The Watchtower, Study Edition, April 2006. Life Story

Jehovah has trained me from my youth, as told by David Splane. The picture shows brother David

Splane working at his desk. I stared at the slip of paper that the brother had just handed me.

On it were the words,

David Splane, April 8, 1953,

proclaiming the world's doom.

What's this? I asked.

The brother answered,

this is your assignment to present a talk in the

Theocratic Ministry School. The footnote reads, today this training is part of our midweek

meeting. I protested. I didn't sign up for this. But I am getting ahead of myself. I was born during World War II in Calgary, Canada.

In the late 1940s, a young pioneer named Donald Fraser knocked on our family's door, and mother

accepted a Bible study. She fell in love with the truth, but serious health problems prevented her from being

very active in the congregation. Still, she progressed to baptism in 1950. Sadly, she passed away

less than two years later. My father was an unbeliever at the time, but he agreed to have the witnesses conduct her funeral service.

A few days after the funeral, an older anointed sister named Alice invited me to attend a congregation meeting.

She knew me, because I had been going to weekend meetings with my mother when she was well enough to attend.

I asked my father if I could go.

He agreed, and decided to go with me just once, to thank the brother who had given the talk

at my mother's funeral.

That night, the Theocratic Ministry School and service meeting were held.

It would have been impossible to pick a more appropriate

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