Don Jíbaro's Note: My wife
Irene wrote this and sent it to her friends on her email
list. I'm on her list, so I got it, too! I wept as I read
because I had complained the day before that "nobody loved
me." Besides feeling like a first class heel I also felt a
deep, deep comfort to know how she sees me.
Ode to
Don Jíbaro
By Irene F. Vázquez (Mrs. Don Jíbaro)
ednesday, November 25th was Orlando 61st
birthday. He has lost over sixty pounds. He
keeps telling his stomach, "You're going
down, baby!" He eats fish and no red meat...
He's playing his guitar and cuatro
regularly. He sings his favorite hymns and
Puerto Rican anthems that reminds him of his
beloved island.
He continues to maintain his website,
www.jibaros.com, which promotes Puerto
Rican culture to those interested in Puerto
Rico and to those Boricuas outside of their
island. It is a magazine-style website and
he has the Gospel—the good news of Jesus
Christ—fitted in there!
He's accompanying my third graders with his
guitar each week for our upcoming Christmas
program. His favorite Bible verse is John
15:13, "Greater love hath no man than this,
than to lay down his life for a friend."
For as long as I've known Orlando, he has
tried to live by these words. Throughout the
years we've had people staying with us,
eating with us, or he's been out looking to
see who he can give a helping hand to.
Sometimes, he's even stopped to buy a burger
for a person holding out their hands...and
not just a burger but a carton of milk to go
with it!
The first day I met him, he shared his faith
in Jesus Christ with me. He told me that if
I married him, Jesus would always come first
in his life, but that I would come second.
He discipled me (taught basic Bible
doctrines) and made sure I understood what
that meant and we married six months later.
That was way back in 1978. That faith in
Jesus Christ is the glue that keeps our
family together.
Orlando is always trying to share what ever
he knows with whomever is willing to learn
it. He is generous and hospitable with his
time, possessions, and whatever money he may
possess...he would give it all away for a
friend.
Happy Birthday , Orlando, we're proud of you
and glad that you're in our lives!!! Our
prayer is that our Lord's will is to allow
you a long life serving him and making
people happy!!
From the one who
knows you best,
IRENE,
"Many waters cannot quench love,
nor the floods destroy it..."—Song of
Solomon 8:7a
With a makeshift music holder, Orlando plays for the
children.
A crusader for garlic... 3 cloves a day!
A young family pastor in South Gate, CA
One of his birthdays... he got Jimi Hendrix.
The Family... (clockwise) Orlando, Irene, Samuel, Grandpaw, Frances,
Raquel.
"I was hungry, and you gave Me food; I was thirsty, and you gave
Me drink; I was a stranger, and you took Me in..." —Matt 25:35
donjibaro@gmail.com
This is the bottom line
“Live in such a way that no one blames the rest of us nor finds fault with our work.” —(2 Corinthians 6:3)
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