A look into "life"

Last week was a little busy for me with working, exploring Freetown and a little bit of salsa dancing who would've thought! I'll give you all a little insight to what a working week for me looks like well, all of us nurses work a 40 hr week with working rotating shifts. Our shift starts out with all the nurses in the ward I work in gathering for updates, prayer and then we break off for "handover" or report. The ward that I am working on is consider a general ward. Patients are coming in for hernia repairs, lipoma removal, and we had a few bilateral cataracts. There were mainly children who had bilateral cataracts and I don't know if I can describe what its like to watch the little bandages being taken off their eyes but I will try. First, they come back from surgery looking like little bugs with massive white eyes, it makes laugh to think about how cute they look however they are never very happy with us. Then the day after surgery the bandages come off and to watch them looking around being able to see the world around them for the first time is awe-inspiring. Its moments like these that really touches my heart and its amazing the talent that God has given people, especially surgeons. Here in the hospital we have a pharmacist however it is up to the nurses to calculate and mix up the medications, administer breathing treatments (when needed), and do all IV's. I have realized how dependent I became on my fellow co-workers in the states and skills I once learned in nursing school were starting to get lost in the back of my brain. Funny how we become so complacent with our surroundings, unfortunately at times complacency causes us to become stale. Well that is a little look into what working looks like for me!

I was able to get out to Fatima Orphanage this past saturday. A group of us drove about an hour and as we pulled off the main road onto a dirt road lined with tall clusters of grass we came upon 3 buildings (houses) and children who were elated to see us. The orphanage was specifically for war orphans however there are also some children there who have been abandoned. There are about 20 children who live there and range in ages from 3-16. I really have a hard time wrapping my head around the concept of people just abandoning their children...........it really is disheartening. However the joy that some of these children display is unreal. It was great to engage with them through singing, jumping rope, playing ball and just talking. The outreach is every 2 weeks and I hope to return with them, if time allows. Well that is a bit of what I have been experiencing!! Continue to pray for the people of Sierra Leone, the crew for continued energy and strength for us all to do our jobs well, and that God keeps me healthy from some colds and stomach bugs that have been going around :)