awkard moments

You know those awkward moments when someone sees you, they wave emphatically, smile, and grin at you like you are their long lost best friend.  And if they aren’t driving past you in traffic, or across the way at the check-out themselves, they rush to greet you, shake your hand vigorously, and pull you into an embrace….And the entire time, you cannot remember for the life of you, who they are…so you muster a smile of your own, while in your head you are rapidly flipping through “old files” attempting to find “the file” with their information on it- so you too can be as excited as they are.

I have been experiencing a number of those awkward moments lately. Just the other day a precious patient found me in the hospital hallway. She smiled at me from ear to ear, pulled my hand from my pocket, grasped it tightly in hers, and ran her little chocolate tinted fingers over my vanilla forearm, all while looking intently into my eyes as if I was her closest friend.  I quickly glanced at her, trying to see where her bandage was to cue me into what operation she had had, but there were no bandages in sight. Every so slightly embarrassed at the awkwardness of the situation, I just kept holding the little one’s hand. However, she kept looking at me so enthusiastically, I knew I had to know her for some reason, so I humbled myself and asked her in French, “what did we do for you?” She looked at me with a blank stare on her face for a few seconds, then pointed to her elbow.

There upon the back of her elbow was a 6 inch incision that was open to air and healing well, I could barely tell that she had had any surgery….And then I remembered…I regained all recollection of her situation … I couldn’t believe it! I did a double take! She was the little girl I had spent hours with during her triage phase. She had come and gone, seeing many doctors, for assessment upon assessment. I had her return for appointments, in hopes that our CT scanner would be fixed, just to learn it hadn’t yet been fixed and we had to push back her appointments again… and again.   

Where there had once been a large, firm, grapefruit sized tumor protruding off the back of her skinny, little, elbow and a cantaloupe sized mass on her little hip, there were only healing incision lines.  The timid little girl who months ago would barely look at me, the nurse, with vanilla tinted skin, had disappeared.  She had transformed into the confident, bright-eyed beauty, who held my hand.  She grasped my hand tightly for a few more minutes, and then skipped off down the hall-way and back into the plastic surgery ward. I walked away to triage more patients and as walked, I thanked God for the transformed little girl and for the “awkward moment.”

Jaka-a story from the professionals

Did you know that the amazing home I live in is just like a real city in many ways? We have a hospital, bank, post-office, ship shop, Laundromat, crew clinic, a thrift store, dental clinic, pharmacy, lab, Starbucks, mechanics, carpenters, welders, IT Techs, plumbers, receptionists, hospitality crew, janitors, electricians, bankers, accountants,  engineers, you name it- we’ve got it- the difference between our city and other cities in the world? Our city is inside a ship, we work for free & pay to work, and we are from over 36 different countries! In our small city we also have an amazing team of journalists, writers, videographers, and photographers that pour their hearts and talents into sharing the stories of what we as Mercy Ships do… so- today I am going to cheat… here is a story from the professionals- it was written by written by Catherine Clarke Murphy one of our amazing writers & editors aboard the Africa Mercy- it was edited by Nancy Predaina & the photographs included were taken by two of our amazing photographers, Michelle Murrey and Bright Effowe! The little girl in the story is one of them I got to say “yes” to!  

“There is a universal principle of childhood physics that we all remember well: the joy of spinning in circles. Perhaps it was spinning while locking hands with a playmate, in a teacup at Disney World, dancing in pirouettes, or simply turning in place – it was a thrill to send our surroundings into a kaleidoscopic blur. This was followed by a dizzy fit of giggles – at least until our internal compasses caught up, and the world came back into focus. Do you remember?

Four years ago, a little girl named Jaka was spinning around in circles with some other children while her mother was at the market. Around and around, arms out, chin up, her face full of smiles. Tragically, when Jaka lost her balance, she plummeted into her aunt’s cooking fire. Jaka landed in the burning coals on her left side with her arm up. The pot of boiling water her aunt had prepared for rice spilled over the little girl’s shoulders, arms and back.

Fanta, Jaka’s mother, ran home from the market and took her daughter to a local hospital in Conakry. In order to be seen by doctors, the hospital required a payment of 1.5 million Guinea Francs at the gate – just over $200. The family could not afford admission.  Fanta returned home with Jaka, unable to ease her daughter’s agony. For the next eight months, Jaka laid on her little stomach, tethered to the ground by unimaginable pain. Each day, her mother fanned her, trying to offer Jaka whatever relief she could from the inescapable African heat.

As Jaka’s burns healed without medical care or rehabilitation, her left shoulder and arm contracted. Jaka’s skin began to grow back in such a way that her arm became stuck to her side from her armpit to elbow.  Fanta feared that Jaka would lose the ability to move her arm. Still unable to afford any medical treatment, Fanta tried to treat the problem herself.

Fanta forced Jaka’s arm away from her side three times, trying to prevent the contracture. Fanta described each attempt, saying that she and Jaka both cried themselves to exhaustion. On the fourth try, Jaka begged her mother to stop because the pain was so unbearable. “If you try to pull it open again, I will die. The pain will kill me,” Jaka said to her mother. With that, Fanta resigned herself to allowing Jaka’s arm to heal on its own, stuck to her side.

            Today, 9-year-old Jaka is a patient on the Africa Mercy hospital ship, recovering from a free plastic surgery that released her arm and grafted skin. Deep burn marks cover her entire upper body – her head, neck, shoulders, back and arms – but no one notices because they are entranced by the little girl’s adorable gap-toothed smile.

Sweeping, washing and fighting – these are the activities Jaka says she will get to do with her restored arm. Laundry might not be appealing to many, but participating in household chores is a normalcy Jaka has never known. “I am so happy,” Jaka says. “When I go home, I will work all the time because I can.” (Fanta admits she is glad for this enthusiasm.) Free of her deformity, Jaka will also now be able to go to school for the first time.

As for fighting, Jaka is one of ten children, and she happens to be very ticklish. With her new arm, she will be able to hold her own the next time she is picked on by one of her older brothers or sisters. She was ashamed to go among her siblings and friends when her arm was stuck to her side because they would tease her. “Now they will see me and say, ‘Jaka has become well!’” she declares. Then they will invite her to sit with them and watch the cars go by their house.

From her hospital bed, Jaka is all giggles – she can hardly contain her excitement for her now-bright future of playing, going to school and watching cars. But Jaka’s favorite part about her restorative surgery and rehabilitation is even simpler than that: “Clapping!” she exclaims. With her arm free, Jaka can finally clap with both hands.

Now there’s a happy ending worthy of applause.”

un-expected surgeries, peanut butter needs & raspberry, diet coke blessings

God is good all the time & all the time God is good...in no particular order of importance...check out what God has been up to lately in my life...

I visited the Mercy Ships’ operating room a few weeks back & I am not talking about the standard visits I make there daily to converse with the surgeons about potential patients. This time I was the patient.  I can better empathize with hernia patients than I ever desired to! How the heck I got an umbilical hernia is unknown- maybe picking up & loving on too many kids- but more likely my abdominal wall was weakened already from the scar from my appendectomy (appendix removal in 2005) & my stomach muscles said- enough of that- lets jump out!  Don’t feel bad for me that I couldn’t be home with my family during the stressful process of being away from the USA during a health challenge. Although- it would have been splendid to have some hugs from many of you during this time- I am so thankful I was in Africa for this operation. I am thankful my ailment arose when it did- should I have had this pain when I was home visiting that would have spoiled my vacation and given me some extreme financial challenges to say the least! I am thankful that my ailment arose when it did because had it occurred one week later- we wouldn’t have had a general surgeon aboard! God is good & I have experienced the hope & healing of our ship firsthand & God bless Doctor Larry Barr!   

I participated in an aqua-gym class conducted in French and Spanish- with the Spanish Ambassador’s wife in her pool that has a lovely ocean view! The randomness of my life brings me pure excitement!

The ship snack-bar ran out of diet coke-this was very tragic for many of us! Yes- we are spoiled on the Mercy Ship- we have a snack-bar with special treats from home. The containers that travel to us on ships across the ocean delivering medical supplies for our hospital also deliver special treats that we can buy aboard if we have extra money. But, the containers delivering the diet coke were delayed! Although many cannot believe it- I have never had a cup of coffee in my life- so the Starbuck’s we have aboard the ship does nothing for me- but I do love a cold diet coke over ice every now and then! Some comforts from home- I really do like- I am human- lest you were going to put me in another category…Well- God smiled on me when I stumbled across a little store constructed with of sheets of metal nailed together inside a shipping container.  Inside this humble store- diet coke is sold! I managed to buy some with my improving French language skills and obtained a marriage proposal from the store owner at the same time. I politely declined the offer- but if I run out of spending money I may have to take the man up on the offer to keep me supplied with diet coke!  Thanks God for your sense of humor & blessings! 

My good friend and fellow nurse- passed a foot long worm- she dug it out of the toilet- placed it inside two plastic bags & delivered it to me in the hallway. I preceded to magnet the little- not so- little dead worm in its bag to my wall until I had time to examine the sucker under a microscope in the lab.  My diploma in tropical nursing comes in handy! I love using the knowledge God has given me!  

We got frozen raspberries & blueberries in the ship-shop! They were sold out within minutes of being placed in the freezer. After making my purchase from the ship-shop- I took my treasure to my room...On the way back to my room- I passed someone in the hall-way and they asked how I was…I responded with pure excitement- “There are raspberries & blueberries in the ship shop!!!” With no excitement, whatsoever, they said- “oh.” This person obviously hasn’t been on the ship long enough- or they would have appreciated my excitement & danced wildly with me as a few of my other long-term friends and I did…all in honor of the raspberries! The small things in life!

I got one of the best packages of my life- on the ship’s container last week! The package was mailed from the USA December 31^st – it travelled to Texas- was loaded into a shipping container that made its way across the ocean to me & arrived April 5^th! The package contained a “birthday in a box” & was complete with a birthday banner- cake mix, frosting, little wrapped gifts…and  oh- bless peanut butter m&m’s, Cabot Cheddar Cheese flavoring for popcorn, real crumbled bacon bites, gummy bears, you name it! Awesome! The package arrived just in time- not for my birthday- that was March 12^th- but just in time nonetheless. I really needed some cheer & love from home on the exact day the package arrived! God is good! I pray my 31^st year is better than all my previous years- I pray God teaches me much & allows me to bless many!  

As a part of my nursing work here- I wrote the following email a few weeks ago- can’t say I ever wrote an email like that during one of my nursing shifts at home! Never a dull moment here… “Hello! I have another very random question for you. Do you or anyone at the US Embassy have any extra smooth peanut butter that you would be willing to donate to Mercy Ships or let us buy from you? Or do you know of local supermarkets that sell it? Our containers have been delayed that bring our pediasure & ensure for NG feeds. We have run out before- we are used to making due- & in that case we have our own recipe for NG feeds with smooth peanut butter & other nutrients- so our patients get the calories then need, but because of the delay of our containers- we are out of smooth peanut butter too! AHAHAh! We cannot use the crunchy peanut butter in NG feeds- because it could clog the tubes. So- if you know of any available peanut butter. Mercy Ships would love to know about it! Thanks.”
 

From un-expected surgeries to peanut butter needs- God is good- he's got adventures for us each and every single day- trust him in the adventure- he won't let you down... He doesn't disappoint- in fact he loves to give blessings- you just may have never known they can come in the form of raspberries & diet coke!

pray that they will see more of HIM & less of me

As the man struggled to speak to me in English, tears rolled down his cheek, describing what had happened to his brother.  His brother had been traveling from the interior of Guinea to Conakry when he had been attacked by bandits, was robbed, beat, and he had his right eye slashed with a machete.  As soon as the man started talking to me, I knew that Mercy Ships couldn’t physically do anything for his brother- because all Mercy Ships surgery slots for eye & maxilla-facial patients were/are full…I dreaded saying no to the man… I hate saying no to people, but it is part of my job…when Mercy Ships surgery spaces are full or we don’t have a doctor that can treat the patient’s aliment, I have to say no… My heart hurt for this man and his brother, as it does for every patient I come across….But, for this one….I couldn’t bring myself to just say no… My schedule for the next few days was lighter than normal so I agreed to see the patient, even though I couldn’t really help him.  I gently, but firmly told the man - that Mercy Ships would not be able to operate on his brother, but that we would see him nonetheless & offer any advice we could…  I didn’t want to offer false hope…

The patient was a middle-aged man, a taxi driver, and his injury not only threatened his vision, but his livelihood- if he lost the vision in one of his eyes- he would not be able to work as a taxi driver & his 5 young ones at home were going to face serious challenges.  The patient was hopeful…I was doubtful…what was I really thinking- when I agreed to see him? I knew we couldn’t offer him physical help… I prayed quietly under my breath- asking God to somehow touch this patient…   I saw him 4 days after his initial injury- the swelling in his eye had subsided significantly, but still he had no vision. He couldn’t even see light… I arranged for him to see our eye surgeon.   The surgeon confirmed that the patient would not regain his sight & he needed an operation.   The eye surgeon and I contacted a local clinic & they confirmed they could perform the operation the man needed.

Upon telling the patient that Mercy Ships couldn’t help him & that he was going to be blind in his right eye, we offered to pray with him if he desired- he accepted….We offered a simple prayer and I again apologized that I could not do anything for him.  I felt horrible- the patient was going to be blind forever in that eye- he would very likely lose his job, and the livelihood of his family was in jeopardy. Oh, man…  I expected the patient to be angry or beg me for help- as they often do- if I have had to deliver less than ideal news…but as this patient spoke in his local dialect, I noted he didn’t look angry…instead he looked entirely at peace and was smiling… my translator told me that he was thanking me profusely for my time and for seeing him. He also reported he didn’t know how he was going to repay me… Through a translator, I told the patient I helped him because God loves him & cares about him & if he told others what God had done for him, that would be enough thanks… I then handed the patient an offering we had quickly gathered to cover the cost of his operation at the local clinic (a clinic I had made contact with while I was on the Advance team in Guinea- back in May-August 2012) and sent him on his way. Nothing but thankful phrases rolled off his lips as I escorted him off the ship.

Days have passed since I saw the patient that had been attacked with the machete.  But, a few days ago a fellow crew member pulled me aside to say…”Good job! I don’t know what you did- but the man I was sitting next to kept pointing at you- saying… ‘she is the one, that girl, she is the one that helped us so much…’ so great job!”   I said- I didn’t do anything special…I was simply doing my job… 

I saw the original man again- a few days ago… he stuttered as he tried to communicate to me in English…but this time he stuttered words of thankfulness with a huge smile on his face… He requested a picture of me for his brother.  He said his brother cannot stop talking about me & Mercy Ships.  Through his broken English- I managed to understand his brother wants to remember the one who showed such kindness to him…And he said his brother is telling all the people in his village what I/we did for him… I don’t normally give pictures of myself to patients, but for this one I may…and I pray that whenever he sees my photo or when he thinks of me…that he will see Jesus…

Pray that what they all see is more of HIM & less of me...