October 2008

North America Branch Conference, Bellingham, WA. For 64 years Wycliffe translators have worked with Native and First Nations peoples of the U.S. and Canada in translating the Bible into their languages. Recent count was that this involved 55 indigenous languages of these countries. Currently we're involved in about ten and counting down. This conference, however, marked a milestone in that this was the final conference of the NAB as an entity. The baton of supervision was passed from the NAB to the Americas Group, which Martha and I have been part of for the past dozen years.

September 2008

Consultant Orientation Workshop, Dallas. It's very important to have "specialists" who can help us in the many aspects of a well-rounded language program. These are the folks who have special aptitude or experience in the fine points of linguistic analysis, or can advise on how best to put together a bilingual dictionary, or train in the best use of software designed specifically for the minority languages we study, or help translate those "impossible" verses or biblical concepts. These are "consultants," as we call them. For a week I lead a staff of eight experienced consultants lead a group of 13 consultants-in-training in this next step of their professional development and service to the minority language groups of the Americas. Sorry, but we forgot to get good group pictures.

July 2008

Consultant Skills Course, Horsleys Green, England. I was on staff for this two week course. It was a great learning experience, as in September I led a similar workshop for consultant trainees in the Americas Area. I have a zillion pics of the course and of the vacation that Martha and I had following the Martha joins me following the course. I can't resist the signs in English, that are understandable (generally) to us North Americas, but, well, they're just not expressed in the same terms we'd use.

June 2008

Mexico Branch Conference, Mitla, Mexico.  A first for me--to be with the Mexico Branch folks at one of their conferences. For years (in the 80's and 90's) these people had considerable restrictions on living and working in Mexico, and so they developed a workshop center in Catalina, AZ. But now visas are more easily obtainable, and this was their first biennial conference held at their workshop center in Mitla. Very enjoyable, and cozy, though perhaps a bit crowded for them. The highlight was in hearing the many field reports. Of Bible translation publications, of public showings of the Luke video, of literacy projects and classes, of insights gained because of linguistic research, of the interest of one or two people in suspicious villages, of signs of increased church use of the indigenous languages instead of Spanish. I had my own list of meetings with specific people:  the new Directors of Field Programs, the eight participants of the Consultant Orientation workshop I lead in September, and the new Scripture Use team. This was a very profitable time spent in the scenic setting of Milta. And yes, I ate out a few times too, and also saw the historicMitla ruins.

2008

Many trips, meetings, e-mails, planning sessions, consultations, reports, and phone calls. I'm not sure I'll even try to recapture the highlight events and trips of late 2007 and the first half of 2008. I've had trips to Waxhaw, NC, to Peru, to Panama, several trips to Dallas, to Grand Rapids, MI, and a visit to supporting churches in CA. The "team" I work most closely with are the nine Coordinators of academic and support domains, including Linguistics, Translation, Literacy, Publications, Computer Services, Language Assessment, and non-print Media, to name some. One of the highlights of this period was a Scripture Use Conference that our team planned, organized, and hosted in Bogota, Colombia. It was held entirely in Spanish, and 140 participants (indigenous, national, and expatriate folks) from Latin America attended. My Spanish isn't good enough, so I stayed home! But all reports are that this was an historic event, and the networking, the enthusiasm, and the practical workshops are creating waves that support the movement of using and applying the translated Scriptures throughout Latin America.

January 2007

Translation Checking in Chad, Africa. This was such a highlight for me that I can't bring myself to delete this paragraph. I got to spend three weeks in Chad checking translation. All this time checking was in the remote Guera region. Whereas it used to be (in the late 1980's) a grueling trip on uncertain sandy tracks, now half the way was paved. The people who hosted me and with whom I worked were great! Hospitality spilled out on every side! And to read the Scriptures for a solid week with folks of another major religion was simply a rare privilege. I could say a thousand more superlatives about the trip, but I'll leave just a couple pics to whet your appetite.