Before I talk wetin happen to us for the boat that day, make I talk how I start full-time service.

They born me for 1942 for one beautiful island wey them de call Curaçao. My papa na from Suriname, but e pack go Curaçao for work. My papa dey among the first Jehovah Witness wey baptize for Curaçao. a This one happen some years before they born me. My papa de always study Bible with us every week, even though say we no want study. When I dey 14 years old, my papa decide say we go pack go back to Suriname to care for our grand-mama.

For Suriname, I start to make friends with young brothers and sisters wey de serve Jehovah well for the congregation. This brothers and sisters senior me small, and they be regular pioneers. Anytime wey them de talk about the things wey they don see as them de preach, they always de happy. After we close from meetings, we de still talk about Bible topics. Sometimes, we de do this one as we de look the stars for night. This friends help me understand wetin I want really do with my life. I see say I really want work for Jehovah. So I baptize when I dey 16 years old. When I dey 18 years, I become regular pioneer.

I learn many lessons as I de pioneer, and this things wey I learn don really help me throughout my life for full-time service. For example, the first thing wey I learn na say e dey important make we train people. When I start to pioneer, one missionary wey e name na Willem van Seijl start to train me. b E teach me how to handle assignment and care for the congregation. That time, I no really know say this training go really help me well-well. For the year wey follow,  they make me special pioneer and after, I start to take the lead for some groups wey dey inside-inside the rain forest for Suriname. I really happy say brothers like Willem no waste time train me to sabi care for the congregation! Since that time, I don make up my mind to follow their better example to train other brothers and sisters.

The second lesson wey I learn na why e good to live simple life and to de plan things well. For the start of the month, me and my special pioneer partner de try plan the things wey we go need for the month. Then, one of us go travel far go the capital city to buy the things wey we need. Na sense we de use spend the small allowance wey them de give us and we de manage the things wey we buy so that e go last for the whole month. Because if any of the thing wey we buy finish, e hard to see person wey go borrow us anything. As I don learn to live simple life and to plan things well from small pikin, this one don help me to put all my heart for Jehovah work throughout my life.

Another lesson wey I learn na why e dey important to teach people the truth for their local language. As I de grow up, I learn to speak Dutch, English, Papiamento, and Sranantongo (They still de call-am Sranan), wey be the main language for Suriname. But for the rain forest, I see say people de like to listen to our preaching for their local language. E no dey easy for me to speak some of this language like Saramaccan wey de use high and low voice. But I happy say I work hard to learn the language. For many years now, I don teach plenty people the truth because I fit speak their local language.

The truth na say, I make plenty mistakes as I de learn this language. For example, e get one time wey I want ask one Bible student wey de speak Saramaccan language how e de feel as belle de pain-am. But since I no too sabi the language, na so I go ask-am if e get belle! Wetin I talk make-am shame. Even though say I make mistakes, that one no make me stop. I still try my best to speak the local language of the people for my territory.

They make me circuit overseer for the year 1970. That year I show one slide program wey the title na “Visiting the World Headquarters of Jehovah’s Witnesses” to plenty small-small groups wey dey inside-inside the rain forest for Suriname. To reach this brothers and sisters, me and some brothers de travel for river with one long boat wey they use wood make. We de carry generator, fuel, lantern and other things wey we go use show the slide program. When we reach the rain forest, we go carry all the things comot from inside the boat go the place wey we go show the slide program. One thing wey I no go forget na how this people enjoy the program. I really dey happy say I fit help brothers and sisters and other people for this area learn about Jehovah and the organization wey e de use for this earth. When I see how this one don make brothers and sisters hold Jehovah tight, e de really give me joy.

Even though say to dey single give me the chance to serve Jehovah well, I still see say I need to marry. So I start to pray make Jehovah give me wife wey go dey happy to join me and wey go fit endure the things wey we go face for full-time service for this rain forest. About one year after, I meet one sister wey be special pioneer. The sister name na Ethel. Ethel dey ready to work hard for Jehovah even if things no go dey easy for-am. From small pikin, Ethel don really like the example of apostle Paul wey do everything for the preaching work and e want be like-am. We marry for September 1971 and Ethel join me for the circuit work.

Ethel come from family wey no too get money, so e no too hard for-am to adjust to the circuit work for the rain forest. For example, when we de prepare to visit congregations for inside-inside deep forest, we no de pack plenty things. Na inside river we de bath and wash our clothes. And na anything wey the brothers give us we de chop when we visit them. Them de give us things like iguanas, piranhas, or other bush meat or fish wey them catch. Sometimes, when plate no dey, we de chop for banana leaf, and when spoon no dey, we de use our hand chop. Me and Ethel don see say as we de serve Jehovah together, we don dey close to each other and to Jehovah. (Eccl. 4:12) All the things wey we don learn as we de serve Jehovah, we no ever fit buy them with money!

One day when we de come back as we go visit the brothers for inside-inside the rain forest, na e the thing wey we be talk for the start of this story happen. As our boat enter the part of the river wey de flow fast-fast, the propeller of our boat jam rock. Quick-quick, the front of our boat enter inside water and e be like say we don sink, but the boat come up quick-quick. We thank Jehovah say we wear life jackets and we no fall comot from the boat. But water just full  inside our boat. We troway our food for inside the river and use the pots to bail the water comot from the boat.

As we no get food to chop again, we start to catch fish as we de travel for the river. But we no catch anything. So we pray to Jehovah and beg-am make e give us wetin we go chop for that day. After we pray finish, one of the brothers throw hook for inside the river and catch one big fish. The fish big sotey five of us wey dey the boat chop-am belleful.

After five years wey we don dey circuit work together, Jehovah bless us for one special way—we go soon be papa and mama. This one really make me happy, but I no know how e go affect us for future. Me and Ethel really want continue for the full-time service if that one go dey possible. For 1976, we born Ethniël our first son. And after two and half years, we born our second son Giovanni.

Because we no get plenty brothers wey go take the lead for Suriname that time, the branch office ask me make I continue as circuit overseer even as we de train our children. When our children dey young, they arrange make I de visit circuit wey no get plenty congregations. This one give me the chance to spend some week for each month to do circuit work and the rest of the week as pioneer with the congregation wey branch say make we dey. Anytime wey I de visit congregations wey no too far from our house, my wife Ethel and our boys de always follow me. But anytime wey I de visit the congregations or assemblies wey dey inside-inside the rain forest, na only me de go.

I de do my best to plan myself well so that I go fit do my work as husband, papa and circuit overseer well. I make sure say we no miss our family worship every week. Each time wey I de visit the congregations for inside the rain forest, my wife Ethel de do family worship with our boys for house. I de always do my best to make sure say we do things together as family. Me and Ethel de always go out to play together with the boys. We de play game or visit some fine-fine places wey no too far from our house. I no de quick sleep for night because I de use that time de prepare the plenty assignment wey I get. My wife Ethel, de do exactly like the better wife we Proverbs 31:15 talk about. E go wake-up very early for morning make our family fit do daily text and e go still cook so that we go chop  together before our children go school. I dey happy say Jehovah bless me with this kind wife wey don support me for all the assignment wey Jehovah don give me!

As papa and mama, we do our best to help our children to love Jehovah and the preaching work. Even though say we really want make our children choose full-time service, we no want force them. We want make they choose-am by theirself. We always de tell them the kind happy life wey full-time service go give them. Even though say we no hide the problems wey we face for full-time service, we always de tell them how Jehovah don help and bless our family. We still make sure say our boys make friends with brothers and sisters wey put Jehovah first for their life.

Jehovah give us the things wey we need as we de train our children. But I still try my best to support my family. The things wey I learn when I be de serve as single special pioneer for the rain forest don teach me why e good to de plan and save money for the things wey I go need to buy. Na true say we do our best to plan, but sometimes, we no de get everything wey we need. For this kind time, I believe say Jehovah really help us. For example, from 1986 to 1992, they fight war for Suriname. For that period, e really hard to get the things wey we need. Even with that one, Jehovah give us wetin we need to survive.—Matt. 6:⁠32.

Throughout our life, Jehovah don always care for us and help us to dey happy. Our two boys na blessing from Jehovah and we dey happy say Jehovah don give us the power to train them for the best way of life. E de make us glad say our children don choose to serve Jehovah for full-time service. Ethniël and Giovanni don attend some schools wey Jehovah organization don arrange, and now them de serve for the branch office wey dey Suriname with their wife them.

Me and my wife Ethel don de old now, but we still dey busy for the preaching work and still de serve as special pioneers. In fact, we dey busy sotey I never get time to learn how to swim! But I no regret my decision to serve Jehovah full-time. When I think about how I don use my life serve Jehovah, I see say my decision to enter full-time service when I dey young na one of the best decision wey I don make.