Whew! Feelin Better

How depressing was that last post!?  I was feeling like Job and Epaphroditis all rolled into one.  I'm feeling much better now, though.  Thank you for your many messages and emails.  In the last few weeks I've been getting out more with friends and looking for a permanent job  and apartment while temping.  Everything is falling into place slowly but surely.  I had one temp assignment about a week ago which is quite a ways away.  My gas gauge was just barely touching the "E".  I talked to Jehovah about it and remembering he's obligated himself to care for us, I went to sleep not worried about it.  The next morning, as I warmed the car, I plugged in my gps to find my way.  As I did, I noticed an email.  Right at midnight, I had received a credit to my account that was more than enough for gas for the next several weeks!  All I could do was smile and shake my head.  Yup, everything is going to be alright.

Get your tissues for this one :-(

So here's where the rollercoaster ride begins.... I came back from harvest expecting to have a procedure with the doctor that would ensure me being at 100% upon returning to my assignment.  Easy peasy right?  Nope!  There was a different doctor in that day and she told me about a bunch of possible complications that the first doctor never mentioned and strongly recommended I not have the procedure. While I was greatful for the second opinion just in the nick of time, I wasn't sure of my next step.  She gave me a few other options that she could do the same day.  But, I was very hesitant since I hadn't had a chance to research them.  My flight was set to leave in a week so I couldn't reschedule.  I sat down in the lobby with a pamphlet with information and tried to search the internet quickly on my phone.  I prayed fervently to Jehovah for help.  What I found was tons of horrible reviews and horror stories.  The office was about to close so the doctor came to ask my decision and to make sure I was ok as I was clearly distraught.  Jehovah had me ask the right questions and sure enough, there was a detail left out of my chart.  Upon learning this, she told me I would have been a far, far worse off had I accepted the alternatives she had recommended!  Twice I had barely dodged the bullet thanks to Jehovah.  While I was relieved at that, a new question arose:  Would I be able to maintain my health in my assignment?

Here in the States, I'm able to maintain my health just fine with diet, supplements and other natural things.  Unfortunately, some of these simple items (like leafy greens for example) are not readily available where I serve.  I had an excrutiating week of decisions and being honost with myself.  How long could I stay in my assignment before needing to return to build my health up again?  Could I do better in a less physically demanding assignment there?  Am I lacking faith? Modesty?  What is the best decision for keeping me in the full time ministry long term?  What about my students and congregation!??  All of these questions and many more continued to plauge me on a daily basis.  Friends and family would excitedly ask me, "So, when are you headed back to your assignment?!" not realizing the complexity and emotion behind such a simple question.  After much prayer and honost self reflection, I've decided to stay in the States for now.  Trust me....not an easy decision at all.  Since I already had my ticket though, I decided to go ahead and fly back for a few weeks to attend the district convention and say my goodbyes in person.  I asked friends in the local congregations here if they had any items they would like to donate to the friends in my congregation.  What an outpouring!  I ended up with 200 pounds of clothes, shoes, service items and more!  I was excited to have such a gift of mercy to share.  I arrived at the airport a little bit late so I was told I would have to fly out the next evening.  No big deal.  The next day I arrived again with my huge bags of gifts.  This time, no problems.  As I waited to board, I noticed that I still had not been assigned a seat (I was flying standby).  I asked at the front desk and found out that there were 3 people signed up for standby and only 2 seats available-uh oh.   I patiently waited to see if there would be any no shows.  Sure enough there were several.  BUT right when I could see the light at the end of the tunnel, a cloud of people rushed to the gate just in the knick of time to claim their seats.  I was informed that the flight was officially full.  Before leaving the airport, I inquired when I would have a chance at flying out.  Apparently, the one flight per day is overbooked through the holiday season.  But guess what?  That's not the worst part!  Both nights, my elder had piled half the congregation in the truck and driven 3 hours each way to the airport to welcome me back!  As soon as I knew I wasn't going to make the flight AGAIN I immediately tried to reach him but I was too late.  They were already waiting for me AGAIN.  As I apologized and tried to explain to the brother, he wasn't even mad, just hurt.  He kept saying, "hija ,hija" (daughter) we will come tomorrow then...ok, the weekend? Next week??  When are you coming to us?  All could do is apologize and say I don't know.  I'm still tearful to even have to write it.  I hope to make use of the ticket early next year to visit.
So, here I am for now, in the States.  Back to the search for a job, apartment and new congregation.  I was able to find a good car which inturn has been helpful in field service and the job hunt.  I haven't been sure about Spanish or English, my old hall or my parents'.  But today, I will officially let the brothers in my parents hall know that I plan to have my cards sent to them.  A very difficult and "permanent" feeling although I know I need to get grounded and spiritually busy here as soon as possible to help with the transition.  Friends and family have been great and I'm sure I'll have lots of good news and funny stories for you soon but for now it's just hour by hour and day by day.

Headed to the meeting-chin up!

What once was lost has now been found!

I packed enough food for a family of four while traveling on the bus including about 10 peanut butter and jelly sandwiches!  Most of my busses were pretty empty so I only came across a few interesting characters (no complaints here!).  For some reason the bus company routed me a really long way home...adding an unneccessary 12 hours onto my trip.  They were unable to route me correctly and later on I was glad.  Unbeknownst to me, a series of tornadoes touched down along the path I was supposed to take!  I was so glad Jehovah protected me and I didn't insist on them changing my ticket!

Nobody travelling from North Dakota this morning?

Peanut butter jelly time!

Some people had no problem catching a little shut eye in the bus station.

Half way through the trip, my bag was lost.  They told me it would probably meet me at my destination but, one week later I was still bagless.  Unfortunately, this also meant I was passportless!  And with only 2 weeks before my flight back to Nicaragua!!  I immediately started running around trying to get my missing documents replaced.  On my first stop, a young Spanish speaking young lady approached me with a question about the local buses.  She was surprised when I answered her in Spanish.  From there, we talked for the next hour.  It turns out, she had just arrived from Honduras and was still very upset about the death of her mother and nephew the year before.  She told me that the previous day, she had been inconsolable thinking about it.  Amidst her sobs and crying out to God she got a knock on the door.  Obe guess who it was!  She spoke with the Witnesses from the local Spanish congregation and said she felt so much better after hearing about the Bible's hope for the dead.  And now that she met me, she really thought Jehovah was talking to her.  I showed her a few things on jw.org and we swapped info.  We continue to stay in contact and I hope she will accompany me to a Spanish meeting soon :-)  In other good news, later that day, the bus company found my bag with all of it's contents intact! Woo hoo!

Last weeks at the harvest...

You've seen the first two jobs I did this year at the harvest and now here is the third.  I worked in the factory.  This is where the muddy beets enter and come out as glistening sweet goodness.  The in between part however is not so nice.  The first several days, I went through an orientation that basically consisted of gory blood and guts videos with 1960s horror film acting which portrayed all the ways we could maim or kill ourselves (or our coworkers) if we did not maintain safety procedures.   I had no idea the amount of poisonous gases and liquids used in the sugar making process that could burn through me!  I was a little nervous but by no means deterred.  Finally we got the tour of the factory.  I was all smiles sporting my shiny new hard hat and safety glasses.  The training manager opened the door and as I stepped into the factory I nearly fell to my knees from the heat and the stench.  I almost threw up instantly.  I can't even begin to describe the putrid smell of the factory.  It's truly.....unique.  NOW I was mentally questioning if I could handle it.  In the summer some areas get up to 120 degrees!  It reminded me of the abandoned warehouses batman always ends up fighting in, lol!  During the tour, I panicked  a little every time water or syrup dripped on my neck from the grates above, imagining it was some horrible chemical from the video that was going to sear through my skin.  The first few days I was assigned to cleaning.  INDUSTRIAL CLEANING.  I had no idea the force behind a power hose.  I kept telling myself what a good workout it was (especially after 12 hours!) Working on the cement floors with only a few short breaks however, started to take it's toll.  Bu the time I would leave work, I was in so much pain I could barely walk home.  I must have been quite a sight hobbling down the road because people would continually stop and ask if I was ok lol.  I  refused to give up though!  One night, I had to clean this mucky, sticky muddy stuff all night.  It looks like mud but its actually the putrid smelling thick brown goop.   I was covered head to toe.  When I got home, the sister I was staying with just covered her face exclaiming, "YOU STINK!!! DON'T TOUCH ANYTHING!!!"  I had to wash my clothes on heavy duty at least twice every night to cut the stench.  I was like the girl version of Pepe le Pew!  Finally, one night while I was walking the two miles to work in the snow (I think we were in single digits by then).  Isn't that something you tell your grandkids when they are being lazy??!  Anyway, I was feeling particularly defeated and sorry for myself that night.  I had a long talk with Jehovah.  I asked that he PLEASE give me an work assignment that was less strenuous because I really didn't know if I would make it through the night.  Once I got there, the manager told me he was going to train me in as a chemist!  Everyone was surprised but I knew it was Jehovah.  I actually really enjoyed it.  I liked being a mad scientist testing various contents in the beet juice.

 Brrrrr 10 degrees walking to work!

Start of the night-still semi clean.

Ah the muck

More muck!

By the time the night ended, I looked like I had been swimming in it!

Mickey made my blisters better!  My fun was cut short though because I got a call from my Dr. in Atlanta to come back for a procedure that could help me.  So just like that, I was on a bus for my 2 1/12 day journey back to Atlanta!

Harvest job number 2!

The harvest continues!  My office role ended but thanks to Jehovah, I was able to straight into an outside job processing beets and cleaning machines.  Some of my friends in the local congregation let me borrow a thermal jumpsuit.  Right on time since the first couple of days were below 18 degrees not including the windchill.  I think I'm actually getting used to the cold a little bit.

Here I am all beet chic!  Do you like my hat?!  That's a huge pile of beets in the back.

I inherited "T-Bone's" lock and his/her nickname.  It took me awhile to get used to answering to it, lol.

I wonder what my boss would have told me if he saw me taking pictures of him.  I think the vest says it all :-)

Giant beet

One day we got to work inside (in the heat!!) And paint signs for the truckers to follow.  I'm all aglow tee hee hee.

We were extremely busy working up to 16 hours in a day.  The one day I was too tired to pack a lunch, one of our bosses along with his wife made us a chili smorgasboard!  It warmed us all up and kept us going.  Jehovah does provide!! Here's lunch set up in the back of the pickup....

By the way, I got some awesome witnessing in.  One co-worker upon learning I was a witness asked, "I've heard God has a name... do you know what it is!?"  I nearly fainted in the beets!  Harvest is really great because alot if the people who work it drift from place to place all year and don't have a permanent residence so it's a great opportunity for informal witnessing.

Mmmmm!

T-Bone and the crew!

The machine we use to pile the beets once the trucks drop them off.

Big ol pile of beets!

 

Taste and See-Ali

This is the first of a few interviews with friends I've met since I've been back in the States.   I WISH I had been as focused as this young brother when I was 18!   Here's Ali! 

My name is Ali. I went to Japan for an unassigned trip, just wanted to see the country and preach in another land. There where a few challenges in Japan.   One, I did not know much Japanese. Two,  I did not know if the friends would accept me well or if I would even enjoy it but,  I prayed to Jehovah and did not worry about the things that I could not control. By doing that,  I had so many highlights of Japan.  The friends there were so humble and nice, they poured themselves out to me. One of the best moments there was when I would go to the kingdom hall, right when I walked in everyone would look at me.  Even though I did not know much Japanese I would try to understand what they were saying. I would look at body gestures, a smile, frown anything that would help. The experience of going to Japan brought me closer to Jehovah because I was able to see his organization in another light.   That is what we are doing over in America;  they are doing the same thing. It stressed upon me the need to focus on spiritual things.   The reason why is because I saw new methods to preach and teach.  I learned a lot from the Japanese brothers and sisters.  They are whole souled to Jehovah without any regrets. So, even though I know I will always fall short of God's glory,  I will still try my best by the things I experience in my life. I plan on going back to Japan at the end of October 2014 to teach English.  I am working on my Japanese so I can be better at talking to people.   I plan on staying 3 months to a year.  If anyone wants to see how Japan is,  just contact me at ali_ricks@yahoo.com. If anyone is planning to do similar things in Jehovah's service I say stay close to the organization, get to know the friends around you, pray for it like you want it so bad, then if you are doing the right thing in Jehovah's eyes, trust me on this one,  he will "open the floodgates of the heaven and pour out every blessing there is until there is no more want. "

Happy Feet

Harvest is going OK.  I've had a lot of downtime due to inclimate weather so I've been trying to take on other shifts and other roles where possible.  The nice thing about where I am is that it's so quiet they are OK with me bringing books and movies to entertain myself.  I can only read and study but so much in a 12 hour shift.  I work from 9pm to 9 am.   Right now it's 4:26 am and I've only received one call for my shift- to find out if I've received any calls!  So here I am fighting the first wave of sleepiness.  How?  By blasting salsa music, dancing in my seat and eating a little treat a coworker gave me for late night energy.  I guess I could  be dancing in the halls and offices since I'm the only one here but that might prove a little awkward if someone came in....or would it? Nah!  I'll stick to the chair :-P.  Hope you guys are sleeping well!

Nica Chica

How many sisters does it take...

So... we were out in service during one of off days when we decided to take one of my trailermate's dead car battery in for a replacement.  Easy right? Of course not!  Each of us took turns in our service clothes desperately trying to get it out.  Throughout our ordeal all of our RV neighbors decided to take in the afternoon's entertainment.  Finally, a good Samaritan stopped to help us get the last bolt out.  He and his wife received a nice tract and witness afterwards.  Next, the easy part... buying the battery.  Easy unless you are us!  Store after store was either closed or did not have the battery we needed.  Of course we kept taking turns carrying the battery in before realizing this.  In hindsight we definitely should have just called or gone in first, duh.  Oh well.... after about the 5th stop we got the correct battery and installed it like pros.  Well, maybe not from the neighbor's perspective but we felt pretty darn good about it!  Yea teamwork!

Awesome Gathering!

I went to an AWESOME gathering about a month ago.  I really sweet couple invited about 25 friends to a gathering called,  "Slave for Jehovah" based on an article in the October study Watchtower.  I can't even begin to explain how encouraging it was!  Almost everyone had reached out in the ministry.  Some were in foreign language congregations, need greaters, Bethelites, international conventions, metropolitan witnessing, seldom worked territory and more!  They even Skyped a brother in to be interviewed!  My few little pictures don't do it justice but don't fret!  I got emails and am planning a "Slave for Jehovah" segment for the blog so you can hear their experiences first hand!  I'll add the  interviews as I receive them and have time amidst the harvest.  Can't wait to share!

This brother brought kimonos and lots of stories from the international convention in Japan.

This brother did construction work at Bethel.

Skype interview from a brother serving in Mexico.

This sister served in Costa Rica and is now heading to seldom worked territory in the US.

Learning about metropolitan witnessing and the international convention in Latvia.

Getting to know one another and sharing experiences.

Spanish Territory in the Midwest

Last weekend, the local congregations were out of town for their assembly.  So, the girls and I took a road trip about an hour away to do some long days with a Spanish congregation.  Their territory stretches an hour or more in each direction.  We had a good time listening to country, salsa and everything in between while we shared ministry experiences.  A nice weekend, indeed!

Annnnd we're off!

Lunch break

Started off kinda rainy but it cleared up.  Check out the corn fields!

Beautiful day serving our wonderful Father!  Nothing like it B-) !