A Greeting From A Cockroach

     I awoke to the sound of the pilot’s voice over the intercom. Although my vision was foggy and my eyelids were pretty much stuck together, I caught a glimpse of the majestic Andes’ Mountains out the airplane window. The grand white peaks towered above the surrounding red earth. The mountain’s grandeur is indescribable, but grander yet, in my eyes, was the fact that seeing the Andes meant my 24 hours of travel were almost over. I would soon be on the ground and my body was really looking forward to laying horizontal. As the airplane screeched to a halt on the runway I took a deep breath. Another cross-cultural adventure in my walk of faith with God had just begun.
     A wave of heat and humidity hit me in the face as soon as I got off the airplane. Oh, my goodness! Talk about hot! Praise God, I obtained a visa without difficulty and the immigration official waved me on toward baggage claim, ushering me into another life adventure. Holá Bolivia! I claimed my luggage, cleared customs, and connected with my new family outside the airport. After an enjoyable, amazingly spacious (there were only 3 passengers total in the taxi, a nice change from the cramped cabs in Africa) 30 minute taxi ride, we pulled in front a fair sized, gated, two story house with a sign in front of it reading: Juventud Con Una Misión, Bolivia (Youth with a Mission, Bolivia- YWAM), my new home.
     The base leader here at YWAM escorted me to my room and gave me permission to un-pack, shower, and settle in. I was the first girl to arrive so I earned the privilege of picking my bunk-bed, first. I took a few steps into my new sizeable room and received a greeting from a cockroach. Oh, dear! Forcing the image of the punk cockroach out of my mind, I went about the process of selecting my bed. With heat soaring through my veins, I went directly for the bunk in front of the door, hoping that in that bed there may be some blessed cross- breeze in the middle of the night. I was getting ready to put my sheets on the bed when I looked closely at the window right above the headboard and noted there was no screen. Okay, breeze or not, no screen on the widow, a perfect entrance for insects, particularly mosquitoes…you following me??? I believe my time in Bolivia will be an adventure, but I don’t want malaria to be part of it! Therefore, I ended up settling for the bed in the far corner, near a window WITH a screen.
     I began the un-packing process, but I did not get very far; I unpacked just enough of my suitcase to find a towel, washcloth, showering items, and a change of clothing. The base leader had told me I could flip a switch on the shower apparatus, to get hot water, but I certainly didn’t need hot water, considering I was almost certain that drops of cold water could have boiled on my skin. As the cool shower water reached my skin, a smile of pure satisfaction spread across my face. I stayed in the shower for awhile, until I felt thoroughly cooled off, then I reluctantly turned off the tap. I took my towel, dried, myself, and tried stay cool by picturing the piles of snow I had left behind only hours before. But, before the images of the snow banks could form in my mind, I was wet with sweat again! Yikes!
     Throughout the rest of the day and evening, I worked on un-packing a few more items, I survived and actually enjoyed my first meal, and then headed to bed. I lay in my bed sweating and wondering what in the world I had gotten myself into to. But, you know as they say, “time will tell” and I will do my best to keep you posted during that time. Blessings!

What is Laura up to?

     I sat in front of the nursing desk on the ward. I reviewed the patient census and looked at staffing for the night shift. With the recent addition of three crew members in the ICU with malaria, staffing was going to be tight. As I allocated patients for night duty, a new nurse, with a European accent, asked for my assistance in determining an IV drip rate manually, being from a first world country, she was not used to counting IV drip rates, in her hometown, a machine normally did the counting. After setting up the IV, I snatched a precious black baby off the ward floor and smothered the baby with kisses. Although I could not communicate with the baby’s mom, she gave me an affirming look as I used charades to ask permission to take the baby down the hall with me. I carried the baby in my arms toward the pharmacy. It was after hours and as charge nurse, I held the keys to the pharmacy. As I was retrieving the med one of the ward nurses had asked for, my pager beeped. It was the security guard from the gangway calling; a patient was outside the ship needing help.
     On my way to the gangway, I delivered the med I had retrieved to the ward and I found a translator to accompany me to the gangway. Outside the ship, near the gangway, I found a shy, African woman, with fabric wrapped around her head and neck; she timidly curtsied as I approached. With my translator’s assistance, I learned the woman had traveled two days to seek help from the ship. When I asked the woman what troubled her, she cautiously pulled back the brightly colored fabric that covered her neck. The mass she had hidden under her scarf was at least the size of a grapefruit, she definitely needed help. I arranged lodging for the woman and gave her an appointment card to return to the ship the next day. My heart was heavy as I spoke with her, I knew our surgery schedule was almost full, I did not know if we would actually be able to help her. With the woman’s permission, I took her hands in mine and prayed God’s will be done in the situation. I returned to the ward, ordered patient meals for the next day, printed out the night nurses’ patient assignments, kissed a few more babies, fetched supplies, sorted out translator needs, and ended my evening charge nurse shift.
     I love my job and the volunteer work I do with Mercy Ships, www.mercyships.org, the faith-based, charitable, non-governmental organization/hospital ship that travels the world bringing hope and healing by offering FREE world-class health care to the world’s forgotten poor/ my home for the past 17 months. My time in Africa, aboard the ship, has been absolutely amazing. In Jesus’ name, it is my pleasure and joy to live in close quarters, in a foreign country, working for free, away from the comforts of home. I absolutely love being involved in medical missions and I am truly living out my childhood dream. At the same time, the work I do is intense, demanding, and strenuous. I love what I do so much; it is time for a change and I am journeying to South America.
     I know many of you are probably confused and wondering why I would be leaving Africa if I love it so much. Honestly, this past year was very emotionally, mentally, and spiritually taxing for me. But, I know, without a doubt, that God has called me to more years of medical mission work and to fulfill that call, I need some more spiritual renewal and training. I must fill up before my tank is empty, so that I can give back more in the future. Therefore, I will be taking the next 5 months to refuel-train in Santa Cruz, Bolivia with a group called Youth With A Mission (YWAM), www.ywam.org the very organization that actually birthed Mercy Ships. The mission of YWAM is to “know God and make him known.” I have enrolled in YWAM’s “Discipleship Training School.” I will spend the majority of my 5 months with YWAM in a classroom setting studying topics such as the character of God, forgiveness, restoration, hearing the voice of God, missions, service, and the Holy Spirit. There are over 150 YWAM centers-bases around the world where one can receive Biblical training, but each base also has a specific ministry-service area or focus. Bolivia is one of the few YWAM bases with a medical ministry. YWAM Bolivia has a medical van that travels around providing care to street kids. During evenings and weekends, I hope to be involved with this ministry as well as working with other youth that have been rescued from the streets, the life of drugs and addiction, or trafficking.
     I am excited about this next chapter in my life. I know many of you may be wondering why I don’t just step-back and return to the USA for a break. Great question, I have no intellectual answer for you, except, that is not where God is leading me. God is the master designer of our lives. I believe he is weaving together a beautiful tapestry out of your life and mine. Sometimes he uses the same color for a long time, other times; he intertwines little splotches of color, life chapters here and there, into the design. I trust he knows what he is doing. Kansas-Idaho-Canada-New Hampshire-Africa-Bolivia… I am okay with that!
     I would appreciate your continued thoughts and prayers as I head to Bolivia. There are a number of ways you can pray for me:

1. Pray for my health- Considering I will now be living on land & off the ship, I will be exposed to many more tropical infections that my body is not immune to.

2. Pray for my safety- I will be flying, driving, walking, traveling, not always in the safest territory, and it goes without saying, I need the Lord’s protection.

3. Pray for my YWAM team - Pray for our unity, strength, faith, & energy as we serve.

4. Pray for cultural adjustments- I will be continuing to learn Spanish. Pray for my relationships as a single woman, as I attempt to build friendships with the Bolivians and my team.

5. Pray for my future direction- My 5 months with YWAM will go quickly. What’s next…Do I return to the ship? Enroll in a tropical nursing course to gain more understanding of the illnesses I encounter? Do I apply to a land-based mission hospital?


In His Service,
Laura Ziulkowski