“Sometimes I Think I Am Dreaming!”

Lourdes gazes at the city from her apartment window, her fingers covering her trembling mouth. She is a Latin-American woman who suffered at the hands of Alfredo, her violent husband, for over 20 years. Alfredo was motivated to change. Yet, it is still difficult for Lourdes to speak of the physical and emotional pain she endured.

“It started just two weeks after our wedding,” Lourdes says in a low voice. “Once, he knocked out two of my teeth. Another time I ducked, and his fist smashed into a wardrobe. But the names hurt even more. He called me ‘useless rubbish’ and treated me as if I had no intelligence. I wanted to leave, but how could I with three children?”

Alfredo touches Lourdes’ shoulder tenderly. “I am a senior professional,” he says. “I felt humiliated when I was issued a summons and handed a protection order. I tried to change, but soon I was acting the same way again.”

How did things change? “The lady at the corner shop is one of Jehovah’s Witnesses,” explains Lourdes, now visibly more relaxed. “She offered to help me understand the Bible. I learned that Jehovah God values women. I started attending the meetings of Jehovah’s Witnesses, even though at first it made Alfredo furious. It was a new experience for me to spend time with friends at the Kingdom Hall. I was amazed to discover that I could have my own beliefs, express them freely, and even teach them to others. I realized that God valued me. This gave me courage.

“There was a turning point that I’ll never forget. Alfredo was still attending Catholic Mass each Sunday, and he was protesting at what I was doing with Jehovah’s Witnesses. I looked him straight in the eye and said calmly but confidently: ‘Alfredo, what you think is not what I think.’ And he didn’t hit me! Not long after, I was baptized, and he has never hit me again in the five years since.”

But greater changes were to come. Alfredo explains: “About three years after Lourdes was baptized, a colleague who is one of Jehovah’s Witnesses invited me to his house, and he explained fascinating things to me from the Bible. Without telling my wife, I began to study the Bible with him. Soon I was accompanying Lourdes to the meetings. Many of the talks I heard there were about family life, and these often left me feeling embarrassed.”

Alfredo was impressed to see congregation members, including men, sweeping the floor after the meetings. When he visited their homes, he saw husbands helping their wives wash the dishes. These small incidents demonstrated to Alfredo how true love acts.

Shortly after, Alfredo was baptized, and now he and his wife serve as full-time ministers. “He often helps me clear the table after meals and make the beds,” says Lourdes. “He commends me on my cooking, and he allows me to make choices—such as what music I would like to listen to or what items we will buy for the house. These are things that Alfredo would never have done before! Recently, for the first time, he bought me a bouquet of flowers. Sometimes I think I am dreaming!”

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“I realized that God valued me. This gave me courage”

[Picture on page 10]

Alfredo was impressed to see congregation members, including men, sweeping the floor after the meetings

[Picture on page 10]

He saw husbands helping their wives wash the dishes

[Picture on page 10]

“Recently, for the first time, he bought me a bouquet of flowers”