“Looks like we’ve hit a few potholes in the road.”
Dear friends and family,
A couple of days ago, John Obnadum and I were slogging through some really oblique verses verses in the Aruamu draft of Isaiah. When you check translation drafts, you first need to understand the meaning, the deep structure of the original text. Then you evaluate the text in the target language, to make sure all the meaning is there, both explicit and implicit. And you evaluate the translation, adjusting and/or reworking as necessary to make sure that it is accurate, clear, and natural.
Isaiah has a lot of poetic, figurative language, “picture talk,” as Aruamus like to call it. Before you can put a biblical image into a tribal language, you have to be clear on the meaning of the image, so that the way you render it makes sense. Also, you want to use eloquent, elegant language, so that the poetic feel, and impact on the hearer comes through well.
In the section we were working on that day, the Hebrew is unclear. The Septuagint (Greek) translation of it did odd things with it. The commentaries present potential senses of the text, but there is not consensus among them. It takes a lot of digging to work through sections like that.
On normal days we tend to average around 35 verses per day. But by then end of that afternoon we were mentally exhausted and we had only worked through and handful of verses. Ugh! That was when John Obnadum said, “Well, it looks like we hit a few potholes in the road today!” Ha! So true. (John O. is actually quite good at expressing figurative language, especially in his own mother tongue!)
Truthfully, our whole last month has had significant “potholes.” There is one big one, for which we especially need your prayers. My husband, Nathan, was in Baylor hospital for 9 days right after Independence weekend, initially with unexplained fevers. After many kinds of tests, Xrays, and evaluations, a CT scan showed pneumonia in both lungs. Thankfully, it has responded well to antibiotics.
We have known that Nathan has congenital aortic valve stenosis, and that someday the valve would likely need replaced. It was evaluated 18 months ago as being at a “moderate” stage. However, in the process of analyzing the cause of his fevers, doctors ordered and EKG, TEE, and also a Heart Catheterization, and the data shows that his valve stenosis has reached the “very severe” stage. His cardiologist is calling it “critical.”
Nathan is still in the process of getting his strength back after the pneumonia. He is back at work, but taking breaks when he needs to. He is trying to walk 3 or 4 kilometers every day. We are making appointments with appropriate doctors. It looks like open heart surgery would probably happen in early October.
We would appreciate your prayers are we walk this road. Life is a walk of faith. Sometimes, there are indeed potholes!
Love in Christ,
Marsha
(for Nathan – and John and Martin, as well!)
