Mi born lo May 19, 1940, lo Amioûn, wanfala smol taon lo Lebanon. Tu-thri year bihaen, famili blo mifala muv go lo bigfala taon blo Tripoli. Mi growap lo naes famili wea worshipim Jehovah God. Mi garem thrifala sista and wanfala brata and mi nao last born lo famili. Dadi and mami blo mifala mek sure mifala garem wanem mifala needim. Bat tufala tinghae lo olketa spiritual samting tu, olsem for go lo olketa meeting and helpem pipol for savve lo God.

Samfala anointed Christian stap lo kongregeson blo mifala. Wanfala hem Michel Aboud, buk study conductor blo mifala. Hem lanem truth lo New York, then hem kam lo Lebanon lo 1921 for startim preaching waka. Mi no savve forgetim hao hem barava helpem Anne and Gwen Beavor, tufala sista wea kasem assignment lo Tripoli bihaen tufala graduate from Gilead Skul. Tufala sista hia kamap gudfala fren blo famili blo mifala. Bihaen staka year, mi hapi for meetim Anne moa lo United States. Then no longtaem bihaen mi meetim Gwen. Hem maritim Wilfred Gooch, and tufala waka lo branch office lo London, England.

Taem mi smol boy, no staka Witness stap lo Lebanon. Nomata olsem, mifala Witness waka hard for preachim gud nius lo pipol. Mifala gohed preach, nomata samfala bigman blo religion trae for stopem mifala. Mi tingim yet samfala samting wea happen lo datfala taem.

Wantaem mi and sista blo mi Sana, preach insaed lo wanfala apartment building. Samwan mas talem priest mitufala preach lo there, so hem kam faendem mifala. Hem start for tok spoelem Sana, then hem pushim hem go daon lo ladder. Sana garekil so samwan ringim police and olketa kam for faendaot wanem hem happen. Olketa tekem priest hia lo police station and olketa faendemaot hem garem wanfala gun. So bigman blo police askem hem: “Iu wat kaen man ia? Iu bigman blo religion or iu bigman blo wanfala rabis gang?”

Lo narataem, kongregeson blo mifala haerem bas mekem mifala go preach lo wanfala farawe taon. Mifala barava enjoyim preaching waka, bat then wanfala priest faendaot mifala lo there and hem hipimap staka pipol for kam raosem mifala. Olketa tok spoelem mifala and sutim mifala lo ston. Dadi hem garekil, and mi tingim yet hao full feis blo hem blood. Mami wakabaot witim hem for go bak lo bas, and mifala evriwan followim go tufala. Mi no savve forgetim wanem mami talem taem hem klinim blood lo feis blo dadi. Hem sei: “Plis Jehovah, forgivim olketa wea duim diswan bikos olketa no savve lo wanem olketa duim.”

Nara samting wea happen hem taem mifala go bak lo Amioûn for visitim olketa relative. Taem mifala go lukim grandadi blo mifala, wanfala bishop lo haos blo hem. Hem savve Jehovah’s Witness no baptaesim olketa pikinini. Nomata mi six years, hem askem mi: “Why nao iu no baptaes yet?” Mi talem hem, from mi pikinini yet mi need for studyim Bible firstaem mekem mi garem strongfala faith bifor mi baptaes. Hem no hapi lo wanem mi talem, so hem komplen lo grandadi blo mi and sei mi no showimaot respect lo hem.

Kaen samting olsem no savve happen staka taem bikos hem wei blo pipol blo Lebanon for kaen and welkamim pipol. So staka taem olketa lisin lo message from Bible and mifala garem staka Bible study.

Taem mi skul yet, wanfala young brata from Venezuela kam holiday lo Lebanon. Hem attendim olketa meeting lo kongregeson blo mifala and hem laekem sista blo mi Wafa. Gogo tufala marit and go stap lo Venezuela. Bihaen datwan, Wafa raetem staka leta lo dadi for sei hem laekem famili for muv go lo Venezuela from hem barava misstim mifala. Gogo dadi and mami disaed for tekem full famili lo Venezuela!

 Mifala arrive lo Caracas, Venezuela lo 1953. Haos blo mifala stap klosap lo big haos blo president blo Venezuela. From mi young, mi laekem tumas for lukim president go pas insaed lo expensive car blo hem wea garem draeva. Bat parents blo mi faendem hem hard for stap lo difren kantri bikos olketa mas lanem nara languis and culture, kaikaim difren kaikai, and weather hem difren from hom. Tufala just start for getius lo laef lo Venezuela, then wanfala nogud samting hem happen.

Dadi hem start for sik. Mifala sapraes bikos hem man wea strong and healthy and no savve sik. Mifala faendemaot hem garem cancer. Olketa operatim dadi bat bihaen wanfala week nomoa hem dae nao.

Mifala evriwan sorre tumas mifala lusim dadi. Lo datfala taem mi 13 years nomoa. Mifala seke hem dae and mifala missim hem tumas. For longtaem lelebet, hem no isi for mami acceptim dadi hem dae. Bat gogo mifala luksavve mifala mas deal witim wanem hem happen, and Jehovah barava helpem mifala. Mi finisim hae skul lo Caracas taem mi 16 years, and mi barava laek for duim samting for provaed for famili blo mifala.

Bihaen dadi hem dae, Sana, sista blo mi, maritim Rubén Araujo. Hem graduate from Gilead Skul and hem kasem assignment for kam bak lo Venezuela. Bihaen tufala marit tufala muv go lo New York. Gogo, famili disaed for mi go lo university lo New York and for stap witim tufala. Tufala barava helpem mi for fren gud witim Jehovah. Olketa mature brata lo Brooklyn Spanish kongregeson wea mifala attendim encouragem mi tu. Tufala wea mi barava tinghae lo olketa hem Brata Milton Henschel and Brata Frederick Franz, wea waka lo Brooklyn Bethel lo datfala taem.

Taem mi klosap finisim first year lo university, mi start for ting raonem sapos mi laek for gohed skul lo university. Mi readim and ting raonem olketa article lo Watchtower magasin wea storyim hao olketa Christian shud garem olketa spiritual goal. Mi lukim olketa brata lo kongregeson wea pioneer and waka lo Bethel olketa barava hapi, and mi tu laek for olsem olketa. Bat mi no baptaes yet. Mi luksavve hem important for dedicate lo Jehovah firstaem. So mi duim datwan, and then mi baptaes lo March 30, 1957.

Bihaen mi mekem datfala important disison for baptaes, mi start for ting raonem nara disison for duim regular pioneer waka. Mi laekem tumas datfala idea, bat mi luksavve bae hem no isi for skul lo university and for pioneer tu. Gogo mi raet go lo mami and olketa brata and sista blo mi and talem olketa mi disaed for finis lo university and kam bak lo Venezuela mekem mi  pioneer. Olketa raetem kam staka leta for storyim tingting blo olketa abaotem datwan.

Mi kam bak lo Caracas lo June 1957, bat mi lukim laef blo famili hem no isi. Mi luksavve mi mas waka for selen for sapotim famili, and mi kasem full-taem waka lo bank. Bat mi barava laek for pioneer bikos hem nao why mi kam bak lo hom. So mi disaed for waka and pioneer lo semtaem, and mi duim datwan for samfala year. Nomata mi busy tumas, mi barava hapi tu!

Nara samting wea mekem mi hapi hem from mi frenim and maritim Sylvia, wanfala sista from Germany wea muv kam lo Venezuela witim parents blo hem. Hem naesbola sista wea barava lovem Jehovah. Gogo mifala garem tufala pikinini, Michel (Mike) wanfala boy, and Samira wanfala gele. Then mami tu kam stap witim mifala for mifala lukaftarem hem. So mi mas finis from pioneer waka for sapotim famili blo mi. Nomata olsem, mi barava laek for duim preaching waka, and mitufala Sylvia savve auxiliary pioneer samfala taem wea hem fitim.

Tufala pikinini skul yet taem mi start for tingim hao olketa neiba ting lo mi, olsem mi storyim lo start blo article. Lo datfala taem mi luksavve pipol bae sei laef blo mi hem gud, and olketa tinghae lo mi from mi bigman lo bank. Bat mi laekem olketa for tingim mi wanfala Jehovah’s Witness. Mi gohed for tingim datwan, and gogo mi and Sylvia story abaotem hao mi savve katdaon lo waka. Taem man wea waka longtaem lo bank hem resign, bank savve givim big selen lo hem. So from mifala no garem kaon, mifala luksavve sapos mifala garem simpol laef mifala savve iusim datfala selen for sapotim famili for longtaem.

Hem no isi for mekem datfala big disison, bat Sylvia and mami encouragem mi. And mi hapi tumas from mi savve pioneer moa! Plan blo mifala set nao. Bat samting wea mifala no expectim hem happen.

Mitufala barava sapraes for faendemaot Sylvia babule. Nomata mitufala hapi, mi tingim from mifala bae garem baby datwan bae affectim plan blo mi for pioneer. Nomata olsem, mitufala start for luk forward for garem nara pikinini lo famili. Bat waswe lo plan blo mi for pioneer?

 Bihaen mitufala Sylvia story abaotem diswan, mifala disaed for gohed witim plan for mi pioneer. Boy blo mitufala Gabriel hem born lo April 1985, and lo June 1985 mi resign from bank and start for regular pioneer. Then gogo, mi kasem privilege for waka witim Branch Komiti. Branch office no stap lo Caracas, so for tu or thrifala day evri week mi travel for samting olsem 80 kilometer for kasem lo there.

From branch office stap lo taon blo La Victoria, mifala disaed for muv lo there mekem mifala stap klosap lo Bethel. Datwan hem bigfala disison and mi barava tinghae lo wanem olketa lo famili duim for sapotim mifala and hao olketa willing tumas for help. Baha, nara sista blo mi, tekem mami for stap lo haos blo hem. Mike, firstborn blo mifala hem marit finis, bat Samira and Gabriel stap yet witim mifala, so tufala lusim olketa fren blo tufala lo Caracas. Sylvia tu mas getius for stap lo smol taon wea no olsem big taon blo Caracas. And mifala evriwan mas getius for stap lo haos wea no big olsem haos blo mifala bifor. Tru tumas, hem bigfala change for mifala evriwan taem mifala lusim Caracas for go stap lo La Victoria.

Bat gogo, samfala samting change moa. Gabriel marit and Samira muv aot from haos. Then lo 2007, mitufala Sylvia kasem invitation for kamap Bethelite. Hem privilege wea mitufala enjoyim kam kasem distaem. Distaem Mike hem elder and pioneer, and Monica, waef blo hem tu pioneer. Gabriel and waef blo hem Ambra stap lo Italy, and hem wanfala elder. And Samira hem pioneer and remote volunteer for Bethel.

Mi disaedem staka important samting lo laef blo mi and mi hapi lo evri samting mi disaedem. Mi thankiu lo Jehovah for olketa privilege wea mi kasem lo organization blo hem. Mi lanem lo olketa year wea go pas hao hem important for gohed fren gud witim Jehovah. Nomata iumi mas disaedem barava important samting, Jehovah savve givim iumi peace “winim nao wanem man savve minim.” (Phil. 4:6, 7) Mitufala Sylvia barava hapi for gohed waka lo Bethel and mifala luksavve Jehovah blessim olketa disison blo mifala from mifala tingim hem bifor mifala mekem olketa important disison.