Hermano Ventana

   I have often fancied my last name Windham, as an elegant, regal name. I imagine that there was at one time some royal rich dude-The Earl of Windham perhaps- who left England and sailed for the new world; landing in Alabama where many generations later my father would be born. By this reasoning I further imagined that back in merry old England there is a Windham Estate, long abandoned and waiting for an heir (me) to claim it. My visions of  "Windham Royalty" have been reduced these past few weeks.

   It seems as though when we have introduced ourselves to the Spanish brothers rather than hearing "Windham"(say wind-um- the h is silent) they were hearing "window". So for a while now I have been "Brother Window". ( I am fairly sure there is no window estate) Things reached a crescendo on Tuesday morning during the meeting for field service. Hermano Blanca was organizing car groups and he asked my name saying he had forgotten. I reminded him of my last name and he said : "Hermano Window". I kindly corrected him "Wind-um" and added "no ventana", ventana being the Spanish word for window. All of a sudden there were several friends saying out loud : "ooh, wind-um; no window, no ventana". This went on for about a full minute during the meeting for service. Afterwards, several friends came over and were like : "wind-um, si?" Needless to say at this point I'm thinking that I should have kept quiet and continued as Ventana, but things calmed down and now I can rightfully reclaim "my estate".

   Our first month in the new congregation is coming to an end and NO we still can't speak Spanish(well). One of the big frustrations has been giving what I call baby comments at the meeting-you know like "Jehova"-and feeling quite proud to have pronounced it properly. The experience is humbling but the friends here are super supportive. Many are immigrants to the U.S. and had to learn English as adults. They have been relating their personal experiences to us and encouraging us to stick with it and reassuring us that this can be done. One piece of advice that has been constant is that they all said watching tv and listening to radio helped them learn English. My Spanish hasn't improved much but I am up to date on Muchachitas Como Tu,  Caso Cerrado, and El Gordo y La Flaca  :-)

   We have had some ups and downs during this time. As mentioned comments are limited. The meetings are a challenge at times. It is quite frustrating to sit through a whole talk and not understand anything that was said. There are those moments though when you listen to the speaker and it just clicks! For now they are few but as the weeks have passed are getting more frequent. I am also appreciating that the way that different friends speak can have an affect on your understanding. We have a multitude of countries represented in the congregation and each has a slightly different accent and some different terms they may use that is unique to them. Then there are the ones I call The Fast Talkers. Imagine the scene- an auctioneer at the podium "five do I hear ten? Sold to the man in green!"-  Yeah now try to follow as someone speaks that quickly and you get the idea. This has stressed to us the importance of our pace and pronunciation- we want to be easily understood so even from now we practice speaking clearly and correctly.

  We have enjoyed the ministry here though it is a little different from the English congregation. The number of homes that are Spanish speaking are few in comparison to English. You may only have a house or two on a street to call on so the territory is much more vast than we are used to. Street witnessing is a big part as well. Last Saturday morning there was a group of 20 who went out at 7am. I joined them and was promptly thrown into the fire so to speak. I assumed someone would help me but no, the brother said "we go one at a time, you can do talk to those guys there". So here I wander over to the truck with the landscaping crew and first words out of my mouth? "Do you guys speak Spanish?" Duh! Yes they do-you don't- just offer them the magazines-I said to myself! I prayed all the way over to the truck and managed not to fumble the brief presentation thanks to Jehovah.

   All things considered this has been a good start to our time here. We are receiving a lot of help from the friends. Many know of our plans and have had only positive words of encouragement for us. We are enjoying the warmth of the Spanish culture as well. The friends are very welcoming. It is considered good manners to speak to everyone at the meetings, say a greeting, hugs and kisses, shake hands, etc. It makes it hard to leave quickly  but you can never get enough love you know. 

   Well, that's just a brief update from our first month. Jehovah willing we will enjoy many more as we press on to our goal of serving as needgreaters in the near future. :-)   

All Good Things Must Come To An End(?)

   I have been a bit philosophical lately, thinking about commonly accepted ideas and looking at them critically, challenging them if you will. Take for example the above statement. Most people are familiar with it, perhaps even uttering it once or twice. Why though do we accept it? Who was the first person to say this and why? Were they having a particularly tough day at the time, indeed what led them to feel that if something is good it won't last?
   I began to think about this after our recent district convention (no, I didn't take any pamphlets from the protesters outside). As mentioned earlier our family has recently changed to the Spanish congregation. Our recent convention was the last time we would be with the friends from Lake Mary for a while. So I guess you might say we were back on the emotional roller-coaster again: joyous to sad and back to joyous again.
   We thoroughly enjoyed the convention program. Having our convention in September, we had heard bits and pieces from about it from others in the months prior. Finally getting to go, we were not disappointed! What a great program! Reminders about seeking the kingdom first, our conduct as subjects of the kingdom, the final talk on Sunday and the dramas, oh the dramas! Yes, I am not ashamed to say my eyes got a little moist during Saturday's drama. We left feeling refreshed and spiritually well fed.
   So why the sadness? I guess the realization that this was truly "the end". We were no longer part of Lake Mary congregation, time to move forward. To make matters worse, the Sunday drama was performed by a number of friends from Lake Mary congregation. So there we are sitting in the audience watching friends we have known for years perform and thinking "we not going to see so-and-so". At the end of the convention, we sat in the car in the parking lot, not wanting to leave-it was a very quiet ride home.
   Things picked up midweek as we started attending the Spanish meetings though. As expected we were warmly welcomed and we "jumped right in" going in service with all our post it notes, dictionary and index cards with our presentation; was even able to make a comment during Sunday WT study. We have found a lot of encouragement from several friends in the congregation who also are not native Spanish speakers but have made the transition. It gives me hope, which right now is something I need. Nothing quite as frustrating as sitting through a talk and missing major portions of it, or everyone laughing at something funny that was said, but not understanding what's going on. Oh well, I guess Rome was not built in a day- hey wait a minute- isn't that another one of those "wise sayings"!
   So, after a week of emotional ups and downs and a new start in a new congregation what conclusion have I drawn? "All good things must come to an end". Whomever was the first person to utter this statement must not have been a servant of Jehovah. Why do I say that? Well I take our experience. Yes, we are missing our friends in Lake Mary already. We had a "good thing" there for ten years now. However we are now in Longwood Spanish and it is as if we have already been there for years, it's very familiar in a good way. I think also about the joys that await us when we finally get to DR, good things as well. Not to mention our hope as servants of Jehovah: life eternal in a paradise serving our loving heavenly father surrounded by brothers and sisters who love us. Everlasting life- now that's a good thing that will never end! "All good things must come to an end". Really, I think not.

Now What?

   We've been at home for a little over two weeks now and are back into the routine of work, meetings, service, etc. During this time we've experienced a wide range of thoughts and emotions; joyful reflection on our visit to DR and happy reunions with friends here in Florida, sadness at the possibility of change in the future. We have had numerous family discussions about our future and have finally reached a decision.

The Old Shoes

    They're well worn, broken in and fit you just right. You've replaced the laces, taken them to the shoe repair and had them resoled countless times. They get scuffed and dirty but it's nothing a little polish can't fix. Even when you buy a new pair, you still hang on to these because; well,  they're comfortable. You know the ones I'm talking about, right?

Home Sweet Home

   We're back at home! HOT SHOWERS! ICE COLD BEVERAGES! NO MORE CUBITOS!! Oh the joy that simple things can bring. One thing I did not miss was the early morning alarm to get up for work. I think I did good though as I only hit the snooze button one time.

I'm Speechless (there's a first time for everything!)

   We made it back to Juan Dolio safe and sound on Friday evening. As I arrived here I experienced an odd  mix of emotions. I was happy to be back in Juan Dolio and see some of the friends we had made earlier. Happy to be in what has become a familiar surrounding. At the same time I was frustrated by the difficulty in travelling here (6 hours on a bus?!!) and sad that in two days I would be heading home.
   Upon our return to Juan Dolio we decided to rent a beachfront apartment for the weekend and take in some sand and sun. We went to the colmado to pick up some supplies and while we are in the store we hear a loud voice call out with excitement "NO WAY!". It was Sara, the sister who was our neighbor from the townhouse. She invited us to a fiesta being held at the house that night. Sara had held two of our suitcases for us while we were on the road so we figured we would just pop in, get our stuff, say hello and be able to leave quick.
   When we got there however, it was like being around lifelong friends. Some brothers were playing dominoes and invited me to play. I never knew how to but no problem, they'll teach me! Suzanne and Danielle were talking to some of the sisters and man time flew by. The evening was special because the party was for a brother and sister in the Kreyol congregation, it was their anniversary. They were married a year ago in order to qualify for baptism,and didn't have a party or honeymoon. Now the friends were helping them, and their newborn son to commemorate the occasion. We again experienced the joy and hospitality of the brotherhood and were made to feel at home.
   When it came time for us to go, we called a cab to take us to the apartment. We truly felt the love from these friends and it was hard to leave. All of them: Sara, Janai, Eloise, Laurence, and Nancy came to the gate and kept hugging us! We all exchanged goodbyes and promised to keep in touch with one another. As the cab drove away, they stood outside, waving as we drove off. We felt like royalty again thanks to my brothers and sisters.
   So, I am speechless now. Just think-three weeks ago I didn't even know these people and now I am truly saddened that I will not be seeing them again for a long time. I feel as though I am leaving my family behind. I also am sad at the prospect of leaving DR, but am eager to be back in Lake Mary, to see the friends at home there. Right now I am experiencing a confusing swirl of emotions. A happy/sad/joy/blues kind of mix I guess. I wonder, if this is how I feel now, what will happen if we decide to do this long term? Well, maybe this is a good problem to have- to experience too much brotherly love :-)

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   On Sunday we will be back in Florida and hope to catch up with you friends there. We have been away from Lake Mary English Congregation for well over a month now. It will be a bit different walking into the hall on Tuesday but we really do miss you guys! Hope to see everyone then!

Serving With Santiago English Congregation

   This last leg of our journey has been a welcome treat. After two weeks of meetings in Spanish and Kreyol, it is nice to be able to understand everything that is said from the platform and give "grown up" comments. Adding to the enjoyment of our time here has been a visit by the district overseer to the congregation as well. Interestingly, the D.O. for the congregation was a Spanish speaking brother so all of his talks were translated. Nonetheless, his manner of speaking and his animation made the points easily understood.

   Going out in the ministry here is very reminiscent of service with the Spanish congregation back home. We worked in apartment buildings and for each building there is a list of apartments where English speakers were found during a prior census work. We go to these doors and preach. At times there may be no information about who lives in a particular apartment so these doors we would knock on, and ask if there are any English speakers in the home. As you can imagine many times people move about so the home where an English speaker once lived may now be occupied by Spanish speakers. There is much work to do here in Santiago English as the territory consists of preaching in the entire city.Yet with these challenges and others our brothers and sisters here are hard at work, trying to reach as many as they can with the message of good news.

   Suzanne and I had a happy encounter at the Kingdom Hall this week. To me, it was encouraging and really shows what a small world it is at times. A number of years ago when we were newly married we spent a few years living in Raleigh, North Carolina. Serving in the congregation with us was a Brother named Daniel Sogeke. Well, of all the congregations, in all the cities, in all of the countries in the world who should be here in Santiago with us? You guessed it! We got to catch up a bit with him and meet his wife as well. They have been busy declaring the good news abroad and are now looking forward to serving here in DR. Man, it's so encouraging to see folks from years ago still faithfully plugging away!

   So that's what's going on here in lovely Santiago, Dominican Republic. We head back to Juan Dolio in the morning and will make our way home this weekend :-(  Back to work on Monday  :-( :-(   Bright side of things: We can start working to save money for our next trip back here to the DR :-)