praying for peace in Guinea & answered prayers

As my translator was reporting to me that he had just finished calling the list of patients I had asked him to call, our conversation was interrupted by the sound of the intercom overhead.  I held my breath- knowing that among the few reasons the ship’s intercom system is used- is for emergency medical team calls.  And even though I have lived in the ship’s environment for over four years now & we have miraculously few emergencies in our hospital- I still hold my breath and instinctively start praying as soon as I hear the intercom’s static erupt through the routine of my daily life aboard the ship.

I breathed a sigh of relief as I heard “Attention crew- attention crew- this is the captain speaking.” Thankful there wasn’t a medical emergency in our midst, my heart calmed and I listened to the captain.  The captain announced that once again because of the growing political unrest and tension here in Guinea- that he had received word that within the next day or two there were threats of protests and riots in town.  Therefore, there would be “restricted shore leave, no coming or going, and only mission critical travel- as approved by the captain alone.” The captain reported he would keep us aware of changes in the situation and that crew should frequently check The Captain’s Notice Board- where critical information is communicated.    

After an announcement of that type- some would expect me to feel fear or frustration over the danger just around the corner or cancellation of planned adventures- but neither fear or sadness over cancelled adventures to the market or beach were on my radar- instead- I found myself angry & with a bunch of repeat phone calls to make….

I was angry as I reflected on the fact that it does no good to have Mercy Ships in country- or to be one of the blessed patients that makes it onto our surgery schedule before it fills up, if patients cannot get to us.  My patients don’t need any more resistance in their fight to get to us…the patients here battle fears we wouldn’t even think of-they have been told stories of what will happen to them if they go to the ship- their elders & chiefs remind them of folks the same skin color as me who not long ago- sailed away with their loved ones on ships- chaining and imprisoning them, religious fears, threats of being disowned if they come to us, unimaginably difficult roads to traverse, fear of water, walking for miles and miles, selling everything one has to get here, these people do not need more challenge in their lives….now riots, protests, taxi strikes…When is enough…enough???

Battling my frustration at injustice & the enemy (because I truly believe many of the struggles we face in this life are not against flesh & blood- Ephesians 6- & the enemy is the one trying to steal, destroy, and disappoint the people of Guinea) I took a deep breath and looked at my translator and told him all the patients we had just called to come into the ship had to be called once again because I wasn’t going to be able to drive with them to the local hospital (related to the ships’ lockdown) to obtain the CT Scans they have been so patiently waiting for while Mercy Ships’ CT Scanner has been on the fritz.  Bless my humble patients- some of them had been waiting for more than 4 months for their CT Scans, since Mercy Ship’s CT Scanner first started having trouble months ago.  Some of these precious patients had already had their appointments for CT Scans with me changed more than 4 times back in the fall, when we thought our CT Scanner was on the mend. I would schedule their appointment after receiving the shipment of a few vital bio-medical components from the USA& Europe only to find we needed more parts and had to cancel their appointments. Then we would receive more parts for the scanner and I would call my patients to come in again-trying to give them travel time considering some of them have to travel more than 2 days to reach me, just to find out we needed more parts for the machine to be fixed.  I asked my translator to call each of the patients again and to explain that each of them is very important to me and to Mercy Ships, that we were so sorry for the inconvenience and would call them again soon to reschedule their appointment and that I would not forget them. 

I listened as my translator spoke to one of my patients on the phone. I interrupted him and gently asked him to please say exactly what I had asked (my French is improving rapidly).  Although translating exactly what I say- should be a given in translation, it isn’t…and sometimes that is good as I have learned that culturally things need to be said differently- and I have asked my translator to tell me that- not just change what I say- but other times- what I am asking to be said is just so foreign- my translator has deemed it not necessary to translate.  More frustration mounts in my heart- I truly want to communicate to my patients how important they are to me- that I am not like others who have promised them something and never give it, but this is hard to express when I cannot communicate directly with my patients & up until now- I haven’t been able to provide tangible evidence that I do care for them and their needs. 

I pray that somehow my patients will understand they are cared for and loved by me, Mercy Ships, and far more important than either my love or Mercy Ships’ love, they are loved by God!  I ask again that my translator verbally acknowledges and tells my patients that they are important to me and I value them.  My translator looks at me with a blank face…At first I feel myself becoming more frustrated, but then it hits me that maybe my translator has never been told that he is important or valued…Sobering thought…There are many in this world that have never been told they are important or valued… if you fall into that category; let me be the first to tell you…YOU ARE IMPORTANT & VALUED… I try to explain to my translator the value in being told that you are important and that not only the physical needs of my patients are important to me- their emotional and mental frustration mounting with the waves of hope and despair they have felt over the past few months- waiting for their call to come to the ship, then being told not to come…matters to me..I know they are seeing the days and months tick by- with no tangible hope yet received, their tumors are growing bigger, their pain is increasing, their rejection mounts….I hurt for them and sincerely want to communicate that I care…Oh- the adventure & challenge to communicate with language & cultural barriers. To grow up in a world where you don’t have the basics in life… love, shelter, clothing, clean water, where no one cares if you are dying, or bleeding to death, of course emotional and mental health are low on the radar…all learning and teaching moments…

With the CT Scan patients called- and a whispered prayed for peace in this country-I set to my next task…With creativity I can hopefully help prevent losing operating room time- I will not allow the enemy to steal one more bit of hope from another patient in this country- if I can help it…I pull up the OR schedule for the next few days and after approving with the ward supervisor that there were enough bed spaces on the ward  with boarding pre-op patients under the beds if necessary, my translator and I set to calling in the patients for surgery for the next few days to come in early to stay on the ward- so that they wouldn’t be prevented from traveling to the ship if they were caught in riots or protests.  A few riots or threats from the enemy won’t scare me- I am on a mission here- to know, be, & bring the Peace- (brilliant sermon series by Pastor Warren R) - with all I am; in His strength- I wage Peace…

What a day….never a boring moment…tired & exhausted… I went to bed- but not before praying for peace in Guinea…

The next morning I awoke and glanced at the Captain’s Notice Board and was pleasantly surprised that my prayers were answered! The riots and protests were cancelled for that day because the president of FIFA (the governing body for football/soccer for the World Cup) decided to visit Guinea that day! And since he was in town, Joseph “Sepp” Blatter, the FIFA president, decided to stop over for a surprise visit to my home here. No big deal- and in case it interests you the other day the ambassador from Saudi Arabia popped in for a visit.  And I probably failed to mention it, but in my time while living on the ship, Princess Anne from England, a few other African presidents, Miss Belgium, an Australia television crew, a Norwegian television crew, some German actresses, Nick Vujicic (an evangelist & motivational speaker who was born without all four limbs), and 60 minutes correspondents, among many other dignitaries, have just popped in for a visit to my home here and there-sometimes announced and sometimes un-announced!

After a mere day, the excitement of the FIFA president’s visit to Guinea disappeared into the past and the riots & protests were scheduled once again.  More changes in patient appointments and plans... This place I live is ever amazing and never boring. Who would have thought a nurse must work so hard to just get her patients to the hospital so she can care for them… After another long day…tired & exhausted… I went to bed- but not before praying for peace in Guinea… Prayers for peace in Guinea appreciated!