Wildlife of Guyana

Well, once again, it has been too long since our last post. That's what tends to happen when it's my turn to write the blog (Crystal.) We have had a very busy couple of months, but then, we always seem busy since we came to Guyana. We have recently had an out flux and then influx again of fellow "need-greaters" or, as another brother recently put it "self-supporting missionaries".

 

You may have read in a previous blog about some sisters that came here to help out with the sign language field by the names of Sarah and Jeri. A picture of Sarah made it to the blog, but somehow, Jeri got overlooked. This is my shout out to Jeri (sitting in the middle), since I enjoyed serving with this sister so much. This was a picture of us taking refuge from the rain at a local shop.

 

 More photos of others that have come will be included in the next blog. I really have to get my pictures organized a little better. In the meantime, I hope you will be satisfied with a few pictures of the local wildlife. As most of you know, we are living in fairly rural area of Guyana, which means domestic animals everywhere. But we also have our fair share of wild animals. For instance, small herds of wild horses roam the savanna nearby, and sometimes they roam into the neighborhood looking for food.

 

This horse and her foal were blocking the road as I was walking out to meet for service one morning. I think this horse does belong to someone, but there are plenty of wild ones around as well.

 

A lot of people like to keep animals that have been captured in the interior as pets.

 

 

This little monkey belongs to a return visit of mine. They are funny and love attention from visitors. This one likes to "hug" your arm. They can also be very naughty and sometimes bite. Personally I feel sorry for the little guys and would love to set them free, but it is kinda cool to see so many of them out and about.

 

 

Yes, believe it or not, there are wild donkeys here. Descendants of domestic donkeys that have simply over bred and been let loose. These guys (among others), will invade your yard if you leave the gate open, as this picture proves. Male donkeys can actually be pretty aggressive toward one another. They can be very territorial, especially during mating season. One day, a sister from Trinidad was walking with me, and two male donkeys began fighting right in front of us. As one donkey began biting the neck of another, two men ran out with cutlasses (machetes). She thought they were going to cut the donkeys, but they used the side of the blade to "spank" the wild donkey off of their domestic one. We later laughed at how scared she was, but at the time she seemed pretty traumatized.

 

More wildlife...

 

 Big....Giant....Spiders!

This one was in our house a couple of months ago. We hated to kill it, but since we couldn't identify it, and didn't know if it was poisonous or not, it had to go. It actually looks smaller in this pic because it was already dead it sorta shriveled up a bit. It is not a tarantula, but we have seen them here. Scott actually had one crawling across his chest in service the other day, but decided not to wait for a picture to be taken before knocking it off. Imagine that!

 

Okay, so enough with the scary wildlife we are faced with on a daily basis. This is just a few pictures of some of the gorgeous birds we get to see all of the time just flying wild.

A blue sake. Not the greatest pic, but you can see his beautiful color.

 

 

Green parrots. These guys are everywhere. They usually fly in pairs and make a very distinctive call when flying with each other.

 

 

Kiskadee. The most common bird in Guyana. We see these every day.

 

Toucans!

We have seen these in flight, and perched, though it is very rare to see them in our area. Scott actually got a picture of another variety of Toucan, but I can't seem to find it in our files. ( I told you I really need to organize our pictures) Will post it later when I find it.

 

 

"Jesus Bird" not really sure what the actual name is for this bird, but all the locals call it a jesus bird, because it appears to be able to walk on water. Their beaks are brightly colored and remind me of candy corn.

 

 

Last but not least,  just to make everyone a little jealous, this is a picture of one of the trees we have growing in our yard.

 

That's right! Fresh bananas growing on two of our trees right now as we speak. And I must say these are the sweetest, best tasting bananas I've ever tasted in my life. I guess it is true everything tastes better when you grow it yourself...

 

Till another blog...much love to all!

 

New Sights & New Friends

Finally we made it beyond the city lights of New Amsterdam and set our eyes upon some of the real beauty Guyana holds within her borders.  The flight to Kaeituer Falls was about an hour long and it was at times turbulent, leaving some of the passengers feeling uneasy and a little nauseas but once the terrain below us began to rise and reveal the shapes of steep mountain sides and sweeping valleys of lush tropical forest all of us forgot about our discomfort and began snapping one memorable picture after another.  The trees are so dense it looks as if you could leap from the plane and land softly upon their backs.  The rivers snake through the jungle and flow in a hap-hazard zig-zag way that seem like they were drawn in  the landscape by the hand of a child.   Then like some surprise guest the Falls suddenly appear and in that moment all exclaim, "whow!".  The pilot makes a loop and allows you to take in it's grandeur which leaves you wanting more, soon you're on the ground and meeting the local few that act as caretakers and tour guides.  As our group moves toward the roar of the falls the guide makes stops along the way and points out the indigenous fauna that only grows in that part of the world, he also introduces you to some tiny little poisonous frogs that again are found only at this spot on planet earth.  We make our way down a trail that resembles a prehistoric movie, seeing several different species of plants growing up the side of a tree and spider webs in the shape of a box. We walk across rocks dating back thousands of years, (which you're not allowed to touch or take, it's illegal to remove anything from the area).

At last you're brought to a look-out point and it's here that you have your first real introduction to what is heralded as the tallest single drop waterfall in the world.

80 % of the population lives on the coast line, so much of the interior is lived in only by the Amerindians.

 

I would love to have had the opportunity to do some trail riding here but I don't think a bike tire has ever laid it's tread mark on this sacred soil.

 

 

Our faithful guide.

 

Female on the left, both said to be poisonous but only to those predators that attempt to eat them.

 

This is the boxed shape web.

 

Another view down the trail.

 

This plant has a very soft leave which the locals use for toilet paper. It was actually much softer than the t/p we use.

.....something you have to see with your own eyes to fully appreciate.

 

This is a view of what lies down stream of the falls.

 

These pictures that follow are for your viewing pleasure. 

 

 

Cool ain't it!

 

Now let me talk some about our new friends, the Phipps family and those who came with them.  At the end of July they arrived all the way from England in the wee hours of the morning, tired but with smiles and eager eyes.  They started things out a bit rough, Mom forgot her purse on the plane and with it her credit cards and other essentials.  So after working through that ordeal they settled in and embraced the ministry and Guyanese culture with amazing ease and real enthusiasm.  During their visit with us they were able to start quite a number of bible studies and meet many who expressed a real desire to learn more about bible truth.

 

The Phipps family numbered five altogether, they are as follows: (left to right)
Adam, Melinda, Kevin, Iona, Kisiah (not sure if  those names are all spelled right)

 

 

....those who traveled with them were,  Olivia (on the left).....

 

 

....and Tom (far right).  My buddy Tom demonstrated real courage on the airplane ride, you see Tom does not like the take off part of flying and the pictures below shows his level of fear and determination to hold on till it's over.  He only screamed a little. :)

In addition, we enjoyed the company of some dear sisters who also came from the UK and shared in the preaching work. On that day our group of 12 JW's did what we do best, enjoy the amazing works of creation and have a great time doing it. Below are the girls. (left to right) Shantelle, Maxine and Rachael.

 

 

 

Here's the group in full color.

 

 

Well as you can see we've been very busy in our efforts to see new sights and spending time with our new friends.  But, now it's time to get back to the business at hand, our friends have all left us and gone back to their lives in the UK and the new service year is now upon us, so putting our best foot forward we stubbornly keep moving ahead and in the days to come we're anxious to see what new sights and new friends await us along the way. 

For those of you who are still reading our blogs, we say "hello" and miss you much.  Stay joyful and keep putting up a hard fight for the faith because it's worth fighting for!

                                                                   Scott & Crystal

Random Moments

Hello to all.  When I sit down to prepare our next post I have always tried to have some theme or purpose in writing.  But this time I've decided to go rogue and simply provide pictures of us doing random things with only brief comments for the moment captured in time.  Enjoy...or not.
 

 

Every Sunday the brothers get together and play soccer (football).  It had rained earlier in the day and so the pitch (field) was a mud pit and we loved every minute of it.

 

Sarah (from Indiana, USA) and I out in the ministry.  On Wednesday we work in a town called Rose Hall, at around 11:30 we usually all gather at a place called Spready's and have lunch.

   
   
Sometimes the neighbors garden grows over into our yard and we get to enjoy the spoils of his hard work.  This is a pumpkin that will get slightly bigger than this, once you cut if from the vine the locals say you can carve an X on the side ( just on the surface) then put it in storage and it will stay good for a long time.  Not sure if it's true, Crystal just cut it up and made soup and pies of out it, that I know is true.

Meet this guy out in the ministry.  I was amazed at how soft and friendly he was however I still felt like he was trying to figure out a way to steal my wallet. 

One of my favorite pictures that I've taken in Guyana.  Let me explain, when any painting is done here it usually ends up on everything and this poor little bee was no exception.  I just laughed when I saw this little fellow limping away from a freshly painted wall. 

How many would you like to order?  These little cuties are orphans, good Mommies and Daddies are desperately needed in this area.  Rum and drugs steal many of these children's parents away.

My lovely wife, enjoying the good life in Suriname.  We actually got a chance to relax and swim in a real pool.  Serving in Guyana, moments like these you cherish because they are few and far between.

The Deaf class of 2013, New Amsterdam Special Needs School.  For us, these kids are what it's all about.  All of them are so like able and easy to love and we do love'em all and hope the best for them.  Many of them are studying the bible with us and making good progress, others are slowly being drawn into the world and already suffering the consequences of bad decisions.  All you can do is point them in the right direction and hold your breath.

In closing, here a picture of the Savannah we pass everyday when riding out of our scheme.  It doesn't seem like much to us but to the people living in those rustic shacks it is their home and for most it is the only view of this world they will ever see.  I'm thankful to Jehovah for the hope we have and look forward to the day when all those living on the earth will have the opportunity to see what lies beyond the Savannah. 

So there you have it some random moments and brief comments. Crystal and I send our love and greetings to all.  Be safe.

Scott

Been Away To Long.

Seems like not so long ago that we posted the "House for Sale" sign in our front yard and began our first steps toward serving in another country.  Now, here it is almost two years later and we're getting around Guyana like natives, (with the exception of the local accent and word usage).  Anymore, (speaking for myself)  when I ride around town I find myself waving to countless people I know, the local snackettes and restaurants know my eating habits and begin getting my order ready as they see me coming.  I'm known by many who I myself do not know.  However, even with all this familiarity I still feel like we've been away to long and think often of what was, not so long ago. 

With Jehovah's support, Crystal and I have managed well and have settled into a comfortable, yet busy lifestyle. 

Pictures of our house and yard. 

 Together we're preaching long days, getting plenty of exercise and meeting good people all along the way.  Yet, not a day goes by that I don't see in my mind the face of some family member or hear the voice of a good friend whose company and conversation I miss.   I think a lot of the evenings I would go trail riding or when it was just me and my dog watching TV on the couch and eating way to much pizza, more me then him. 

My father and daughter.

 

Good friends...Jason & Danya

 

Mr. Gus, waiting on the pizza.

Serving in another country is amazing, but sometimes you feel like you have been away for so long.

I think it's important for any who are considering this avenue of service to GOD that they understand the unending list of things that you will forgo and at times painfully wish for again.  And what can also be difficult when trying to adjust to a new culture and lifestyle is accepting the fact the majority of the local congregation will not understand how much you've sacrificed, (although Jehovah is fully aware).   They see you as another one of the many who will come and eventually leave, so they might tend to be more reserved at getting close to you or embracing you as a "real" member of the congregation.  Now, let me be clear.  I'm not saying any of this to dissuade someone from taking a leap of faith and putting your complete trust in Jehovah because let me tell you the rewards of such courage is unceasing.

For instance, Crystal and I have drawn closer than we have ever been in our 19 years of marriage and we can't wait to see what's around the next corner in our sacred service. 

 

 

I can not begin to imagine what our lives would have been like had we stayed status quo, although I'm certain we would have been happy.  However our desire to do more has compelled us toward something many will never experience.  We have come to realize that so much of what we had we truly did not need, it was an anchor holding us in place.  We feel more prepared for the challenges that will come as we drift ever closer to the end of this system of things, especially when it might require walking away from our worldly possessions.  And of course the incredible privilege of helping deaf persons to learn bible truths in a language they can grasp and understand. Here a but a few....



This is Emil.  He is deaf and 71 yrs. old yet he rides his bike to the meetings, he lives near 15 miles away.

This is our beautiful Marianne. She will soon be going over the questions for baptism, she is 16 yrs. old and all her family are Hindus.

Me with Cordell.  He hopes to get married in December and build a house for his family.

Sorojini, Rosie & Crystal.  They are both deaf and recently baptized.

 

 So, at this moment this is where we are and if in the future we must move on and begin a new chapter in our theocratic history book, so be it.  And no doubt as time goes by in that new place I will inevitably start yearning for the days when we served in Guyana and feel once again that I have been away too long. 

We miss EVERYBODY!  Stay safe.
Scott & Crystal