In third person he calls me “My wife.” It gives me butterflies every time I hear it.

We were pronounced Man and Wife over thirteen years ago. That is why I call him, “My Man.”

The slow grown feelings finally found root next to the deep waters in my heart. The twisting and twining has never stopped. What is the name of that lovers seed, that couples seed, that was pressed deep in our soil by the thumb of the Master? Nameless, it is. Timeless, it is. Matchless, it is with one exception. The Bride and her Husband-man: the eternal epic. The story of Once Upon a Time that ends in Ever After. That is the wooing every heart hears drawing them to the feast of Love, Heaven’s bounty. Priceless yearning is God’s I-Love-You times infinity.

This post and the following snap shots of our undying Friday Night date ritual is dedicated to My Man, DaRonn Washington. I love you, Babe!

Mrs. DaRonn Washington came on the scene 13 years ago today. You could say that we are teenagers now. It feels the same as when you first get to tack that teen onto the back of your age. You wait for people to ask you how old you are so you can say thirTEEN. Yep, I am a very happily married woman. Giddy, some might say.

Of the multitudinous list of things that I could say to laud my husband I will choose a mere 13 to share this evening. I thank God for the wonderful man He has given me.

1. During our first weeks of marriage DaRonn would bring me flowers all the time. When they got droopy I pitched ‘em. He asked me about it one time; why I didn’t save them or dry them or whatever. I told him I really didn’t get into flowers that much. So he stopped buying them for me. I love him because he doesn’t buy me flowers.
2. Before that when we were just hanging out as friends in a group but I had my eye on him the topic came up about outrageous proposals. I spoke up and told the group that the man who proposes to me will know that all that preposterous proposal business is out of the question. I think my husband-to-be was listening from his side of the table at Denny’s because his proposal was simple. I love my husband because he listens to me.
3. On our honeymoon my husband asked me to rate our marriage from 1 to 10, 10 being the best. I put a big fat 11 on my paper. He put a 7. I thought it was a silly game. He said to me that there are always things we can grow in and get better at. I love my husband because he never stays the same, he is always getting better. (But I would still give the marriage an 11.)
4. During our first months of marriage I would cry myself to sleep worried about this or that. DaRonn told me not to worry about making mistakes. When I would mess up and burn the peas or not get the dishes done he would applaud me. I love my husband because he loves my mistakes.
5. Once my husband bought crabs and prepared them for us in our kitchen along with artichokes and melted butter. It was one of the best meals I have ever eaten. I love my husband because he knows how to do stuff that would surprise some people.
6. When we were still deciding about all this mission stuff we wall papered our rented walls with maps. Then we would spin and point and say we were going “there” to serve God. I love my husband because even when we don’t know what to do at least we can throw a dart or spin a finger and head in some sort of direction.
7. DaRonn bowls good. I drink good coffee. I love my husband because he invests good in our interests.
8. When my husband talks about me to other people he says, “My wife.” I love that he says that.
9. I have seen my husband cry. I love that I am married to a man who is strong enough to cry.
10. Have you seen my husband with our kids? They adore their papa. I love my husband because my kids love him.
11. I had one of those ‘lists’ about the man I would marry. I prayed over that list from the time I was 7 years old. I kid you not. My list was simple: walks right (physical and spiritual), loves kids, farmer (yeah, this ended up being a spiritual thing, I am cool with that) and will take me all over the world. The God part was a given seeing as I was taking to God about him. Me and God had that understanding, you know. He is all these things and many more. I love my husband because he lets me check things off of my lists.
12. He is sooooooo handsome! Oh my!
13. Just today he said to me, “I don’t want you to feel like I am neglecting you or anything.” Wow. That is pure gold right there. I love that he is so kind, courteous, caring, protective, thoughtful and good to me.

I love you, DaRonn!!!

Dear Little Mama,

You don’t know me and I don’t know you. Still, I need to tell you something. I want to ask you things, too. Like, when did you first feel her move inside of you? When your belly started to grow did people rub it? Did you ever speak to her before she was born? Was your morning sickness unbearable or hardly noticeable at all? Did you crave funny things like peanut-butter and pickle sandwiches? Did you love her? When your hand would massage an achy muscle or a weary bone would you wonder about her hands? When your feet would be sore at the end of a long day lugging around an engorged stomach would you wonder about her tiny feet? When you were out of breath from walking up stairs and your heart was pounding in your chest did you ever hope that one day you would bring your precious daughter up to your shoulder so that her heart could touch yours and be calmed as you patted her softly on the back and whispered hush? Did you doodle her name? Did you catch yourself swaying instinctively as you held your body? Did you care?

Guesses and speculations surrounding your situation are shoved in front of me and read like the weather report. Little Mama, you are not a situation. You are not a case or a report in a file. Little Mama, you are a life. It was because of your life that this precious and marvelous girl came into my life.

Little Mama, you have blessed me. You have given to this world a miracle and a treasure. You have birthed a dream come true.

Did it hurt? Was the labor long? Were you alone? Did you cry? Who held your hand during the hard parts? Who moved your hair out of your face when it was all over?

Specialists list off the statistics; I block them out. I am thinking of you Little Mama. I am thinking of how tall you are, and how many of your birthdays were celebrated. I am thinking of your face as I look at hers. Your jaw line, your hair line, and your laugh lines, are they the same as hers? I am thinking of your skin. It was once as soft, beautifully brown and new as hers is.

Now, I want to tell you something. My heart to your heart. Are you listening? I want to tell you: thank you. Thank you for giving me my daughter… your daughter. Thank you for letting her grow inside of you. Thank you for giving her the first light she ever knew. Thank you.

For this indescribable gift you will forever hold a very special place in my soul. I love you Little Mama.

Your baby’s mama,

Angie

Now, on with the crunchy, munchy, mixed-up life I lead…

• This morning we awoke to snow capped mountains on all sides. This was just the icing on the cake to falling asleep to the sound of a steady rain. This weather is uncharacteristic for a Cochabamban winter, but much welcome.
• In the last month I have received more than a dozen foot related gifts by way of visitors, friends and my husband. How fun to have new slippers, socks and shoes. Oh, and most of the socks are reminiscent of the Pippi Longstockings era. So fun! She is one of my most beloved childhood personalities.
• DaRonn, my husband, is planning a bunch of trips to the States in the coming months for the purpose of raising funds. If you are interested in organizing a group (small or large) that he could talk to then let me know, please.
• The next question after ^that^ bit of info is usually, “So, are you coming with him?” I would love to. If it works out I may. The way it is looking now is that we will bring the whole family up after the adoption is finalized and all the paperwork of our new daughter is in order to allow her to travel internationally. That is when I will come. It has been about 2 and 1/2 years since we all have been to the States. That is a long time.
• Since DaRonn leaves for his first trip to the the States this week I am thinking I might give driving a try. We have a truck and the clutch is a bit heavy. Since the surgery I have been feeling stronger every day. I want to get back on the road, but I don’t want to strain anything that is still healing. We will see how it goes.
• It has been over a month with the new design. I really like it. I hope you do, too. With any layout there are always some little things that you are not quite happy with; that is to be expected. One of those little things here at the @ is the fact that the home page does not display the posts so you can read them on your first click to @ngie. I was aware of that when we were setting this up. My designer came up with a solution. It is the ‘blog’ link on the page directory. If you follow me using the favorites listing on your browser’s tool bar then you can add this address to avoid going to the home page every time you come to the @: http://www.angiewashington.com/blog/ It is a complete list of all my posts. Use the ‘next page’ at the bottom to go to older posts.
  

  image is a link to the 'blog' page

• There is a new video on the Billboard.
• Ending on a fun note… Choquito said to me the other day, “Who is your boyfriend, Tia Angie? I know who it is! The pastor is your boyfriend!”

Mas el fruto del Espíritu es amor, gozo, paz, paciencia, benignidad, bondad, fidelidad, mansedumbre, dominio propio; contra tales cosas no hay ley.*

Go ‘head. Give ‘er a try. C’mon, it is not as hard as it looks.

First clue: these are the first verses I memorized in Spanish.

Second clue: it is a famous list; notice all the commas?

Third clue: the seventh word there is ‘amor’, you may be more familiar with the Italian word ‘amore’.

Got it yet?

This is the list of the fruit of the Spirit found in the twenty-second and twenty-third verses of the fifth chapter of Galatians. If you have this list memorized then you will be able to translate the Spanish for the English and find that after patience come gentleness. The Spanish word is: Benignidad [bvay . nee . ghnee . thad]

- o -

We were newbies in Bolivia. After a ladies tea at my house to get to know some of the matriarchs at the church we were attending I pulled Señora Estanfi to the side. She had been a tough nut to crack. Her especially aloof demeanor made it especially difficult to swallow the intimidation and let my tongue fumble through a request I had for her. I pointed to a note pad where I had meticulously transcribed from the bible the verses I wanted to memorize. Then I showed her my mini-recorder. I was finally able to make her understand that I wanted her to read the verses aloud whilst I recorded her voice so that I could practice by listening and repeating the recording.

Her eyes widened behind thick spectacles. Her thick, penciled-in eyebrows made an appearance above the rims. She even allowed a pursed grin to grace the area below her upturned nose. Raising her hand to her chest in a mock symbol of humble disbelief her shoulders knew that this was their cue to square themselves in preparation for proper, prideful presentation. She made a sidelong glace to a few of her friends to be sure that they saw her. Assured that they were watching, she cleared her voice, closed her eyes and agreed to help me.

I handed her the note pad and pushed play and record on my mini-recorder. As I lifted the apparatus closer to her face she was much obliged to relieve me of my tiresome responsibility of holding the machine. Snatching it up she began the reading. I was relieved to know that the play and record button both stayed in their descended positions as she dictated. This was not the last time I was to be made to feel like that constricted and repressed little mini-recorder at the hand of an all knowing elder. That is ok with me. The cost of learning is often a big helping of humble pie.

In this case the pie was a mixed fruit variety. Thanks to that dear woman’s act of sacrificial kindness I was able to memorize my first Spanish verses: the fruit of the Spirit.

- o -

I was reminded of this comical experience that I hold so dear to my heart as the doctor gave me the report from the pathology lab. Benign. She actually said, “Benigno, todo benigno.” That was what I had hoped and prayed for. The possible alternatives lurked in the corners of my mind taunting me. They fled from their crouching position as the light of the pronounced truth burst forth in my heart.

ma·lig·nant \mə-ˈlig-nənt\adjective 1 a obsolete : malcontent, disaffected b: evil in nature, influence, or effect : injurious c: passionately and relentlessly malevolent : aggressively malicious2: tending to produce death or deterioration <malignant malaria> ; especially : tending to infiltrate, metastasize, and terminate fatally <a malignant tumor>**

be·nign \bi-ˈnīn\adjective 1: of a gentle disposition : gracious <a benign teacher>2 a: showing kindness and gentleness <benign faces> b: favorable, wholesome <a benign climate>3 a: of a mild type or character that does not threaten health or life ; especially : not becoming cancerous <a benign lung tumor> b: having no significant effect : harmless <environmentally benign>**

Tears of gratitude came twice. First, at the initial revelation. Second, when my husband told me, “I am so glad you don’t have cancer.” Yes, I am so thankful to the Lord! Personally, I would not describe this whole ordeal as physically, spiritually or mentally gentle. In comparison to what may have been, what many people are fighting against right now, I have come to understand that  it really was a benign experience. The fruit of the Spirit of ‘benignidad’, gentleness, (that, by the grace of God, has been place in my life) has a deeper and more precious meaning to me now.

Thank you, God, that you are gentle. When my opinion is that what you are doing in my life could not be described as gentle, forgive me. Please, let your gentleness grow in me.

* Verses from La Biblia de las Americas
** Definitions from Websters

One of the 99
for me is just fine

One in a hundred
gave cause to dread

“One step at a time
we’re gonna be fine”

One Hope I had
though I teetered a tad

One word: begnin
How are you? I’m fine

The long and short of it is that the ovarian cysts which were surgically removed from my body on Saturday were benign! Thank God!

This morning an early Mother’s Day greeting found it’s way to my inbox. It seemed fitting to share with you the sentiments of my family. Mothers, I hope that this weekend you feel appreciated, loved, and valued.

Link to see it: http://family42.blogspot.com/2009/05/try-jibjab-sendables-ecards-today.html

In other mom news… it has been a while since I gave an adoption update.

In a word: paperwork. Somehow our ability to accumulate documents, stand (semi)patiently in line, pay fees and blindly follow instructions given to us by lawyers and government officials is proving that we are suitable parents. We are so close to the next big step as we get this and that together. Big step: present our intent to adopt to the judge. To do that we have to have all the right documents. Hopefully, a document that is being process which we are picking up Monday afternoon will be the last one we need to be able to do that. I will be so glad when we have our official request in. So glad.

In closing, I am interested in hearing what is super about your mom. Why not share a comment?

Happy Mother’s Day!

… connecting heart to heart. Creating the connection is the fun part. Just think of all the resources that we have at our fingertips for creating and nurturing connections with other human beings. This phenomenon fascinates me.

The following are some recent tangible connections with some friends that I have received as gifts. Thanks guys!

Blogging friend: Joy Forney. This is the shirt I bought with the gift certificate I won from a drawing she did on her blog.

Thanks Joy!

Facebook friend: Amanda Truxal. Amazing what a little status line can lead to. Oh, they are so yummy!

Peeps!

Mountain mama friend: Kathy Grant. This woman lives by the motto “See a need and meet it“. Amazing.

Easter Candy!

Santa Cruz friends: Claudia and Limber Benavides and their three precious children Angie, Elias, and now Jimmy Caleb. I got to meet this little 12 day old wonder yesterday. The unconditional time they give me is their gift.

Welcome Jimmy Caleb!

Pastor friend: Brian Zahnd. He wrote this book! It is in Spanish and English. So cool! The English copy hard back is signed. Wow!

Signed!

Sister friend: Peri Zahnd. We share a deep love of books. Every time we are together we talk about books, recommend books and, of course, give books.

Books!

New friend: Lacy Inscho. This gal came to Bolivia to photograph the kids of the orphanage. She ended up doing a full professional photo shoot for the Washington family. This is the first time we have had professional photos taken. What a wonderful gift!

"Whiskey!" (it's the 'say cheese!' of Bolivia)

by the way…

that vlog was officially my first vlog.

and that was exactly my 400th post.

i love it when stuff like that happens out of the blue.