Hello again! Okay…Now for the field service experiences! Lets see.. the very first day we went out here…we knew things were going to be great. There are 2 young girls here serving and to support themselves they have to go to Santiago to work 10 days out of the month. The both have 10+ studies between the 2 of them and have to leave their studies in responsible hands when they are gone. They asked Jenesia and I if we could accompany them and take over their studies for the time they were gone. Of course we were elated at the offer! I accompanied Magdalena..(who we also first met back in January) to 2 of her studies and we let them know I would be returning the following week to study with them. She asked them in front of me if that would be okay. For some reason I felt like I needed to plug my ears or something just in case they said no! Haha.. well…they said yes…but it could have been peer pressure. Cecilia…the first study we went to invited us to join her for tea and bread after the study. It was then that she asked me quite bluntly “Is everyone the same size as you in the United States or are they thinner? I thought everyone was taller and thinner!” I put the bread down that I was eating and started laughing. I tried to explain that I had 5 layers of clothing on and that my jacket was especially big and that we had been working on construction for 3 months. I don’t think she was convinced!
Cecilia’s older sister Ximena, walked in on the study and told me she wanted me to come visit her…that she used to have witnesses visit her years ago and she would like another visit from us. We asked her what days she was available. She told me her available days. I promised I would come back. 1 day later there were brothers working the territory and got Ximena at home. She stated to them “I am already going to receive a visit from a young Gringa..I don’t remember her name but she has precious blue eyes! I am awaiting her visit.” They assumed it was me. She also said she wanted to receive a Bible Teach book like her sister…but in Large Print. 2 days later I was able to come and drop off the book for her and set up a time to study. Last Wednesday was our first study. We stayed for an hour and a half and she said she had already looked over a good majority of the book, but loves that she can go over it with us! She also wants her husband to start studying…and if hes ever at home he will sit in on the study. She had many questions and was just soaking up everything. I penciled her into my planner for the next week and told me she will be available every Wednesday at 2:30 for her studies.
Cecilia’s older sister Ximena, walked in on the study and told me she wanted me to come visit her…that she used to have witnesses visit her years ago and she would like another visit from us. We asked her what days she was available. She told me her available days. I promised I would come back. 1 day later there were brothers working the territory and got Ximena at home. She stated to them “I am already going to receive a visit from a young Gringa..I don’t remember her name but she has precious blue eyes! I am awaiting her visit.” They assumed it was me. She also said she wanted to receive a Bible Teach book like her sister…but in Large Print. 2 days later I was able to come and drop off the book for her and set up a time to study. Last Wednesday was our first study. We stayed for an hour and a half and she said she had already looked over a good majority of the book, but loves that she can go over it with us! She also wants her husband to start studying…and if hes ever at home he will sit in on the study. She had many questions and was just soaking up everything. I penciled her into my planner for the next week and told me she will be available every Wednesday at 2:30 for her studies.
In the rural territory we are always able to find very hospitable people. It is SO refreshing to find kindhearted people especially after walking the majority of the day. Last Monday we woke up with the sun shining bright but knew it was slightly deceptive. We knew it would be a cold morning…so we layered up. (I made sure not to wear my bulky jacket just to avoid anymore comments on my physical stature!) We hiked up a hill for about 1.5 hours.. I had brought I backpack with our lunch, literature, layers of clothing, and kleenex. All necessary things…but the backpack felt like 100 lbs as I hiked up that hill. Then the wind started picking up as we tried hard not to lag behind. After all the walking…we could see a house in the distance. We started down the trail to the house…off the mainroad. It was my turn to talk to the householder. I tried to think of what I wanted to share as 3 dogs came roaring down the trail to greet us. Thankfully…they were nice dogs. A young boy invited us up to the house where his mom and younger brothers and sisters were in the yard. The young boy and his dad were working in their vineyard. Their house had such a beautiful view! The mom..Margarita invited us to come and sit down in the sun as she asked us what we wanted to share with her. The kids continued playing around us full of energy. I was able to leave the “Does God Really Care?” brochure with her and share many scriptures. She was very happy with the visit and didn’t leave us emptyhanded. She handed us Oranges and Olives from their trees and even let us use the restroom which is a commodity out in the rural territory! The visit left me feeling refreshed and energized for the rest of the day! We were able to meet up with others in the ministry with the same positive demeanor. At the end of the day we arrived at another little village that had a Winery Bodega..(wherehouse)…we were given a mini tour and bought some wine to take back with us. The Chilean wine here is awesome. Even the cheapest of the cheap bottles are still exquisite! We arrived back into Puertezuelo at about 5:30pm. Thankfully we hitched a ride back from Marcelo..( he drives a big van that seats about 15 people) and he actually started studying recently. It was funny: As we started our trek back down then hill…a distance of 10 kilometers or 6 miles was in store for us. The sister I was working with looked up to the sky and said “I wish Jehovah would just drop us a truck from the sky!!” No joke…within 30 seconds we see Marcelo coming down the street in his van. Our hero! Evidence that Jehovah really answers prayers! In Puertezuelo we all started relating some of our experiences and just as I was talking about the experience of Margarita and her cute kids…I hear people yelling my name from behind. I turn to look behind me and its Margarita and the whole family waving from a truck as they passed by. A great end to the day.
Our typical day consists of getting out at about 9:30..(no early morning here). We stay out till noon…come home and eat lunch and rest..and the rest of the afternoon/early evening is Return Visits and bible studies. Some days we stay out until dark. Saturdays and Mondays are rural days. If there is rain…it’s a rarity that we stay out. We don’t have the comfort of driving around in a car to our RVs. Everything is done walking under the protection of our umbrella and jackets. Unfortunately we bought an Umbrella that does not function very well. It is definitely cute….teal green with white polka dots…but it doesn’t serve its purpose. We may need to look for a better option soon!
But yes..the ministry has been great here. The Bible studies that are being conducted are very progressive. Andrea already has a few studies attending the meetings. One young boy, Jorge is studying with a brother in the hall. Jorge is 9 and he loves to comment. Last week he sat in between Jenesia and I..and I looked over to see his publication fully studied. He commented many times and read scriptures…putting the both of us to shame! There even was a part in the meeting that was not a Question/Answer part and a rhetorical question was raised. Jorge raised his hand enthusiastically only to realize he was not going to get called on this time.
The Special pioneer couple here has multiple studies between the 2 of them. The husband keeps giving Jenesia and I calls to go back on. One of their studies is a family of 5. Dad, Mom, Daughter, Sister in law and son. We were invited last week for a BBQ at their house and really enjoyed ourselves. The whole dinner presented itself with the opportunity to talk about spiritual things. Good food and good company.
Okay…I could write more…but this can be the little summarization for now! A little more than a month until the new service year! August is going to be packed.
We leave Puertezuelo next week…hopefully we will get to visit again sometime in the near future.
Until next time!....
BYE!!
Steph
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