Studies at a Work Camp

As I walked out of my front door to join the group that had arrived to help with Kingdom Hall cleaning, one brother looked at me and said "Wow, you got some sun!"

I was surprised to hear this seeing as we're in, you know, Guyana. So to be in the sun for so long that people readily notice it is quite a feat. Allow me to explain how this happened....

Our village is pretty large, distance wise. If you had a car you could traverse it pretty quick, but on foot it takes between 45 minutes to an hour to walk from one end to the next. While this makes for pleasant scenery and low stress field service days, it is quite a bear if there's somewhere you need to be in a hurry. Which is why on Thursday, while we were working the furthest reaches of our territory, we happened across a group of men who work at a lumber camp.

WAY far out...

Kojo and I began talking to one of them (who is actually one of Kojo's Bible studies whom he has difficulty finding), but soon another man exclaimed "Why does he get to hear you preach but we don't?!" We explained we were there talking with the one man, Wazim, and we assumed the others were busy. He replied "Sometime you must come here and talk with all of us. Just 15 minutes or so, so we can hear your message." Obviously we were intrigued by this invitation, so he points across to a man repairing a tractor engine and says "Talk with he. He be Boss Man." We cross to meet Boss Man. Turns out he's not an Amerindian as most around Orealla are. Rather he comes from the coast and was assigned to oversee the logging operations going on outside the village. He expressed though his disappointment with conditions in the camp. "When I first came, when Sunday came the men would just sit around and drink rum during their break. I asked them why they weren't at church and they said all the churches were too far away. So we've been trying to find some way to worship God when we can't ever get to a church." See, these men come out to the camps and work for long stretches of time... weeks or months on end, from before sunrise until after sunset. After that stretch of time, they return home to their families and stay with them for a few weeks or months, and then back to work again. Boss Man then said the same thing the other man said. "Why don't you come sometime and spend half hour, 45 minutes talking to us about the Bible? We'll take a break from our work, you talk and preach to us and we'll listen. When you finish, we'll go back to work."

Amazing invitation, right? So we scheduled to come today, Saturday, at 1 PM. The newly arrived Dustin and I, along with a young local brother named David Herman, agreed we'd meet at the Kingdom at about 12:30, gather some literature, and head out with 30 minutes worth of material to talk about. So after a morning in service and a quick lunch, we headed out. We expected just the two men to be there, but there were eight in total who gathered around to listen.

Since Dustin is giving the public talk tomorrow, I mostly talked for our allotted 45 minutes. Primary emphasis for the talk was God's Kingdom. That's always an effective avenue since the Lord's Prayer is taught in nearly every school in Guyana, but of course most have never thought about what "thy Kingdom come" means, and even fewer have been able to find an answer to that. So we talked at length about what God's Kingdom is, how we know it's an actual government that will rule over the Earth, and how it can accomplish what no earthly government could ever hope to. After that was finished, we talked about how God's Kingdom is actually part of the theme of the Bible. Since the idea of the Bible having an overall theme was new to them, we discussed Appendix B1 in the New World Translation, "The Message of the Bible". I really really love that appendix, because between discussing that and what the Kingdom is, that clearly lays out the reason for all the bad things we see in the world, and how God will easily fix everything that's gone wrong.

After the whole thing had been analyzed and explained, Boss Man looked at me and said "Thank you for all that. But, you never told us how we can be in that Kingdom."

Since I had just talked for a solid half hour about a wide range of topics, at that point Dustin jumped in with John 17:3, showing how coming to know God and Jesus were the most important things to do. He then told them about his own experiences with learning the truth and how he came to appreciate the value of learning about God and how he's benefited from it. As evidence of how strongly he feels about people learning the truth, he also told them how neither of us are paid for what we do, how instead we have to go to the U.S. and work and save money just so we can afford to come and teach people these things.

After he'd finished, one worker spoke up and said "So can you come back here later and talk with us for an hour again?"
Dustin replied "Sure, when would you like us to come?"
"Tomorrow!"
He told them we could possibly, but we have our meeting the next morning at the Kingdom Hall, so the man asked "Okay then, so where is your Kingdom Hall?" We explained how to get there from the work camp, at which Boss Man told us he'd give the men tomorrow morning off so he and they could all come and attend our meeting.

Before leaving we offered to share literature that they could read in their spare time, which wound up being 6 books, 12 magazines, and 12 brochures.

On the way back David asked if he could come with us again next time and share a video with them, which we hadn't even thought of until he mentioned it. Sounds like a fantastic idea.

Originally we'd planned on being there at 1 and talking for half an hour. Simple enough right? By time we got back to the hall it was nearly 3:30. Time flies. After we got back the group arrived for Kingdom Hall cleaning, hence prompting the statement at the beginning ("Wow, you got some sun!"). The whole 2 1/2 hours we were out we'd been standing in one spot, in direct sunlight, and never even realized it. That's how great this afternoon was. Therefore, after telling them what had led to my skin being the same shade of red as my dad's hair used to be, we asked if they'd like to come with us next time too. We may have enough Witnesses next time to conduct individual Bible studies with each man out there.


So, three other quick things before I finish. One of course is the fact that (in case you hadn't guessed) Dustin is back. Last time he was here Kojo was out at the Bible School for Single Brothers in Trinidad, so they hadn't gotten a chance to meet each other. This time we're all together, so we now have three elders plus a ministerial servant. That's without exaggeration the best Orealla has ever had in its time as a congregation. Of course, Kojo and Dustin are getting along great as well. Nary a day had gone by before their collective work ethic fired up and home improvement projects began popping up everywhere.

Dustin and Kojo, expertly applying years of skill and learning, while I helpfully stand far away taking pictures of stuff.

The second thing is totally random and unrelated. See, we can't really bake things seeing as all we have is a stove top. This tends to limit somewhat the things one can make. Tired of this lack of baked goods, Kojo got us this...

An oven designed for putting on a stove top. And it works great. Just look at these beauties...

Yes mom, I made these.

We're getting all sorts of cool stuff these days.


Speaking of cool stuff, I'm sure you're all curious how the projector worked out for the JW Broadcast viewing at the Kingdom Hall. The answer is it went beautifully! Last Saturday after hall cleaning we had everyone meet (and bring food. Hence the delicious rolls in the above pic). First we watched the December broadcast video, then had a brief break for dinner, then watched the recent January video. After it was all done, the brothers asked "Do we have any more videos we can watch??"

Thus, we watched Annual Meeting highlights, the most recent updates on Warwick construction, and the Caleb & Sophia video on preparing our comments. I love how even in areas where Internet isn't available, we're still able to ensure the entire congregation benefits from jw.org and all it offers.

And my final point. If you're planning on doing a trip similar to this, whether it be for vacation, need-greater work, anything.... always make sure to give your laptop a proper tune-up before embarking on your journey. Otherwise you may find yourself deep in the South American jungle having to do this....

... with no instructions or intelligent person to help you. On the upside, it works now, and is the means by which I'm typing this right now.

And no, it doesn't make toast now.

Guess What Weeeee Got?

Alrighty, so last blog update I told you I was beginning my vacation which was going to involve quite a bit of traveling. I've now returned and am back home, therefore it is time to inform you of what all I got to do. But first, I'm going to gloat. We've got this....

In case the picture is too small (have to resize them all really dinky so they'll load) what you're seeing here is a projector putting the January JW Broadcast up on our Kingdom Hall wall in super large hi-def. Obviously we're very excited about this, seeing as the last time we watched the Broadcast video it looked like this....

This time next year we'll have solid gold toilet seats. Just watch.


Anyway, my vacation. I went out to Mahaicony, a congregation neighboring my old congregation, Hopetown (for older Mahaicony stories, see here: http://nutso42.blogspot.com/2010/10/mahaicony-trip.html ). Frequent readers will possibly remember Melanie Wilson who spent quite some time in Orealla last year. Fortunately for me, she's a fellow Ohio expatriate, so I was able to weasel some luggage space out of her and got some stuff brought down for me. This time around she's been assigned to the Mahaicony congregation so I was able to make a few days of the trip. Stayed with a need-greater couple named Something and Something Gray (Chris and Jessica? Matt and Jennifer? Okay, so I guess I didn't talk with them enough). Also got to see their newly redesigned Kingdom Hall, which it just occurred to me is something that would've been really nice to have gotten a picture of. Ugh, one of these days I'll learn.

After my three days in Mahaicony, going in service, and doing battle with the Gray's cat, I then packed up and headed over to (where else?) Brighton to stay by Tom and Michelle Sanches for two days. Not only is it nice to be able to spend a few days with super spiritual and happy and positive and encouraging long-term full time servants, Michelle will usually let me borrow a book or two, which never fails to give me something to do on the seven hour boat ride home.

So I arrived back home at around 3 AM this morning, and I'm already awake! Need to make lunch soon.

Speaking of, the vegetables and fruits here are ridiculous. For instance, the pineapple is so sweet and ripe and awesome that you don't cut around the core. You just eat it with everything else. I had no idea that was even possible.

Additionally, just look at the okra!

That isn't overripe or spoiled or hard or anything like that. Perfect and ready for eating. Which is amazing for an okra addict like me. Only needing to chop up four okra for my whole meal? Incredible.

Okay, and that's it for this time. Next time around should be updates on Dustin's arrival, how the projector is working out (i.e. did we break it already?) and possibly some brothers and sisters from Mahaicony coming to visit after some advertising from me while I was there. We'll see.

Rainy Season!

So much has gone on these last three weeks. So, so much. Where to begin? Okay, let's tackle this in chronological order.

Due to Guyana's almost constant moderate temperature, seasons are mostly meaningless. Winter, summer, spring, that other one, nobody cares. The way seasons are distinguished is rather through how much rain we get. And what do you know, just three weeks ago we entered into the rainiest of them all. Charlie and I realized rainy season had begun while we were on the literally furthest edge of our territory. Which, might I remind you, is all walking. We quickly took shelter in some very small collapsing shed, but it was pointless. In the amount of time it took us to reach it, we were already so wet that standing in the rain would make no difference...

Okay, so you can't actually SEE the rain, but it's there. Promise.

Seeing as Charlie's time with us was nearing its conclusion, there was (as is typical for Orealla) a bit of a sendoff. This time around it involved mostly a big day of swimming in the Courantyne river, followed by a series of games designed for playing on the sand. I say designed for playing on the sand because if you played them on any other surface they'd be far too painful. Games such as "Dog & Bone"....

Yikes.

YIKES!!!

Shortly afterward, Charlie departed. With all his bones still intact. A while after this period our two elders left for a brief period to attend Elder School, which obviously increased by workload considerably (hence about three weeks with no blog update, sorry). Fortunately they did arrange for another elder from an English-speaking congregation in Suriname to come by for one of those weeks, so that greatly helped.

Also during this period a group of brothers and sisters from Skeldon came by for vacation. In case I've neglected to talk about Skeldon, it's a Kingdom Hall on the coast of Guyana and is the nearest Guyana congregation to us (there is one congregation even closer to us, but that's in Suriname. Read about it here: http://nutso42.blogspot.com/2014/02/road-to-apoera.html ). Skeldon is quite a busy place, with lots of businesses popping up and therefore lots of hustle and bustle, traffic, etc, so Orealla is a popular place for them to come on vacation. Orealla has no cars, no buses, limited electricity, and is nestled next to a very large and very clean river. So peace is something we always have in abundant supply.

Mmmmmmm....

So a past week saw a group of six from Skeldon come by to enjoy our river, beaches, and ridiculous quantity of fruit that just grows everywhere. Now seeing as it's an Indian reservation, finding accommodations for large groups can be difficult, so typically people just stay at my house and I leave for a bit. This visit I was able to crash with one of our elders for a few days in his spare bedroom. Unfortunately after those few days, his parents came in for a visit so I had to vacate that spot. However I should note.... possessing a hammock gives you great freedom respecting where you sleep, so in this instance I was able to just hang my hammock up on his front porch and sleep in the river breeze. I think I liked that even better than staying in his spare bedroom.

So essentially, I got kicked out of the room I stayed in after I got kicked out of my room. No complaints though.

(Also, fun side point: the tribe of Amerinidans that reside in Orealla - Arawak - are the ones typically given credit for inventing the hammock, and even the word 'hammock' is an Arawak word)

Now then, since 2015 has arrived there's several things to see about getting. One of course is putting up our lovely new yeartext....

Out with the old....

.... in with the new!

Also need to get the 2015 Yearbook and Daily Texts off jw.org. We haven't received the paper copies yet so we grab the pdf and distribute it to everyone with a laptop, computer, or smartphone. We also have a blind brother that we try to get the mp3 for everything so we can put it on a disc and give to him so he can listen to the new books on his CD player.

So at this point I'm back on the coast getting the JW Broadcast for January (along with all the aforementioned things). Our elders have returned from school which gives me a few days of vacation. Also coming up soon will be the return of Dustin Reynolds who stayed by me last year.

So, lots of good stuff coming! I shall do my best to keep you informed.

Just Fun Stuff

I like to keep this blog light. And encouraging. And stuff. While still talking about the exciting/difficult/unusual things that go on. Of course, much of this has a spiritual perspective, seeing as the reason I come to Guyana is to preach and help the congregation. Every now and then though, you'll have a stretch of time where there's not a whole lot of stuff that's necessarily exciting or encouraging. Not that this is a bad thing, because that could mean I've been doing nothing but having fun.

And that's precisely what the last week has been for me.

For example, on Monday I went out to the coast in order to have access to really good internet and to do some light shopping for things. This also allowed me to do things which I get to do very very rarely in Orealla, such as watch YouTube, listen to internet radio, and basically use internet that is fast and doesn't cost me money based off how much I use. I spent the day at the home of a brother named Satish, who has many times opened up his family's home to need-greaters. Even now there's two sisters staying with his family, one from Trinidad and one from Oregon USA. Turns out I didn't see a whole lot of them since they were busy helping a missionary couple move. But still got to spend a small amount of time with them, and also do some useful things with my time. Like download the December JW Broadcast (which I haven't watched yet since I promised a brother I wouldn't see it until he was able to watch it with me. Stay tuned for that!) and also grab our magazine shipment for December.

Yeah, we don't get our magazines until halfway through the month we use them. Alas. You learn to adapt.

After I got back, there was another interesting development. I walked next door to a shop to get stuff for dinner that day when I noticed this thing in a nearby building which is still under construction...

Man, people will NOT stand still when you take photos...

PING PONG TABLE!!

 I naturally raced back home immediately to alert Kojo and Charlie about its existence. At which point we hogged the table all day, and into the night as well.....

 

SOME of us seemed to enjoy it a little too much...

There was also a small audience watching in hysterics. We were that bad...

Of course, THEY wouldn't sit still for the camera either!!

Seeing as you can only have two people playing at a time (since they only had two paddles) sometimes we had to find other ways to amuse ourselves while awaiting our next turn. Here was one of my preferred options.

This is five-year old Robert Hendricks (who studies with Kojo) teaching me a card game called "Tinks". He's got a career as a hustler should he so decide. Lulled me in with a seemingly simple game, then proceeded to absolutely crush me for five rounds.

So that's been what's happening lately. It's very nice knowing we have an easy distraction waiting whenever we so decide.


And since so many people have been asking lately, here's a picture of a monkey!!

Dawwwwww......

Happy Interrogations with.... Charlie Brohard

Today we'll be beginning a new series on this blog that we're calling “Happy Interrogations”, where we'll be conducting an interview with a need-greater that is nearby so I don't have to walk very far to get to them.

Our first vict... uh, interviewee will be one Charles Brohard who originates from Jackson, Ohio, USA. He currently serves as a regular pioneer and minsterial servant, and for the last several weeks has been serving as a need-greater in the Orealla congregation in Guyana.

Charlie Brohard, mocking the way I sit.

So please buckle in and enjoy as we begin our interrogation.

How old are you now?

22

How old were you when you got baptized?

13. That feels so long ago now. But it was a MASSIVE protection for me during my teen years, as most of my friends in the congregation that I grew up with either dissociated themselves from the truth or were disfellowshipped. But I had already set my vow and refused to be caught up in it and made new friends within God's organization instead.

How long have you been pioneering?

3 ½ years. During my first year or so of pioneering, the only other pioneers in my home congregation were 2 sisters who also were grandmothers (obviously a bit older than me). Due to my schedule not always fitting up with these other ones, I would spend at least one long day in service each week without any support, besides Jehovah and holy spirit. It really helped me put my trust in him. I think the youngest person I've ever had the privilege of being a fellow pioneer in the same congregation was in her mid 30s. However, it's put me in in contact and built up friendships with ones I probably would have never even approached before. I learned so much from these dear ones: not just in the ministry, but in life and in my service to Jehovah in general. I wouldn't trade these experiences for anything else in the world.

How do you support your pioneering?

I work as a physical therapist assistant at multiple nursing homes covering for when other people call off, and for holidays. I wind up driving all over the state of Ohio. Even though it's not a set schedule, it always averages out to part time, so I can go a solid week of work and then three weeks with no work. Before doing this work, I worked as a Biology, Calculus and Chemistry tutor during the evenings.

How did you become interested in serving as a need-greater?

I've always been interested in expanding my ministry in some aspect. However, due to some health difficulties, I was extremely concerned with how I could serve. This seemed to be an avenue that I could pace entirely on my own accord, as compared to say, Bethel service. This desire, combined with yearbook and Watchtower experiences of other need-greaters, put a burning desire in my heart to do more and take the plunge.

Biggest challenge so far?

It's the aforementioned health difficulties. I have exercise induced asthma, which makes breathing very difficult on various occasions. I also have several severe food allergies. Even back home in the United States where I felt comfortable with the food, it's been an extreme challenge to find food that won't kill me. Taking that issue to another country where I'm NOT comfortable with the food already has been even scarier. At times I've felt as if my inhaler, Epipens and Jehovah have been my only companions that have stuck with me. I also have a heart valve that doesn't work but stays open at all times, raising my blood pressure, heart rate, etc. The medicine I have to take for this also makes me run to the restroom often and makes me much more tired than I used to be. I become fatigued easier. All three issues together made me uncomfortable with the very idea of even leaving my home congregation, but I've been very blessed so far in doing so.

Wow. So has been reaching out in this way been worth it?

Absolutely, in every regard! I had read and heard about that amount of interested ones in these other territories. I felt as if it may have been played up a little bit even. But coming here has totally opened my eyes. I can start a conversation and place literature with literally EVERY person in this territory. It's difficult to describe the enjoyment from that. Not only that, but I feel like I'm doing so much more for God's organization here. No matter where you go, Jehovah's organization needs brothers to reach out and be used. But, to come to a small congregation where there isn't the help, where there aren't enough brothers to take the lead, and then actually put forth the effort in such a place is an amazing experience. I enjoyed the privilege of giving public talks before I came down, but it feels amazing when you're giving public talks almost every Sunday. You can see in the audience the appreciation for this spiritual food, and you can just feel that you are being used by Jehovah to encourage and build others up – even more so than back home. I highly recommend to the young brothers who wish to be used even more in the congregation about traveling to somewhere else that needs brothers more than where you already are. It may be close by or far away from home, but the feeling of taking on this larger role is indescribable. You may worry about being stretched too thin, but rely on Jehovah and you will be used in a wonderful way.

What advice would you give to wannabe need-greaters?

Read up-building experiences from the yearbooks, make it a matter of prayer and set a plan in action to reach your goal. You'll never reach the goal if you don't first count the costs, but also know that Jehovah will provide. Be reasonable about it. Even if it seems like a far ways off before you could leave, build up your spirituality now and your effectiveness in your ministry so that you'll be fully equipped for every good work when you do leave.

Any bizarre, random, or meaningless words you'd like to conclude with?

SHNARKBUZZLES!!! It's a word I made up writing bad poetry for the sole intent of it being bad. What, you have to find a way to amuse yourself in your downtime and engage in some form of recreation. Don't look at me like that.

So we hope that you have enjoyed this introductory segment. We plan on returning to it soon. In the meantime, any other questions you think we should ask? Feel free to post suggestions in the comments below.

Further Adventures of JW Broadcasting!

Gonna be totally honest, got no good pictures to go along with the stories this time. So here's a photo of the typical attendance at an Orealla meeting.

Unrelated pic alert!

Now then, as you may remember from the last blog entry, we've been trying to ensure everybody here gets to see both the JW Broadcasting videos that have been released. Our initial attempt was showing the videos at our Kingdom Hall, as I'd shared the photo of. Most of the congregation was able to attend and see them, but there were a few unable to make it. In addition to that, several publishers in our hall had studies and calls they wanted to share it with as well. So we copied the files onto Kojo's laptop and either took the video to the people's homes, or simply invited them to our house to watch them all.


Probably my favorite experience from this so far comes from a man named Martin. He's studies off and on with the Witnesses for years, but has never quite been able to become a Witness himself, despite now being in his 60's. Unsurprisingly, he's rather upset about this.

So a few days back Kojo invited him to our home and played the October video for him. Of course, this is the one where they interview the man who got baptized at the age of 87, and even now at 91 is serving as a regular pioneer and a minsterial servant.

After the interview finished, Martin turned to us with a huge smile and said "I'm just a teenager!"
And has not missed a meeting since.

Unrelated picture of a huge tree! And Kojo!

Another man named Frederick, of a similar age, has recently begun studying. For a while he's been viewed in a negative light by most of the village, but a few months ago he suffered a stroke and was sure he was going to die. Amazingly, he's recovered completely, and is now attempting to change his life but is still overshadowed by his past.

This man too viewed the interview of the 91 year old man, but the part that caught his attention was the man saying how his old friends couldn't believe the change. "He's a Witness, and baptized? Why if he can do it, anybody can!"

Of course following that interview is the music video of how serving Jehovah is the best life ever. Both of those put together seemed to have an impact on him. In fact, he'll be coming to our house in a few hours for a Bible study, so hopefully we'll have a chance to show him the November program as well.


So that's been a lot of the week. Tracking down each person associated with the congregation here and ensuring everyone gets a chance to see it, whether special pioneer or fresh student. Now we're just planning on how to get the December broadcast so we can do this all over again next month. It'll likely involve Charlie or I leaving the village to go to the coast where we can get more reliable internet. Takes a lot of bandwidth to download a 55-minute High-Def video.


And to conclude, I'll share another unrelated picture of two-year old Kate wearing a pair of tiny John Lennon sunglasses.

Walk To Siparuta / JW Broadcasting

Let's seen if one of our more astute readers can recognize what's happening in this photograph...

Oh wait, I gave it away in the title, didn't I? Ah well.

For those of you who may be new to this blog, allow me to explain. Orealla is a small village with a small congregation right off one of the largest rivers in Guyana. Our assigned territory is the village of Orealla which gets worked frequently. However, we also have any homes along the river, and a neighboring village called Siparuta. Unfortunately, Siparuta gets worked very rarely due to it being a three hour hike away. Through the jungle. It gets worked only when we have enough intrepid hikers to make the journey. As difficult as a three hour walk is, it's even worse when the entire path looks like this:

And so on an so forth. Then you do this again on the way back home. Naturally this is not a desirable situation to endure, but what else are you gonna do? We have rented a boat a few times before to get us to the village, but that gets very expensive very quickly.

Fortunately this time around, we had worked out a new idea. There was a boat that was going to be going from Siparuta to Orealla later in the day, so we could make the hike and then ride the boat back when we were done. Free passage too!

So therefore we set out at 6:30 in the morning so we could reach the village early enough in the day to work as much as possible. When we arrived we learned the boat was going to be leaving a bit earlier than we'd thought, so we wouldn't have enough time to cover the whole village (of 400+ plus people), but we were still able to work most of the downhill segment of Siparuta (the village is split evenly between an uphill region and a downhill region).

We were also able to talk to some interesting people and have a few good experiences. Kojo spent nearly half the time there sharing the Young People ask books with two young men in the village, showing them what the books covered, Bible principles they used, etc. We were also able to introduce the Caleb & Sophia videos to some new audiences....

 Then finally, hitching a (free!) ride home with Neil....

Another recent experience: Orealla is still very much an Amerindian village, to the point where electricity is still fairly new. There's only one radio. Cell phones were introduced only this year. Due to this, internet is out of reach for almost the entirety of the residents. While this lack of distractions can be nice at times, this does tend to leave people without the ability to easily access jw.org and the new JW Broadcasting videos. What to do about this? Simple!

Before coming back to Guyana I was able to get the October and November programs saved to my computer, so Saturday we invited the congregation to a very informal gathering where we set up a computer monitor on the stage (seen above) and showed the programs. Due to the weather, a few couldn't make it so we've been inviting them over to our house at a time they can make it, or taking a laptop to their own house and showing them then.

Of course December is approaching, and with that a new Broadcast video, so we're going to send someone out to the coast where there's better internet and have them try to get the video so we can continue this.

So that's all for now. Stay tuned for the gripping saga of my battle with a vicious man-eating Orangutan.
(Not really. I just need an exciting conclusion for this entry).

Until next time!