The Ackermans

The Ackermans

Friday, February 16, 2007

An Email


I just got an email from a sort of acquaintance from my college days. Actually Diane was one of the pastors of the church Jodie and I attended and Paul, her husband helped out with youth while he spent most of his time in the seminary in order to finish his graduate degree.

To be honest Diane and I were not all that close. She was certainly friendly but when push came to shove I was more of a person on the outskirts of her realm of influence. I really wasn’t all that great a guy. I certainly didn’t dress like a church leader. And it was maybe that self image that gave me the idea that neither Diana nor Paul really cared if they ever really “knew” me. I figure everybody has people in their lives like this so you probably understand the situation. Or maybe I’m just a paranoid.

Eventually Paul and Diane moved from Anderson and settled into a church somewhere up in Michigan. Then after a few years the news started coming that Paul was having some physical problems and was eventually diagnosed with cancer. It seems that Diana now works in a local hospice program while Paul continues to go in and out of remission and continues to have less and less strength for living daily life. But they keep on holding on with a faith far beyond anything that I could ever come up with. If life hit me hard like it has this lovely couple I would fold. Then she says how much she respects and appreciates our work here in Haiti.
John
That’s just not fair. I wasn’t ready for that one. Now don’t get me wrong, I want people to think highly of our contribution to life in Haiti. But I feel like a real nothing when good people who are struggling every day for their last breath continue to do far more in their neighborhood then I ever did.

And So It Goes. Not only in Haiti.

Monday, February 12, 2007


Valentine's Day
Valentine's Day will be here in exactly two more days. That is not a very hard thing to remember around our house. It's not that I'm a natural at those love kind of things but I am married to a lovely young lady who really gets into it. This is a picture of Jodelle (Jodie) my wife of 30 years now. Isn't she pretty? This is one of my favorite pictures of her. For some reason she doesn't take a very good smiling picture so I just have to enjoy this picture and imagine that she's telling me how much she enjoys me with her eyes. Actually she seems to get irritated with me when I say that she's not photogenic so I've given up trying to tell her that there are simply people who, EVEN THOUGH THEY ARE VERY BEAUTIFUL, are difficult to photograph well. Now, does that sound like criticism to you? You need not answer.
So anyway I just felt the need to introduce you to Jod. I am blessed beyond anyone I know to have found such a great wife. She even likes me and those persons are hard to come by. We have fun together, actually talk with each other every day, and try to make some time for each other. In the missionary field there are many couples who are forced to spend periods of time apart. I'm sorry but we don't do that unless absolutely necessary. When I got married I got spoiled at having this lady with me almost all the time and I don't do well when we're separated. At the end of May I will be leaving Haiti early for knee surgery and Jodie and Jessica will be flying in about two weeks later, which should give me a chance to get up and walking prior to their arrival. But know, I'm already living in fear of those days. As I said, I don't do well without her around.
And So It Goes!
John

Thursday, February 08, 2007

Ain't This Neat?
I never really thought about where a cashew came from and how they got into those little cans. I only had three basic thoughts about them. First, I really liked to eat them. Secondly, they were really expensive. And thirdly, they are high calorie fat bombs. You can tell by the simplicity of my statement that I really had never done a lot of intense research on this topic. If I saw them in a dish at a wedding or grad party I would usually park myself near enough so that I could make the best of a nice situation. Other then that, well you can see how deep a thinker I am.
Last year at a missionary retreat that someone invited me to attend I found this little puppy on the table. Isn't it cute. These things grow on trees. Yes, one nut to a fruit! Get this! The nut that looks like an apple stem is encapsulated with a very tough pealing and below that pealing is a layer of very toxic pith (good word?) that covers the nut. So what this means is simply that Cashews are harvested by hand. Persons who clean the nut prior to roasting them must wear gloves to protect their hands and work hard to get the nut out. Then they go and sell it in a can for somewhere around $5.00. Can you imagine that? If I were doing that much work I would charge at least $50.00 for just my work. And we get a can of these for $5.00 or so. Doesn't that make you want to run to the store tonight and buy them out of this GREAT DEAL!
Isn't it amazing what you can learn on these blogs?
And So It Goes