Enderles in Diaspora: Enderle Update

This weekend you may have raked some leaves, bought a pumpkin or watched college football – all signs that fall is in full swing. This year our fall has been different compared to last year, but busy none the less. What have we been doing this fall in Portugal?

Portuguese Class: This past month we have spent more time hitting the books. Normally we meet with Marta, our instructor, for 2-3 hours a day. In addition, we have been meeting with two tutors, Flaviana and Anna, for an hour or two a few times a week. We enjoying using the café downstairs for studying and homework. It is a great feeling to understand what people are saying to you, but we still have a long way to go before we sound like natives.

Visitors: There hasn’t been a month yet when we haven’t had visitors to Portugal. This month Pastor Larry Schlomer from Latin America was here for a week followed by Pastor John Buchholz and his wife Sandy for another 4 days. We hosted the Buchholzes at our house and were able to spend a day touring the Douro river valley with them.

Football: No, not soccer, real American football. Jeff started the season with a 3 day training camp in a small Portuguese town near the Spanish border. Unfortunately he hurt his hamstring during the first practice, proving he is not as young as he thought he was. He practices twice a week and, although the coach speaks English during the workouts, Jeff has been learning lots of new Portuguese words from the other players.

Izaak: While we are studying, Izaak has been staying at the infantario. His two teachers, Amelia and Sonia, report that he is very bem disposto (happy). He weighed in at 7.3 kg at his last doctors appointment. (That’s 16 lb for those of you who aren’t familiar with the metric system.) He loves playing in his saucer, sticking things in his mouth and testing out different screeches, gurgles, and coos.

Big Trips: As you read this Jeff and Bill are on a plane flying to Mozambique. They will be gone two weeks and have a lengthy “To Do” list while they are there. Most important, they hope to register our church with the Mozambique government and apply for work visas. Soon after they return, both of our families will fly to Germany for a retreat with other WELS members in Europe. After the retreat we will spend a few extra days touring some Luther sites.

Prayers: Keep both our family and the Meiers in your prayers as Bill and Jeff travel. Hopefully both men stay healthy during their two weeks in Africa and both moms stay sane. J Pray also that the registration process goes smoothly for our church so that we can make plans for our move to Nampula.