The Best of Both Worlds?

Hi all,

After a very eventful three-week excursion to the States, I've made it back to Nica once again, even if the airline lost my checked bag. Yeah, that's just one little tidbit to share from my trip, and if you'd like to know more, grab a juice box, shoot me an e-mail, and we'll talk about the ongoing trials and tribulations of a lad named Sam Roberts.

ANYWHO, there were a lot of memorable moments from the trip, most notably my friend Jared's wedding! He actually came to visit me for a week in February last year, but things were so busy at the time that I didn't end up blogging about it, so here's a picture from that trip.

He's been a good friend of mine for some time now, so it was great to be home for the big day, although I missed the ceremony. Again, e-mail me.

Me with Jared & Jocelyn

We'll have more on that trip later. For now, let me talk about what I arrived back in Nica just in time for: our assembly day! It was exhausting having just returned from the States, but it was still a fun weekend. Saturday was the big pioneer meeting before the assembly. There's a double Kingdom Hall here in Chinandega, which perfectly held all 288 present! They had the speakers in one of the halls and a video feed into the other hall. We were on the side with the video feed, which worked very well. Many brothers and sisters from our hall had parts, including Rolando, Leticia, Renee, Elvis, Meyling, and Elieth.

Yes, I'm talking about the brother on the screen.

This is Thomas Bear. He and his wife having been serving here for quite some time now. They're both German, and his accent comes through very strong when he speaks Spanish. Honestly, I think it sounds awesome! I could listen to him all day. He had two really good illustrations. First, he spoke of being in an airplane that's about to crash when the oxygen masks are released. You are seated next to a ten-year-old boy and a five-year-old girl. Who do you make sure has their mask on first - the boy, the girl, or yourself? Actually, airlines emphasize that you need to put your own mask on first before you can be in a position to help anyone else! Similarly, we need to be sure that we are taking care of ourselves spiritually before we can be in a position to offer help or encouragement to anyone else. The other illustration he used had to do with our personal desires. He talked about how Google memorizes the things you search for and is able to remember your favorite items, no matter when you searched for them. If Google has the ability to remember the things that peak your interest the most, how much more so does Satan! It emphasized the need for us to be on guard more than ever.

The Chinandega sun shining down just as powerful as ever.

Once again, we had a busy night of sound preparation before the session. Many brothers stayed past midnight. I would have stayed longer, but I was still suffering from my severe one-hour jet lag, so I decided to call it a night.

I had an assignment that I'd never had before for this assembly: letreros. Basically, Ben & I were in charge of putting up signs on the offices of the various departments - administration, chairman's office, sound, and yes, even a sign for our department: the sign department. We also had to have my laptop on hand in case we needed to print off emergency women's bathroom signs, which I actually had to do quite a few times. Would the whole thing fall apart without us? Two things: 1) Hey, someone has to do it, and 2) I got to sit it in a somewhat-air-conditioned office for the day, so I'll take it!

No, I did not spell administration wrong.

The program was great - very frank and very much-needed. There were 32 baptized and a peak attendance of 3,169. Sidenote: my study Edwin lives right next door to the stadium. He could hear the whole program without even leaving his property, which isn't a bad deal. What's even better is that in the middle of the morning session, everyone was distracted by three toddlers who came out of nowhere running across the perimeter of the outfield. Sure enough, they were Edwin's kids. Yup, that's my study!

Taking down the sound system after the session. Here's a Where's Waldo activity: Find Ben!

Now that the busy weekend is over, I'm looking forward to getting back to my routine here. I'm really enjoying how things have been going, and that helped me to realize something while I was in Maine. I know I come back from every trip with a new lesson learned, and there have probably been some inconsistencies over the past few years, but this one was actually liberating. Everyone who has served in another land while traveling back & forth to their home country knows what it's like to live in two completely different worlds. In my case, the struggle has been being very close to both my friends in Nicaragua and my friends back home. Every time I go back to Maine, it's hard to leave for long periods of time knowing that time doesn't stand still while I'm away. People carry on with their lives, and I know it's a bit selfish, but you do feel cut off from everybody in a sense. It's not easy, but over time, I've realized that I'm still very close to my good friends back home, and being away has helped some of us to even strengthen our friendships. While I may not be actively involved in what happens back home anymore, I've maintained close ties with the people I love, and that's enough. I wouldn't trade the friendships I've made here in Nicaragua for anything in the world, and for now, this is the best place for me to be. At times, though, I wish I could have it both ways - be fully involved here in Nicaragua and still be fully involved in life back home, while being able to take advantage of all the luxuries there as well. However, here is the lesson: You can't have the best of both worlds. I know that might sound sad, but when I realized that, it was a huge relief. Right now, I feel like I have the best of my world in Nicaragua, and while I may not have everything back in Maine, I have all I need. Having that in mind is helping me to focus on what a privilege it is for me to be where I am and to be doing what I'm doing.

Okay, that's enough sap for one post. Talk to you all on Monday!

Take care,


Sam

Accomplishments

Hello!

I've been back in the States for a little over a week now, and while I love seeing my friends and family here, I gotta say, guys: I'm missing Nica. Weird, right?! Every time I come home, I don't think about Nica at all whatsoever because it's hard to think about Nica when you're so busy stuffing your face with hamburgers and hot dogs since, you know, that's what all Americans eat three times a day every day. Actually, I really miss Nicaragua because I feel like I've finally gotten into the right place and a great routine down there. So yes, I miss it! However, instead of continuing whining, a skill in which I exceed, I will fill everyone in on the events that took place before I came home.

For starters, I finally did one of the things I've been the most afraid to do during my whole time in Nicaragua: drive.

"I'm Erling Téllez and I approve this message."

Anyone who has been to Nicaragua, or Central America for that matter, understands what a big risk that is! Here is the basic principle of driving in Nicaragua: You and ONLY YOU have the right of way - not pedestrians, not any other vehicle, not roadkill, only you. You don't have to wait for anybody. You just go as fast as you can and if anyone dares to get in your way, it's their fault, not yours! It sounds nice until you're on the receiving end. In retrospect, it probably wasn't that big of a deal, but nonetheless, it was another goal accomplished! On this particular day, we went with a group of friends in our hall to a beach in Corinto. It was a great afternoon spent with people who have become great friends.

Us with Erling, Rebecca, Jennifer, & Douglas.

Another major accomplishment occurred, but for Ben and Bree: they did their first demonstration in Spanish together. It was the demo about starting a Bible study on the first Saturday of the month, and they smashed it.

As for what happened next, well...remember San Cristobal? The volcano adjacent to Chinandega? Remember how it erupted right when I arrived in town in September 2012?

Remember how it erupted again just three months later and spewed ash all over town, resulting in many damaged lungs and evacuations?

Yeah, I was walking to get my morning coffee that day when I looked up and saw THIS.

Well, we hiked it last week! (Kids, please do not look to me as a good example.)

Actually, we semi-hiked it. We wanted to reach the top by sunrise, mainly because hiking it in the hot sun would've tripled the difficulty. That involved staying up until 2:00 AM and riding with the tour guides to a farm where the trail began. The drive to the farm was supposed to take about an hour, but the road was pretty rough - rough, but not impossible to navigate. All that is required is some ambition and work ethic, neither of which our truck driver had. We weren't even halfway to the farm when we got stuck in a rough patch of the road. We could have easily made it out and did everything we could to guide our driver out of it, but he seriously would not listen to a word we said. He did the opposite of everything we suggested and even when we tried to smooth out the path for him, he refused to drive through. I can understand that it was 2:00 in the morning, man, but we're paying you for a service! We spent about 45 minutes arguing with him/trying to help him until we realized how much time we had wasted. He wasn't going to drive us there, so we had no choice but to just leave him (along with the truck) and walk to the farm ourselves.

Walking to the farm was a hike itself. It took about two hours, and it was just as physically exerting. We were supposed to reach the farm by 3:00 so we could make it to the top of the volcano by sunrise, but we didn't arrive at the farm until about 5:00. I would've preferred to just finish the whole hike anyway since we had already gotten that far, but I also had to leave for the airport at 4:30 that afternoon. Actually, I would've finished it anyway, but another brother in our group who was leaving on the same flight as I was still needed to get back to León to pack his things. All of that, along with the fact a few others in our group weren't feeling that well, led us to the decision to call it a day (or night? We all got mixed up!) and finish it another time. We were disappointed, but we didn't consider the trip a waste by any means! While we were waiting for another truck to come pick us up from the farm to bring us back into town, we still managed to hike up a portion of the trail to get some decent photos.

Pretty satisfying view!

I have to say, being able to view Chinandega from the volcano that has been the background in so many of my photos all this time was a very satisfying experience. For once, the town itself was in the background! It has been such an intriguing aspect of my time in Chinandega ever since I arrived, and it was very cool finally checking it out. Although we only did a portion of the hike, it still felt like another major accomplishment - this time, for all of us. 

Don't be fooled. The top was a lot further than it looked!

After making it back to town, it was a mad rush to get ready before I had to leave for the airport. I will say, though, that it was frustrating having lost an entire night's sleep and not finishing the hike! It really threw off the rest of the week, but I've managed to catch up on all that sleep now, thankfully. I even slept on the airplanes, which I've never been able to do! Now, I've got a few weeks left here in the States and then it's back to Chinatown. I'll report during that time if there's anything worth reporting!

The result of me checking to see if my camera timer was working. Apparently, it was.

Sidenote: I noticed that this page has now gotten over 25,000 visits. Thank you all for keeping up with me!

Take care,


Sam

The Sea House

Hello!

Yes, I know, I've missed a few weeks, but we've had a lot going on, which I will proceed to explain in this long post, so kick back, relax, and please keep your cursor away from that exit button!

A few weeks ago marked a historic event for some of our friends in La Norte as Bree showed them how to concoct one of the most intriguing concoctions in all of concoctivity: a burrito.

Before I get 37 comments saying, "Don't they eat burritos every day three times a day?", let me just tell you: No, they do not. Burritos are a Mexican dish. Mexican things come from Mexico. Mexico is not Nicaragua. Good night.

It was very entertaining to watch Bree show them the ropes. Although they turned out a tad too spicy, it was a smashing success, so much so that Mayerling demanded a copy of the recipe for herself! And, of course, yet again, the night had to turn into a mini-dance party.

My studies with Jorgito have been going well, and now, thanks to Eduardo and Zach, they've gotten even better. They came up with the idea to get all of the coloring and picture activities from the website bound into several books for the kids in Ojo, and they gave me a copy to give to Jorgito! I gave it to him on Friday and he loved it. We did the picture activity about Noah's ark and were able to have a good talk about the lessons learned. Since he and Sandra are attending meetings now, we also watched the new Caleb video about commenting.

Alright, now let me get to the big stuff. For the very first time, my parents came to visit Nicaragua! Actually, it wasn't just them. Bree's father, Lenny, and my sister, Kayla, also came down! They only had a week free to come down over Thanksgiving break, but we made the most of their time here. For starters, this is how they were welcomed at the very quiet airport:

 

The fact that I'm writing this more than two weeks after the fact but still being able to vividly remember specific moments from their visit says a lot - my sister having an argument over getting ripped off within the first five minutes of their arrival, my parents not realizing that my friend Moisés could actually speak English, my mother bargaining with a street vendor, just so many moments. *Sigh.*

For starters, the Mainers spent the weekend in Chinandega to meet everyone and see where I've been hanging out all this time. It was a very surreal experience for me. I've been coming back and forth to Nicaragua for over three years now, and during that time, I had always imagined how my parents would act in different situations, and to see all of it become reality was worth the wait. After a day of kicking back at the nicest hotel in town (perks!), they came to La Norte's public meeting.

The Roberts & the Martins taking over Chinandega.

The meeting was a fun experience for everyone. We helped the visitors prepare their own comments and they all did a great job delivering them! It was also really nice for them to meet my friends in La Norte. Even though nobody had a language in common, everyone was nonetheless thrilled to meet each other. Sidenote: One of my studies, Edwin, came to that meeting with three of his seven kids! I was so happy, but I couldn't sit with his family and mine at the same time, so my friend Braulio looked after him for me. The kids also behaved perfectly for the whole duration. Hopefully, he'll come to more in the future!

Sunday was another memorable day. My dad, Kayla, and Lenny came out witnessing with us, an experience which can only be summed up by this picture:

Any caption ideas for what the man on the left is most likely thinking would be readily accepted.

Renee helping Kayla prepare for her turn.

All teasing aside (well, maybe not all), it was one of the most memorable mornings of service I've ever had. In addition to everyone being troopers by walking in the hot sun and humid air for two full hours, seeing them willingly participate with their simple presentations was more than I ever could have asked for. I don't think they truly understood what we've been dealing with here until that morning! We had as easy of a morning as we could have had, though, and ending it with some cold drinks at the café downtown.

Lenny doing a great job on his presentation.

That night, we had a good ol' fashioned Nica fiesta for the family. A lot of our friends from La Norte came as well as Ervin & Yorleni, my two good old friends from Ojo de Agua. There was dancing, there was games, and there was gallo pinto, prepared by yours truly! Yeah. That's right. I did it. Well...I did have a bit of help from Tanya, Chelsey, and Darling, but it turned out great! We actually made way too much of it, but thankfully, everyone was willing to bring some home with them. But you see, a Nica fiesta includes many other things besides the aforementioned. Other necessary happenings include an excess of soda, a lack of enough fans, and an inconceivable amount of sweating. My family had the pleasure of experiencing it all.

If you're wondering why I'm making these pictures so small, it's because I'm trying to cram way too much into one post. But you can enlarge the pictures by just clicking on them!

After the party, we finished off the week by renting an incredible house in San Juan del Sur. Considering it was the first real vacation my parents ever had since they got married, they wanted to go all out, and boy did they ever. 

 

The house was the perfect getaway, and being able to experience it not only with my family but as well as with close friends that might as well be family was pretty cool as well.

The whole visit was one which none of us will forget for sure! Many of my friends also told me that meeting my family helped them to understand why I am the way I am a lot more. Good thing or bad thing?

Okay, that's seriously all I can write for now, because did I mention I'm writing this from Maine?! I'm just back for a few weeks for a wedding and then I'll be back in Chinatown for Memorial season. I've got more to report on things that happened before I left Nicaragua, so I'll try to write about that ASAP!

Talk soon,


Sam

Only in Nicaragua

Hello there!

I was just looking through all the pictures I took over the past week and if I were to judge the entire week based off of these photos, I would only say that it was...interesting?

For one thing, the guys and I went to the local performing arts theater to watch one of our English students in her dance recital...

A manly way to spend your Friday night.

...I managed to construct a 5-4-3-2-1 card house, which is a new personal record...

It had to be photographed as it will probably never happen again.

...Ben, Bree, Josue, & I managed to see a movie and get the theater to ourselves...

We at least had it to ourselves for the first ten minutes of the movie.

...and as another Nicaragua first, an ice cream truck passed by the Kingdom Hall after Leon's English meeting yesterday. That's right. An ice cream truck.

"Aren't you guys wondering why we never drive this thing through town during the
day - you know, like, when it's actually hot?"

I wish I had logical explanations for why we do what we do and why I choose to photograph very mundane things, but all I can think of is...hey, it's Nicaragua.

Okay, on with the rest of the week...

Ending a hot morning with cake & coffee.

November has been treating us very well! We had another great week of service. Jefte came witnessing with us in La Colonia de la Policia on Tuesday and we had a great time. Him and I found a very interested woman with whom we were able to start a study in the Bible Teach book. She wrote down every scripture we read so that she could look it up in her own Bible later. She has children and was drawn to the lesson about how to have a happy family life. We told her that I would come back with Bree the following week to demonstrate a study, which we will be doing tomorrow. She said that she'd be waiting!

Studying with Edwin.
Also, it was cool enough
that I lasted a full hour
without rolling up my sleeves!

On Wednesday morning, nobody showed up to the group, probably because it looked like it was going to rain. However, it actually worked out very well for us. The three of us were able to go do some of our studies to fill up the morning, and it went great. I had my study with Edwin, and we switched things up by beginning the lesson in the Good News brochure about how to recognize the true religion. That really captured his attention. I'm hoping it will motivate him to make it to one of the meetings. He says his goal is to come to the meeting the week that my parents visit, which is this Saturday, as it turns out!

Renee went away for a couple weeks (Did I mention that she joined me in La Norte? Well, she did, and it's been good helping each other out once again!), and Bree covered one of her Bible studies in the meantime, Claudia. She works in Parque Central, but she always puts everything aside so that she can study. She's also been prepared for every study and looked up the scriptures ahead of time! Bree also does a great job of conducting.

As you can see, Ben has all the essential supplies for a study here: publications, sweat rag, and a bottle of 7-up.

"Do you realize how selfish I look sitting in this
chair while you just stand? You so did this on purpose."

I was also able to find another one of my studies, Erling, at home that morning. We continued our discussion of the second lesson out of the Good News brochure, and he did great. He comprehends things very well, but he is also very patient with himself. He is very humble and sincere, even to the point where he insists that I take his seat, no matter how much I protest! Honestly, I feel like a bum taking his seat like that, but we would never get anything done if we kept arguing over it. He always keeps his brochures and magazines close at hand, and he's continued reading them on his own. It's very refreshing to see, and I hope that he can make it to a meeting soon, too.

Friday morning was also very encouraging. Ben & I started a study with a woman on the first call using the "Why Study the Bible?" video. Her aunt and her grandmother are Witnesses, and she said she'd always been curious. We placed the Good News brochure with her and briefly demonstrated a study. She said she'd love to continue on with it, and once again, we told her we would bring Bree with us next week so that she could! Sidenote: Ben also started a study on the first call the same morning with a very interested guy.

Showing the video...and not really knowing what to do with my left hand.

The view while crossing the bridge into town.

I was doing calls with Erling later that morning, and he was commenting on how he's noticed the overall boost of encouragement the congregation has had as a result of us being here. He noted how people stay after the meetings to associate much more now and how ministry support has also improved. I'm not mentioning that to pat ourselves on the back, but rather to show how bittersweet it is to hear things like that. It feels really good knowing that you've been a help. I feel very much attached to this congregation already. However, the hard part is hearing those words and knowing that you won't be able to stay forever. Even just going back to the States for a few months is hard when you know it's such a substantial amount of time. But we're definitely making the most of our time here until then, and I can honestly say that my joy is being renewed day by day!

Oh, and pictures like this one also renew my joy...

Is it because one of these things is clearly different from everything else? Is it because Ben is being heavily stared at by the woman on the right? Is it because he's turning into a full-on clone of our Dad? I can't decide.

Talk soon!

Sam

Enough of the Charade

Hi all,

I should be folding laundry right now, but why do that when I can procrastinate?! It's been another week full of some of the usual as well as some surprises. For one thing, the repainting of our Kingdom Hall has been completed! Here's a before and after shot:

Before

After

It's a huge change! I haven't gotten a picture of the inside yet because it's not completely done, but it's the same color as the light blue on the side. The brothers did a great job painting, although I have to admit I think I liked the yellow better. But hey, I'm adjusting.

Working one of our more rural territories yesterday.

We've been getting into a good witnessing routine together. Having the extra support really helps all three of us. (It also gives me some HILARIOUS stories to tell about Ben's progress in learning Spanish.) The brothers and sisters in the congregation have also been very helpful and patient. Honestly, though, while we were out preaching and walking through the territory as a group yesterday, I was listening to Ben chatting with Erling and Bree talking with Ivana, her partner for the morning. Although they were both still having a little trouble with it, I realized that they've actually picked up more Spanish than they realize! They're doing their best and it's paying off. (P.S. - I would never say that to their face, so enjoy reading this, Ben & Bree.)

You can tell the lady in the back is thinking, "Why are there so many white people in my yard?"

Bree reading one of the paragraphs.

Above is a new study Ben has picked up. His name is Guadalupe, and Ben placed a Good News brochure with him and his wife a week ago. He had showed them the "Why Study the Bible?" video and they both were very interested. He and Bree went back a couple days ago to continue the discussion, and I went as an emergency translator/pretty much only to take pictures. It went very well and he said he'll be awaiting their visit tomorrow!

I had begun studying the Good News brochure with a man named Erling, but hadn't gotten him home in a couple weeks since he's been busy with work. I got him home last Tuesday and saw that he already had the brochure on hand. He's been reading it in his free time, and has already read up through chapter five! We had a great study that afternoon. Hopefully we can continue it on a regular basis.

Only had time for one unflattering picture
with Jorgito before I had to go!

Yesterday, I went to give the public talk in another congregation here in Chinandega. Everything went fine, but after I concluded and was walking off the stage, I heard a very familiar voice call out, "Sam!" I look over, and who do I see but Jorgito with Sandra! Out of the thirty-some-odd congregations in this town, I just happened to give the talk in the very hall that her study conductor belongs to! Sandra told me that she had gone to one of the Sunday meetings, but apparently they've been going every Sunday for the past month! She's loving it, and she said Jorgito is making some good friends at the Kingdom Hall. That was one of the best surprises I've had in a long time. After everything they've been through with Jorge's death, it's great to see that they're doing the best thing they can do: relying on Jehovah. I still remember the days when she wasn't very open to the idea of me coming by to study with Jorge at all! 

Last night, the Zimmerman family had a party which included a fun game of Bible charades. I was laughing way too much, so I only managed to get one picture! Bible stories that were acted out included King Solomon & the dispute over the baby, Daniel & the lions pit, and Balaam & the donkey.

The kids were acting out Abraham getting ready to sacrifice Isaac.

For the Zimmermans, cooking is their expertise, and they make awesome gallo pinto (to be featured on the next edition of Que Pasta...after mamonchinos...). It was Ben's first time trying it...

...and I think I liked it! He did finish it, after all. Oh, and Bree will eat anything.

Again, nothing can be done without turning it
into a dance party. Show us how it's done, Zach!

Oh, would this be a good time to talk about the mice in our house?! No? Well, I'll talk about it anyway. There have only been two, and they were tiny, but sorry, bros. If there's a mouse in my house, it will not be making itself at home. They're clever little dudes who still managed to pick the cheese off the traps we got, so we had to resort to getting that sticky paper to trap them, and that seems to have done the trick. I'll spare you the details of his death (cue a bunch of people calling us inhumane for killing a mouse) and skip ahead to the part where I had to walk around the neighborhood with a plastic bag containing a dead mouse, looking for a public trash can. We had a dead mouse in the trash last week, and guys, believe me when I say that was one of the top three worst smells I've ever experienced in my life, so there was no way we were about to go through that again. But just picture the scene: I'm walking down the street with this plastic bag, holding it as far away from me as possible, and I guy walks past me with this expression of "Do I even want to know what's in that bag?" and I just nodded at him, mentally telling him, "No, you do not." Finally, I found a resting place for the mouse in a trash can in a little park down the street. 

Bree with Ashley, one of the best nine-year-old
publishers I've met!

We don't have anything too crazy on our plate for this week. Our parents are coming to visit in less than a couple weeks, so we're all trying to get in as much service time as possible before then. They'll be coming to one of our meetings while they're here, so it's my goal to have at least one of my studies come to the meeting so they can meet them. We'll see how it goes! It'll be great for Mom & Dad to meet everyone in the hall, and vice versa. Really looking forward to it. I'll talk to you all next Monday, and I hope you're well until then.

Take care,

Sam