My First Graduate

Yesterday I had the privilege of officially finishing the second study book with a student. Her name is Grecia and I "inherited" the study when she and her two boys moved from the jungle to Cuenca. It was a bittersweet closure. On one hand I will miss my weekly visits, but on the other hand it has been a complete joy and blessing to see this shy, troubled woman transform into a happy servant of Jehovah.

When I first began visiting Grecia she was so shy that she wouldn't even look up from her book. To get her to express herself was like trying to pull teeth. Some of the shyness and quiet manner could be attributed to the fact that she had difficulty in understanding my foreign accent. We both had our hurdles to overcome and I certainly needed to learn patience. I would go home after the study frustrated and discouraged thinking that nothing was seeping in. However, little by little she began to open up. She got used to my accent and way of butchering the Spanish language and I learned how to draw her out. Both attributable to Jehovah's mercy and holy spirit.

Today, you can hardly recognize Grecia. She is a dedicated servant of Jehovah, happy and I am confident will have Jehovah's continued blessings. AH! Graduation Day!

National Census

Sunday was a national census. Everyone had to stay home from 7:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. that is everyone except those taking the census. Something isn't quite right when all adults are ordered to stay indoors and only Highschool Juniors and Seniors are allowed out to take the census. Ha...

We were visited by 3 high school boys and some of the questions were rather humorous. You see we live in a condominium, rather modern and they were asking question such as "do you have an indoor toilet or do you share with the community?" "how many light bulbs are you using?" and on a personal note..."how do you consider yourself: as indigenous, mestizo, black or white?" (does human being count?) and "what are the conditions of your walls?" Hello! Look at my walls...anyway we thought it was cute and they were just doing their jobs. In fact these high school kids worked extremely hard from 5:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. without the possibility to eat lunch. We gave our guys something to eat and they really appreciated the gesture.

Monica y Dayana

There are days when you feel like you are not accomplishing much. We preach, conduct studies, some progressive, some not, but you still wonder if you are really making a difference. I was feeling this way and down in the dumps when I got a phone call from someone in our past. Her name is Dayana and we met her 13 years ago when we just arrived in the country and she was only 3 years old. She is the daughter of a sister named Monica I was assigned to finish the second book and later work with in the "Pioneer Assist" program. This assignment was a bit daunting since I couldn't speak Spanish very well, but Monica progressed and despite my limitations we became very close. Eventually, Monica and Dayana moved to the jungle to serve where there is greater need. Dayana called to inform her "spiritual parents" that she has been appointed as a regular pioneer. It was wonderful news and really cheered me up. I don't think Dayana realized how precious her gift is.

My Orchid is in Bloom

I am a lover of orchids. I can't help it they are just fascinating. So you can appreciate my delight to find out that Ecuador has over 4000 varieties including an orchid so tiny you have to look at it under a magnifying glass. It is amazing to see something so small and yet so perfectly formed.

No I don't have near as many as 4000, but the few I have are beginning to bloom and it gives me great pleasure for the 4 to 6 weeks they are in bloom to sit and look at their unique beauty. The one shown here is particularly pretty and I thought I would share its beauty with you.

CO Visit

This is Mark and I with Marco and Mayra Sigue. They are substituting in the circuit while our regular CO is recuperating. While we missed our regular CO, we had a wonderful time with Marco and Mayra and enjoyed getting to know them. They are a young couple only married for 9 months. Marco graduated from MTS and is a very capable brother at such a young age. He was also one of our instructors at the Pioneer School we attended in August. Mayra is delightful and very enthusiastic in the ministry.

We had a wonderful week with them. Really impressive was our Pioneer Meeting. There are 23 Regular Pioneers in our congregation and they represent 123 years of full time service. If you count the CO and wife it represents 155 years. Very encouraging.

All's Well

Thank you for your prayers during these last few days. Things are now pretty much back to normal. The incident has opened the way for great conversations in the ministry though. Many feel that it was just political band standing on the part of the President. I'm so happy that we don't get involved in these matters and we have a righteous and just ruler. But, it does make you feel pity for the people that have to suffer under man's domination while waiting for Christ'a rulership to take action.

Ecuador Crisis

To all our friends and family that may be hearing the news about the coup d'etat attempt on the president of Ecuador, please know that we are okay.

The police are striking because they are unhappy about a new law that is going to pass that takes away their bonuses and promotions will be every 7 years instead of 5 years. A lack of police presence has caused looting and violence, mostly in the larger cities. Cuenca pretty much closed down yesterday, schools, banks and small stores. The Feria Libre (large open market) and the bus terminal both reported assaults and other businesses were robbed. But, there is less turmoil here. The president called for a 5 day state emergency and the military at the moment is in control.

This is nothing new for us. We have seen this type of unrest many times before. But, we do ask that you please keep us in your prayers.

I will post updates as soon as I know something new.

Brave Sisters

The other day while out in the ministry with 5 other little Ecuadorian sisters, we passed two men sitting in a field. They were obviously drunk so we just casually walked by and didn't say anything. The 2 men immediately started yelling at us and got up and walked toward us. We kept on our way, but they started directing their comments to me saying they wanted to talk to the "gringa." Anyone who knows me knows that I am a big girl and pretty much tower over any Ecuadorian, male or female. So I wasn't too worried about these guys. However, my 5 little companions immediately stood between these 2 guys and me and would not let them near me. They would not budge until these guys decided to leave us alone. Tears came to my eyes as I watched these brave little sisters take action to protect me. What a show of Christian love and loyalty and a lesson on how we defend our brothers.

Norman Thinks He's a Dog

This is one of our new hatchlings, Norman. From the day he came out of his chuaguaquero (nest) he has been popular with us. He came immediately out of his cage into Mark's hand and wanted to cuddle. He loves to be petted like a dog and sometimes even falls asleep on his side in our hand with his little claws in the air.

He is the sweetist little fellow. All he needs to learn now is how to bark.

All Good Things Must Come to an End...Or Do they?

The two weeks flew by. But, what a wonderful experience! This is the second time around for Mark and I and we feel we learned more this time than the first. Sadly, I got sick during the second week and missed 2 days and Mark was ill the last day. But, besides this great disappointment I can truthfully say that it was one of the most encouraging experiences in my spiritual life.

Students of all ages and many different backgrounds attended. From the U.S., New Zealand, Norway, Spain (actually our CO is from Spain) and in Ecuador brothers from the coast, mountains and rural areas. Single, married, male, female, mothers, fathers and even a pregnant sister. Age ranges between 16 and 55+. The instructors were excellent, our Circuit Overseer and the other brother in substitute work who also graduated from MTS. They are awesome!

So although the school is ended our life as pioneers begin anew. What an excellent way to start out our service year.

This is me and Baltazara who I mentioned in my last post. Isn't she beautiful?

Pioneer School

I have to share this bit of news with you. 14 years ago when we first arrived in the country we had the privilege to preach in a small village about two hours from Cuenca called Jima. We spent the entire day preaching and at the time there were no witnesses or congregation in the area. One family (the Morocho family) with 11 children was studying and had invited us to stay after the study and eat lunch. During the study the older girls left to kill a chicken for lunch. This was strange at the time since we usually buy our meat in the grocery store. However, the lunch they prepared was literally one of the most delicious we have ever tasted. We had been walking all day, up mountains, on dirt paths and when we arrived to their home we were happy to be seated around a kitchen table with the entire family. We appreciated their hospitality so much especially since we were so tired. Remember, also that our Spanish at the time was extremely limited.

Now to the point of my story...one of the daughters that we studied with that day, Baltazara, is in our Pioneer School and she reports that the majority of the family is either baptized or studying. What a joy!

Pioneer School

Well it finally happened. Mark and I have been invited to attend Pioneer School a second time. We are so excited! The school starts next Monday right after our District Convention so we will certainly be on a spiritual high for a few weeks! At first I was a bit apprehensive that my bosses wouldn't allow me the time off to attend since I spent 6 weeks in the States. But, they have been extremely supportive and understanding. They told me no problem since it appeared to be so important to me to attend. I really appreciate their flexibility with this and grateful to Jehovah for giving us this wonderful opportunity.

Hopefully I will have some good experiences to share.

Tremor

Woke up this morning with the building shaking. A 6.9 earthquake near Ambato was felt in Cuenca. I must say we were a bit shook up and left the building as soon as the shaking stopped. No damage but was disconcerting.

ENGLISH CONVENTION IN GUAYAQUIL

Every year the Ecuadorian Branch organizes an English District Convention in Guayaquil. It is a blessing for those of us serving in a foreign field to hear the program in our native language. It is like a mini international convention in that there are so many brothers and sisters from other countries that attend. For example there were brothers from Canada, Mexico, England, Belgium, Australia, New Zealand, Germany, U.S., Austria, Peru, Japan, Korea, China, Sweden, just to name a few.

A moment that really impacted me was during one of the talks the brother asked to see a show of hands of how many in the audience were serving in some sort of full-time service...the majority raised their hands. It was wonderful.

For any of you that want to serve where the need is great and are planning to visit Ecuador, I suggest you try to attend this unique convention. It is always the last weekend in July. You won't regret it.

Nice Surprise

Next door to my work is a small office supply store that my bosses send me to from time to time to make copies. I have also used it to have my Bible Teach book and new song book ring bound. In my visits to the store I have gotten to know the owner, a nice lady, and we have had short conversations.

Thursday I was sent once again to make some copies and when I entered the store the owner is sitting there having a bible study with two sisters. I was so delighted to see them and, of course, the sisters greeted me and we talked a bit. When the lady got up and excused herself to the sister in order to make my copies, she said "you are a Witness, too? I'm going to be one soon." She told me that she used to be opposed, but when I brought my books in to be bound, she was curious and read some of them and decided to listen the next time the witnesses came around. She is loving what she is learning and and can't wait to learn more. I was so excited!

Even though it was a crazy, busy day at work, that brief moment just made my day!

It's Good to be Back in the Swing of Things

Today was my first day back in the preaching here in Ecuador. I must say it was a pleasant reminder of why we are here. Since I was a little sad to return because I miss my daughter so much, I have been a bit down. But as always, Jehovah gives us what we need.

Met the group this at 8:30 a.m. and started in the ministry immediately. In just one hour placed everything in my bookbag and the magazines and book of the sister that accompanied me. With the book started a study with a very interested gentleman and made arrangements to return on Friday. Also had a door step study with a young girl. Once again, Jehovah lovingly reminded me what I need to be doing. Just wish everyone could have this much fun.

Back in Cuenca

After 6 weeks away visiting my daughter in the beautiful state of Colorado, I am back in Cuenca. The weather is very pleasant and cool which is refreshing after being in the summer heat.

The visit was the best and Aimee and I had a lot of fun catching up and doing mother-daughter stuff. But, it was time to get back to business.

One nice experience that I want to share although it is not mine but was told by a brother where we stayed in Guayaquil on the trip back to Ecuador. His name is Luis and he told us that he was preaching and a householder said "it bothers me that you people think you have the only right religion. Can you prove to me that yours is the right one?" Luis answered by asking "I'm new here, do you know any Jehovah's Witnesses that live in this neighborhood?" He answered, "yes one lives up the hill there and another down the hill here." Luis said, "lets go see them." And they did. When they arrived to the first house, Luis knocked on the door, a brother he didn't know answered. Luis said, "Hi brother, I'm one of Jehovah's Witnesses preaching in your neighborhood." Immediately, the brother warmly invited them into the house. They visited for a few minutes and left. Then they went to the next one and the exact same thing occurred. Luis then asked the incredulous man, "do you know any Catholics around here?" "Yes, we are all Catholics." he said. Luis said, "okay let's try the same thing and go to the house of a Catholic you don't know. They did and not surprising they didn't get the same reception. They knocked at a door and a man answered. The householder said "hi, I'm your neighbor and I'm Catholic." The man replied "so?" The householder immediately saw the difference, accepted a bible study and became our brother.

I thought this was a cool experience. I hope you enjoy it.

My First Convention in the US in 14 Years!

Today I attended my first convention in the US in 14 years. I am in Colorado with my daughter Aimee and her husband Steve and the first day was fantastic! The emotion, encouragement and counsel is motivating to keep going and stay close to Jehovah. I'm really too tired to say more, but just had to write this down before bedtime. Got to rise bright and early for tomorrow's session....can't wait.

Things I Love About Ecuador and Almost Forgot

After five years of not visiting the family, I was getting so homesick and wanting a trip back to the States. I am having the time of my life and the best visit ever with Aimee. However, I have been pondering some things that I have come to love about Ecuador and now miss very much. Here is a list.

1. No matter where you are in the country, you see the brothers preaching: day and night.
2. When you walk into the Kingdom Hall, EVERYBODY greets you. It doesn't matter if it is a large or small congregation. They at least shake your hand or kiss your cheek. You feel welcomed even if you are a stranger. The rest of the world could learn a lesson from the Ecuadorian brothers.
3. The same with a party or get together. Everyone greets you AND says goodnight when you leave. Sniff.
4. The food prices. WOW, everything is expensive here.
5. Nothing is rushed. The lifestyle is much slower and relaxed.
6. I miss my afternoon siesta. I always complained that everything closes between 1:00 p.m. and 3:00 p.m. and I couldn't get anything done. Now I sort of miss the quiet time.
7. The family lunch. Everyone goes home to eat the big meal at 1:00 p.m. with the family. It doesn't matter if you work, pioneer or go to school...you go home to eat (then the siesta is necessary.)
8. Walking. We walk everywhere, to work, to the grocery, in the ministry and to return visits. I used to complain, but now I sort of miss it. hmmm.
9. The parks. Every weekend families go to the park to play, rest, sleep and visit.
10. My bible students. I really miss their faces and watching their progress.

No, I'm not ready to go back yet. I'm still enjoying myself way too much. But, I did have a moment of reflection that I thought I would share.

Seven Siblings

Our anniversary party gave us an opportunity to see many old friends, but it also gave the McCleskey clan a rare chance to all get together. Here is Mark with his six brothers and sister and Mom. Can you see the family resemblance?

Some Cake

The anniversary party was a great success! I will be posting more about it later. But, for those of you who couldn't attend the great event, I wanted to share with you a glimpse of the enormous cake that Scott, Lori and family provided. It represented many of our Texas memories. Take a look at this work of art! Thank you guys for this wonderful surprise!

I will be posting more pictures of the party once I recover from the trip. It was a wonderful party and we got to see many of our friends that we haven't seen for many years. Thank you all for your participation and loving support. A special thank you to Aimee who make it all possible and was responsible for making this an event we will always cherish.

We Made It

Thank you everyone for your kind words and well wishes. Mark and I made it to Colorado without incident. Of course, we were sleep walking for the first two days. Especially Mark since he is still weak. He is much better; the antibiotics are working. I think it has a lot to do with the fact that I am such an expert shot giver NOT! He keeps complaining about a certain area of his body that is hurting.

Anyway, know we are safe and sound and really enjoying the beautiful weather and great food. I will be so fat when I get back to Ecuador...oh well, I don't get to splurge that often.

Almost Delayed

So Mark and I are getting excited to leave Ecuador and have some vacation. We worked extra to earn a bit more money and get a few gifts for are families. And what happens? A threat of a paro. The indeginous are protesting a new law and closing the roads. Traveling to Guayaquil is iffy... then Thursday night about midnight Mark wakes up with a high fever. We take him to the doctor and he orders all type of tests that literally spent all our travel money and the doc said he needs to be in the hospital. He has Prostatitis. We told the doc that we were traveling and then he said he would insert a herperin lock so he could get interveinous injections. No, please that won't work either so we talked him into giving us injections and pills. So, every 12 hours I'm giving him injections and as long as we can keep his fever under control the doc released him to travel.

Hopefully, we will get through to Guayaquil and Mark can rest in the States.

YEAH!

I'm so excited. Aimee and Steve bought us airline tickets to visit them in the States. It has been such a long time since we have had a vacation much less time in our home country. We are flying out next Saturday and I will spend the majority of the time with Aimee in Colorado. Mark will be a week there and then fly to Texas to work. We are hoping to make enough money to catch up on the debts we incurred when I had my surgery.

We will be going very upbeat and encouraged since this week is our CO visit. It has been great and we are ready to keep going.

I'll try to post a bit while in the States, but if you don't hear from me...you know why.

El Oriente

El Oriente is the jungle here in Ecuador and since this week was a holiday (Good Friday) we had the oportunity to get out of town with some dear friends and get lost for a couple of days. The family we stayed with are the parents of our spiritual daughter Diana. Here are some pictures of our adventure.

The orchids were in bloom. These were all along the road.

Our lodgings. This is the home of the Cando family. They are the only witnesses in the area. The closest Kingdom Hall is an hour away. So, at times the meetings are held here.

Common entertainment when you have no T.V. or video games. SING!

One of the many meals we shared together.

This is Zapote. It is a delicious fruit that grows on huge trees. We harvested these in the morning for breakfast.

Chonta and Quince. Both abundant in the area. Tasty too.

This is the only way to survive the jungle. Keep cool in the river. Another option...eat lots of popscicles!

Our home away from home.

Miss Donna Nicol in Cuenca

The last few weeks have been very busy. It seems like I don't have a minute to sit down and write. So, today I took the morning off and decided to drop a line.

Many of you remember my English study Donna. Brief recap, we studied together while she was recovering from surgery in Cuenca. Once she was fit enough to travel, she went back to Salinas (on the coast) and another sister continued the study. Donna was baptized at the English convention in July.

She is visiting Cuenca and yesterday we went out in the ministry together. This was our first opportunity to preach together and I must say it was such an encouraging morning. To actually see how a student has progressed and see them in action is a blessing. Donna is a preacing machine. She has no fear and her zeal for the truth is contagious. Even though she has not mastered the language, she has no problem expressing herself and the householder appreciates her sincerity. She still uses a neck brace, but her limitations do not impede her. We walked all morning in the territory and we actually started a study. And the most encouraging part, Donna told me that in Salinas she is conducting 6 bible studies. WOW!

This was indeed a good day.

Jehovah Lovingly Teaches Us

I woke up this morning in a lousy mood. We didn't get home until late after the meeting the night before, didn't rest well and to top it off, it was raining. So needless to say, I wasn't in much of a mood to go preaching. But, I pushed on and went out anyway. However, as we were heading toward the territory, I was just complaining to Mark "why I am doing this? I do not want to talk to anyone, and anyway no one wants to listen." Mark was trying to cheer me up but I was having none of it.

We get to our first door. I told Mark to start. A lady peeks through the gate and Mark starts his presentation. She says her name is Camilla and asks us to wait until she brought the key to open the door. She opens the door and Mark continues. Then she says to step in to get off the street. Okay, we do and Mark continues. Then she says, please come in the house and sit down. Wow, this is different. Mark starts again and she listens. Then she starts to cry. I won't go into all the problems, but we ended up preaching to her for about an hour. Then she tells us that she would like to offer us some coffee and invites us to the table where she serves us coffee, cheese and bread. Then she tells us "I want to be honest with you. I never talk to Jehovah's Witnesses. I usually say I'm too busy or tell my daughters to say I'm not home. But, today something impelled me to listen and I'm glad I did. I appreciate the encouragement and hope you gave me today." She told us that her brother is a Catholic priest, but she never learned about what the bible teaches. She accepted the Teach book and agreed for us to come back again on Friday to begin the first chapter.

I hope that I learned that I shouldn't complain about the territory. Regardless of how this return visit may turn out, Jehovah lovingly corrected me and gave me precisely what I needed to keep going. I hope I remember this lesson in the future. I probably won't, but I hope so.

MY VIEW OF TEXT MESSAGES

With modern technology it seems that text messaging is becoming more and more common and used in occasions that a few years ago we would never have thought of using. Personally, I like text messages. They are a quick and easy way to keep in touch. However, there are occasions I feel that a text message is just totally inappropriate and inconsiderate. Here are my thoughts:

• Never text a get well greeting; A personal call adds that special "I really care" feel;
• Don't use texting to make a return visit unless you know the person very well and have established a close relationship;
• NEVER text someone that a loved one has died; That's just too cold and impersonal. Spend the extra $ to call personally.
• Don't text during mealtimes; make the time to talk and have meaningful conversations with your friends and loved ones.
• Don't text when at social gatherings unless it is an emergency; you give the impression you rather be with someone else.

These are just my musings and are not meant to offend anyone. If you have a problem with any of the above, just send me a text message...Ha Ha.

Update

The drought is officially over and the river levels are back to normal. They are still rationing the electricity, so everyday for 2 to 3 hours we have no power. That should be until the end of February.