This blog update is a little different than our others! Besides the background and layout changes, the primary author has changed as well! This time, Amaury wrote and Catherine translated! For those who want to read the update in Spanish as Amaury wrote it, it is included first. The English translation follows under each paragraph! Enjoy!!

Hola!
Hoy es un bonito día. El sol esta brillando y mi computadora esta tocando alabanza para Dios, un día perfecto para hacer el blog por primera vez! La verdad es que no tenia idea de como se hacia, pero mi hermosa esposa con su paciencia me explico en que consiste.

Hello!
Today is a nice day. The sun is shining and Christian praise music is playing on my computer, a perfect day to do the blog for the first time! The truth is that I had no idea of how to do this, but my beautiful wife with her patience explained it to me.

Un día al final de mi clase de Protocolo y Etiqueta en la cárcel de hombres en Santiago, tuve que ir a la oficina encargada de educación de la cárcel buscar el listado oficial de los estudiantes, y cuando voy entrando se acerca unos de mis estudiantes que esta acusado por atentar contra el Presidente de la Republica anterior. EL me muestra una pintura y “Wow!” me quede asombrado al verla no solo por lo bonita que estaba, sino por el mensaje que lleva.

One day at the end of my Protocol and Etiquette Class at the men’s prison in Santiago, I had to go to the office of the person in charge of education at the prison to get the official listing of students, and when I entered, one of my students approached me who is charged with offences against the former President of the Dominican Republic. He showed me a painting, and "Wow!" I was amazed to see it not only how good it was, but also for the message that it carries.

El comenzó a explicarme el significado de la pintura, y fue el siguiente..
Un hombre sentado pensando cabeza abajo, lleva dos vida, un lado bien vestido y el otro destruido. Debajo de su silla al un reloj de arena que marca el tiempo que le queda para elegir una de las dos vidas. Pero al un problema el esta encadenado a una de esa vida y el reloj sigue corriendo. A cada extremo en la mano hay ejemplos de cada vida. La derecha posee todo los tipos de drogas que existen. La de la izquierda simplemente le ofrece 4 cosas: un gorro de graduación que represente el éxito, una llave que representa la entrada al cielo, una Biblia que es el mapa para llegar a Dios, y un regalo que representa la vida eterna.

He began to explain the significance of the painting, and he said the following ... A man is seated with his head down, he has two lives, one side is dressed well and the other is destroyed. Beneath his chair is an hourglass that marks the time remaining to choose one of his two lives. But the problem is that he is chained to one of the lives and clock continues running. At each end in the hand are examples of each life. The right has all types of drugs that exist. The left simply offers four things: a graduation cap representing success, a key that represents entry into heaven, a Bible that is a map to get to God, and a gift that represents eternal life.

En el extremo derecho detrás de la mano al un mundo oscuro y Satana esta representado por un búfalos. Del lado izquierdo, al mundo es claro y se pueden ver en los cielos los ojos de los Ángeles observándolo. La pintura muestra que cada persona tiene dos opciones en la vida, una lleva a destrucción y la otra a vida eterna, y el tiempo esta corriendo para hacer la elección.

At the far right hand in the back is a dark world and Satan is represented by a Buffalo. On the left side, the world is clear and the eyes of angels watching can be seen in the heavens. The painting shows that each person has two options in life, one leads to destruction and the other to eternal life, and time is running out to make the choice.

“Wow!” es increíble verdad! Y es el mismo objetivo que estamos buscando de ellos através de los clases mios, ayudarles elegir bien.

"Wow!" it is really incredible! And this is the same goal that we are hoping to achieve for them through my classes, to help them choose well.

En esto ultimo día me eh dado cuanta de la importancia de los curso que nuestros ministerio esta llevando acabo principalmente en la cárcel. El viernes 29 de julio fue la graduación del curso autosuperación y autoestimas donde 27 hombres de los 30 que empezaron la clase tuvieron la oportunidad de graduarse. De los otros 3, a dos les dieron la libertad y el otro esta enfermo de tuberculosis. Yo no sabia nada, por que solo el había faltado a una clase.

Recently, I realized the importance of the courses that our ministry is offering mainly in the prison. Friday, July 29, was the graduation of the Self-improvement and Self-Esteem course, in which 27 of the 30 men who started the class had the opportunity to graduate. Of the other 3, two were given their freedom, and the other is sick with tuberculosis. I didn't know anything about his illness, because he had only missed one class.

El dia que el falto de la clase, que fue dos semanas antes de la graduación, uno de sus compañeros se acerca a mi y me dice que Pablo Aria esta enfermo en el hospital y haber si yo podía irlo a ver le. Dije claro que si, y cuando termino la clase camino a mi casa me detuve en el hospital. Cuando llego al área donde estaba el habían dos policías cuidándolo. Me dejaron entrar sin problemas pues ya me conocían. El estaba acostado y al escuchar su nombre, levanto su cabeza. La alegría que el sintió al verme fue grande. Era la ultima persona que el esperaba ver por allá, y su cara reflejaba los que el sentía.

The day that he missed class, which was two weeks before graduation, one of his classmates came up to me and told me that Paul Aria is sick in the hospital, and he wanted to know if I could go and see him. I said of course, and when I finished the class and was on my way home, I stopped at the hospital. When I arrived at the area where he was, they had two policemen guarding him. They let me enter without problems because they knew me. He was lying down and when he heard his name, he lifted his head. He was very happy to see me. I was the last person that the expected to see there, and his face reflected what the felt.

Comencé a hablar y el me dijo que era tuberculosis. Me conmovió al oír esto, por que era uno de los hombres mas alegre de los cursos que yo he dado, pero los que mas me sorprendió fue cuando llego una hermana de este, la forma en que el le hablaba a su hermana de mi como profesor y de la clase que estaba recibiendo un 90 % de los que decía era sobre el curso. Me sentí alegre al saber que el curso estaba haciendo su trabajo.

He started to talk and told me that he has TB. I was shocked to hear this, because he was one of the more cheerful men in the courses which I have given, but what surprised me most was when his sister arrived, the way in which he spoke to his sister of me as his teacher and of the class made up 90% of what he talked about. I was happy to know that the course was doing its job.

El día de la graduación a pesar que el no estaba presente por que estaba en cuarentena en una are refringida de la cárcel para que la enfermedad no llegue a otros. Le enviamos su pedazo de biscocho junto a su certificado. A pesar que el había rebasado su limite de ausencia para graduarse por su enfermedad, el ya había demostrado que si podía graduarse.

He was not present the day of the graduation though because he was in quarantine so that the illness would not be carried to others. We sent him his piece of cake together with his certificate. Even though he had exceeded his limit of absences to graduate because of his illness, he had already demonstrated that he could graduate.
Pero una de las cosas que mas me hizo sentir bien el día de la graduación fue ver el 95 % de los estudiantes del curso de etiqueta y protocolo graduándose también en autosuperación y autoestimas.

But one of the things that made me feel the best on graduation day was to see 95% of the students of the Protocol and Etiquette course also graduating from Self-improvement and Self-Esteem.

Thank you for your continued support of and prayers for our ministry! When we experience days like the ones Amaury described, we are overwhelmed by the blessing it is to be able to share Christ's love with those in desperate need of Him here in the Dominican!

Con el amor de JesuCristo,

Amaury and Catherine

P.S. See below for pictures from the last few months ...

Graduations - Santiago Christian School, Amaury's second community-based Protocol and Etiquette class, and our Drama Group ...

Drama Camp in Palo Alto with Woodland Hills Christian Church ...

Construction of water cistern project in Palo Alto...