2009 was a year of change. We had a new US president inaugurated, and many felt the squeeze and some even the cold maw of the worst recession since the Great Depression, a period that was so formative in the lives of our parents (perhaps) and grandparents (for sure).
It also seemed like there were many deaths of people that we grew up hearing about, at least if you're my age--Soupy Sales, Farah Fawcett, Walter Cronkite, Ted Kennedy, Orel Roberts, Ed McMahon, Les Paul (the guitar guy), Mary Travers (of Peter, Paul and Mary), Billy Mayes, the TV pitchman who could sell anything for $19.95. But wait! Buy now and get one free! And of course, Michael Jackson. Videos showing us step by step how to moon walk were heavily hit in the aftermath of his death.
It was the year that most of us actually learned the technical name of the new flu virus-- H1N1, which intruded into lives and communities the world over. It was the year Chesley Sullenberger became a household name when he set his jetliner down in the Hudson River and every passenger walked away unscathed, most of them not even wet.
The big news for us in 2009 was the birth of twin grandsons, Jacob and Lucas, on Nancy's birthday, June 7. The boys were born to Elisa, our firstborn, and her Peruvian-born husband, Yury. The boys are the gift that keeps on giving as they become more aware of the world around them--and of each other as well. Linguists and language-learning children are meant for each other. I’m hoping their first word will be ‘grandpa.’
Nan and I completed our 32nd year in Wycliffe, and our 34th year of marriage. I'm still delighted to be married to such a godly and interesting woman-- and she doesn't look bad either, which is more than I can usually say for myself. Nan still has eyes just for me. I’m glad she’s nearsighted.
Elisa is as busy as only a mother of twins can conceive (no pun intended). She bathes, changes and nurses them mass-production style, and she works full time as a physical therapist. All the books about putting the babies on the same schedule sound wonderful, but the small print always reads "there's no guarantee that these ideas will work for you and your babies." So Elisa and Yury and Nancy and Molly, have been tag-teaming to care for these precious little ones. I get to carry the pictures around and show them to complete strangers in the grocery store. I never thought I'd stoop so low. But hey, they are something special.
Teaching-wise, we continue to get around, although Nan spends a lot of time helping Elisa. Molly has also come home to be near family and we're happy to have her back from Portland. Molly has a very memorable résumé. It starts out "I grew up in a Mayan Indian village." And it gets more interesting from there. Of course, Elisa and Isaac also grew up in a Mayan Indian village, but they've never had to compete with Molly for a job. Molly found several opportunities, and she works again in sales, but not on commission. Isaac continues to pursue the dream of fulltime music, although he's wise enough to realize that it is his dayjob at Starbucks that pays the bills. The band has good reason to hope that this will be their year, and maybe next year's Retrospect will feature the meteoric rise of Joy in Tomorrow.
Uncle Isaac and both boys at six months.
Aunt Amalia and one-day old Jacob.
In 2009 we split our teaching time between Peru and Guatemala. I continued to co-direct CILTA, a course set up to train Spanish-speaking university students in the linguistic skills needed for cross-cultural ministry. Actually, training is only part of the total package. 
These folks need the support of their local churches and pastors, they need care and supervision on the field that is normally oriented toward English speakers, and they need continuing education in their areas of expertise. For now, we are only involved at the training end of things, but we would appreciate prayer for these people as they help lead their churches into fuller understanding and commitment to the speakers of the oft-forgotten languages of the world. We had a class of 16 in 2009 plus a handful of teaching assistants who are former students of CILTA. The training is basically the same content (much updated) as Nancy and I had at the beginning of our own linguistic pilgrimage that started back in the 70's. Around 90 students have gone through CILTA training and approximately 75 of them are currently on the field or preparing to go somewhere around the world working to promote God's Kingdom among speakers of largely unknown languages. CILTA 2009 was our largest class ever. Students came from Mexico, El Salvador, Venezuela, Colombia, Peru, Argentina and Chile.
Also in 2009 we returned to Guatemala, the birthland of our three adult children. Whereas CILTA teaches native Spanish-speakers who intend to work with indigenous people, CLAVE (Applied Linguistics Course for Vernacular Communities) works directly with the speakers themselves. I direct this program as well. Most of our CLAVE students don't have the academic training of their Latino counterparts, but they are fluently bilingual and extremely well versed in the politics of speaking a minority language in the midst of the globalizing influence of Spanish and even English. Our CLAVE students may do a homework assignment on Tuesday and then on Thursday post it to the web for comments from their indigenous colleagues back in their villages. The payoff is almost immediate, since those we work with are deeply entwined in their communities and committed to literacy and Scripture-use as ways to prod their people toward faith and Christian practice. At the same time, UNESCO has argued that nativelanguage literacy builds cultural identity, self-esteem and life options, especially for women.
This may sound "nice" and unassailable to you. After all, who could be against literacy among the world's poor and ignored? Well, it isn't as straightforward as you may think. Another thing I did in 2009 was attend a conference on Amerindian languages at the University of New Mexico (where I shared a meal with my younger brother, Miller, and his wife). I was stunned to hear many native Americans say that the writing of their languages was unacceptable, that their languages were alive and majestic and fluid and that reducing such noblesse to scratches on a sheet of store-bought paper is the equivalent of casting pearls before swine. So while some laud the effort to bring native-language literacy, others see it as an imposition of the West on the last bastion of resistance left to minority speakers--the decision of what to do with their own language. If you'd like to read an academic account of the whole idea of SIL's work among speakers of the world's minority languages, and if you have access to a University library (or to an inter-library loan service, like OhioLink) see the September 2009 issue of Language, the world’s leading journal in Linguistics. It is a pretty even-handed account of the pros and cons of the work of missionary academics among the cultures of the world.
Of course, we, just like anyone else, operate from an ideology, one informed by the Scriptures that promise that before Christ's throne at the end of the age, people from all tribes and tongues and ethnic groups will rally around. At the banquet of the Lamb there is room reserved at the table for speakers of any and all languages. I believe that the work of missionary linguists will help bring this to pass. It's also intriguing that those who argue against the reduction of their languages to writing are themselves literate academics. What they depend on (in English), they deny to others. One man at the conference who argued forcefully against literacy in his native tongue is the last living speaker of his language. He is over 70 years old. When he dies, the language will be gone, and all his protestations against literacy in light of his language's majesty will be sand in the hourglass. Is this helpful?
The argument is that this is their decision, not ours. We shouldn't impose. OK. But do we have no right to state an opinion? And a prediction? If languages are not written, their longterm future is bleak. In my view when a language is lost we are all diminished to some degree, just like when God-given native species are lost. Part of the creation--either God's (in the case of species) or humanity's (in the case of language)--is gone. Perhaps a part we never knew existed. How much could we have learned from these now-silent voices?
These are extremely complicated situations. The simple stating of an opinion, when that opinion is held by supposedly "prestigious" outsiders with PhD's and foreign credibility, and seemingly endless dollars to help promote literacy and provide jobs in literature production and teaching, inevitably tilts the scale toward acceptance of Western values.
What we have to remember is that Western academics have ideologies, too, one of which is that religion is deeply culturally embedded. This is clearly true. They therefore believe that to remove or alter religion is to do damage to the entire culture, just like driving around on a flat tire affects the wear on the other tires. They also assume that what you believe is really your own business and that in the end we all die and it's over. What gets you through life is one thing, and the afterlife is a myth anyhow, so it doesn't matter what you believe. Of course, most of you reading this think that what you believe does matter. So understanding the message of life in Christ is great news and worth comprehending in the language we speak and know best. For most of us that's English, but certainly not for everyone. They have a right to hear it too. People are a lot more dynamic than tires. They think new thoughts and come to new conclusions because they live in a world that changes, and we really can’t say that accepting a Biblical worldview does damage to their cultures. In fact, in many languages around the world it is precisely the Christians who are most committed to keeping their languages and cultures alive, because they see that God has reserved a spot for them in glory, and they are justifiably proud of their linguistic and cultural diversity. It reflects so positively on their Maker, who loves all people, and whose Good News is available to all.
So we find that working with speakers of indigenous languages is exciting and meaningful-- and timely. Some scholars feel that 90% of the world’s languages will be lost in this century. So we keep plugging along.
So what's ahead in 2010? The Winter Olympics in Vancouver. The World Cup in South Africa, mid-term elections in the US. All promise to be hotly contested. Toyota is dealing with a major recall which puts in jeopardy their role as the world's leading car manufacturer. And war drags on in Iraq and Afghanistan. Haiti continues to dig out from the rubble of their overwhelming earthquake. May God move His people to make a difference there.
Iran with nukes and the resultant strain with Israel will almost certainly make the world a less safe place, while talk of the end of the world stemming from the Mayan calendar that is winding down, plus the disdain for dwindling resources and additional severe political tensions makes mention of Armageddon all the more timely.
Our encouragement is not in the ability of men and women to dig us out of trouble, but in the Lord who holds the world in His hands.
As for Nan and me, we plan to be involved again in Peru at CILTA for a semester, from mid- March until mid-July. I will be co-director again and teach two courses. We also plan to direct and teach at another CLAVE. We expect 25 indigenous students from 10-12 different languages. This will take place in the Amazon jungle. It’s steamy there, but we’re looking forward to it. We would appreciate your prayers for these opportunities.
Nan's folks will be celebrating 60 years of marriage in a few months, Lord enabling. We hope to commemorate that with them and Nan’s sisters and their families in late May.
May we all experience God’s peace in difficulty, and His pleasure in our joy.
I’m quite aware that I’ve been a little heavy this Retrospect on the twins, but there’s one more shot of Elisa Dawn, Yury Vicente, Jacob Wesley and Lucas Vincent Santana Collins.
God’s best to each one.
Wes and Nancy Collins
