Sunday, Over and Out

Wonder Daddy and I spoke in church today, in Spanish.  Wow, that's a sentence I never thought I'd type.  When Hermano Barrio announced that I would speak next, he turned around and smiled encouragingly at me (I was seated behind him, at the organ), and then faced forward to start frantically motioning another man in the congregation to come and sit on the stand and translate for me, in case I completely foundered/needed assistance.  What Hermano Barrio didn't know was that I was clutching a small pile of papers- most of my address was quotes pulled from already-translated sources, and I translated everything else I meant to say.  In the 8 minutes I was speaking, I never once looked up from those papers!  But with a prayer in my heart, and doubtless in the hearts of the kind people in our branch, I think I gave the message that needed to be heard today.

In a nutshell, here is what I said:
To have happier and peaceful homes we need to:
1)  Show and express love to our family members often.
2)  Tell our family members often what we believe.
3)  Be consistent.  If you decide something is important for your family, ALWAYS do it.  Even if you think no one is paying attention, they'll remember that you thought it was important enough to do it consistently.

Ernie has been thinking more and more about the differences between our old and new church.  First, it was the heart-stopping statement "We used to go to the white church, but now we go to the brown church!"  (Our old building had a large white spire on top, the one we attend now is dark brown bricks.)  Then it was the constant questioning "How do you say that in Spanish?"  That line of inquiry was quickly followed by "I can speak Spanish!  oxoblepishfillup."

Today, while I was speaking, Ernie sat with Mimi and Wonder Daddy, quietly coloring in her books.  She stopped, looked up, and loudly exclaimed while pointing at me "DADDY!  SPANISH!"

So at least I impressed SOMEONE today!  :)