us this story, extraordinary in its ordinariness, by a theatrical presentation called 'Għalik Ma', 'For you Mum' with the collaboration of the Salesian Actors and the youths of the Salesian Oratory in Sliema that have been at it since July. Come and experience this story with us by coming to see it between the 23rd - 25th October 2015 at Teatru Salesjan. We look forward to have you. Booking is now open from www.ticketline.com.mt  or from Teatru Salesjan every evening or by the door before each performance.