Alexis deTocqueville

More than 150 years ago, French statesman Alexis DeTocqueville came to America looking for the secret of its greatness. He wrote:
"I sought for the greatness and genius of America in her commodious harbors and her ample rivers — and it was not there … in her fertile fields and boundless forests — and it was not there … in her rich mines and her vast world commerce — and it was not there … in her democratic Congress and her matchless Constitution — and it was not there. Not until I went into the churches of America and heard her pulpits flame with righteousness did I understand the secret of her genius and power. America is great because she is good, and if America ever ceases to be good, America will cease to be great."

Good Bye Timoteo

I wanted to share a bit about our dearly loved Chilean cat "Timoteo" who we had to put down on good Friday. He was practically a wedding present for Claudia and I from two boys in our youth group in Chile, and was quite a handful at first, breaking more of Claudia's dishes than the two of us put together, literally scaling 8 foot shelves to distroy Claudia's dry flower arrangement and using my tool box as his prefered litter box! We even joke about the time Claudia told me: "either the cat goes or I go!". Thankfully over the next few years he became not only part of our family but a wonderful comfort and indication of where our home was at any given time. He moved with us to three different homes in Chile, two in California and two here in Miami which didn’t bother him as long as we were present. The only times we saw him depressed was when we had to travel for furloughs, fundraising or the occasional vacation. Whenever we returned he would ignore us for about half a day, but then be right up in our laps after that. He always enjoyed stretching in front of a fire in CA or getting so close to our kerosene stove in Chile that he regularly burned his whiskers off, and whenever there was a lap available he was on it, or if Claudia and I sat down together he would park himself on one lap yet stretch his paws to be in constant contact with the other. Before kids, he would follow Claudia around the house and snooze wherever she happened to be working. If she moved, he would quietly follow. His world was rocked when Jeremy and Nico were born, yet despite the abuse of two toddlers who didn’t understand the word "gentile", he never injured or retaliated for the tail, ear or whisker pulling. Over the past year the boys learned better how to express their love to him through brushing, petting and semi-suffocating cuddling. Being an indoor/outdoor cat and good Chilean mouser who loved to play with his food, he came down with a mouth infection over a year ago that we tried repeatedly to treat without success, so we tearfully said good by to him on Good Friday, thanking the Lord for the blessing of being able to love him and enjoy his company for well over 11 years. He was an amazing missionary cat that showed us unconditional love much more resembling a canine than any other feline I’ve had. Claudia, the boys and I will miss him yet thank God for him.