Re-focus

Last sunday I had every plan to walk into town with some friends seeing some sights and getting a bite to eat at a local bakery. Reality was that I awoke to a phone call in my cabin at 6:40 am with a request for me to work due to some people being ill and the ward was short some staff...in my sleepy state I felt guilty and said yes. Hanging up the phone I became bitter with my decision, angry that this means I will be working another 6 days straight ugh how annoying! Frustrated, I arrived at work slightly bitter ok well I was bitter. After some interactions with the people I would be working with for the day I realized that I needed God's help to change my frame of mind if I was gonna make it through the day. After spending some time with God during breakfast pleading with Him to change my heart along with my mindset and attending a church service on the ward He slowly starting working on my heart. I had this realization that I had come here to work not to make plans for socializing, its needed and is important but my sole purpose of being here is to work in the hospital and to assist where needed. God calls us to do all things with a joyful heart and by mid day I was there. It was awesome to see how God completely adjusted my outlook which I couldn't have done on my own. I was able to work in a different ward, meet some new nurses (who are awesome) and use skills that I haven't utilized since being in the states. Right now the times I enjoy the most are the times that I am working. I enjoy interacting with my patients, really enjoy getting to know my translators and my fellow co-workers. Overall the entire week turned out to be a good one even though by friday afternoon my brain was done! It was time to recharge for another week.

After having been in the hot humid mid-day sun on a search for the "fabric" market its the little things you learn to appreciate. Such as the walk up the gangway opening the glass doors and having a rush of cold air meet my face, refreshing. A small group of us went on a search for what is considered to be a "stellar" place to get local fabric for some great prices. However this was where I learned about...."White People" tax. Ok so reading this seems a little ludicrous to me even now so I can only imagine the thoughts going through your head. Well this is reality here in Freetown and unless you have a local with you or you are aware of the true prices you can easily be taken advantage of which can also be true of many tourist locations. From what I've learned Sierra leones believe that because we are white we are rich. There were a few times that I found myself a little frustrated however I than did the conversion in my head, $1.05 = 4,500 Leonies, I than have a re-focus of heart.

Following my excursion for fabric the second half of my saturday was spent at Don Bosco. It is a youth home for street boys that puts them through a 10 month rehabilitation program. Within the last month of the program the boys are either integrated into their families or another family which is all set up with a person similar to our "social workers". It was pretty neat to get to know some of the boys, we were able to play some sports with them, play games and they even sang a song for us which was pretty phenomenal sounding really, they could have a boys choir! After spending a couple hours here I was really impressed that here in Freetown a system like this was established to help out the youth in the area.

In conclusion to my week a group of us nurses attended a local church that one of our "day volunteers" or translators attended. The church wound up being on top of a...we will call it a mountain that the "poda-poda" was unable to drive up so we walked/mini-hiked about 10 mins up to church. The pastor greeted us and from encouragement from the congregation we contributed to the praise service that was that sunday. Unrehearsed we sang "Lord I Lift Your Name On High" which the congregation loved and were thrilled that we contributed regardless of our apprehensions to singing because we weren't "prepared." (Picture above is of the group leaving church)

One month is already behind me, honestly I am not sure where the weeks escaped to?!? Time here on the ship goes by so incredibly quickly however while in a day or week time seems to be slowly floating by....others here seemed to have the same conclusion, it is odd. In four weeks I have learned so much about myself, God and the people here in Freetown. Within the next 6-7weeks I am so excited to continue to grow an be stretched, see God continue to work an answer prayer and experience whatever it is that God has planned in this time.

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 :)

A little taste of Sierra Leone

Stepping off the ship and venturing out into the hustle and bustle of Freetown was quite an overwhelming experience. People out everywhere trying to make money in all sorts of ways; some were selling things, some were doing hard labor and others thought that they could snatch a few dollars out of a pocket. When the a pickpocketer was looked in the eye and ask "what are you doing?"....the response was "oh, sorry." People are living the only way they know how, survival. I don't know if I can express fully in words the full experience other then to think of how crowded a city, preferably NYC is during the holidays minus traffic laws adding in dirt roads along with vehicles (maybe that gives you an idea of what it is like), oh and its like this everyday from what I have been told. In my travels I managed to run into a man carrying some large items on his head, thankfully the people here have phenomenal balance! Well after my morning outing thought I'd join a group of people on a "walk/hike" to a university at the top of a hill where you can look out over the city. We trekked through the city and up a path that was between homes. It was neat to see how life is lived here, people doing ordinary things laundry, bathing, cooking, socializing, building and playing. Everything done as if we aren't living in the year 2011, its a little simpler or some may say its harder but I definitely believe its all how you interpret things. The people are happy and content maybe not in the conditions that we would think were ideal however it does work for them. The children are precious, it was awesome to see their beaming faces after they would shout "he-llo" and you would say hi back and touch their hand while they were giggling with their friends. While walking up the hill we came to a bend in the path and on the other side of that bend were steps straight up and on either side it was filled with children who were so elated to see us...it was a pretty crazy sight!

After my adventures off the ship I was feeling a bit overwhelmed, trying to wrap my head around the thoughts: how are we to make a difference when there are SO many people in need? where do you even start? i am so blessed to have what i do have, we are all living in the same world and just an ocean away, well even here on the ship life is so vastly different. All I can do is attempt to make a difference, even if it is just in one persons life. This week in two separate occasions a patient's daughter and another man (native to SL) told me what an impact mercy ships is having on the community, how grateful they are and they thanked me for my part. Well I guess God is trying to tell me that we are making a difference here even if I was overwhelmed by it all.

Thank you all for your continued prayers!! I am slowly but surely finding my place here. I started working this week and I have to say its very different then nursing at home but I am enjoying the fact that I am able to talk with the patients and get to know them a little. Some things that I'd like prayer for would be the people of Sierra Leone, that God guides the surgeons during difficult surgeries, us nurses as we care for patients and along with my continued transition-that my body adjusts to the food here on the ship :) Well thats all from Africa for now!

Home on the Coast of Africa

After traveling via plane a little over 24hrs, an hour ferry ride with live native music on the top floor and another hour via range rover through the city of Freetown I arrived at my new home around 9pm my time, which is 4 hrs ahead of everyone at home (east coast time). Sleep deprived and feeling a bit overwhelmed I met my new cabin mates, there are currently 5 of us and we are due to get another person in our cabin. Earlier this week I really was struggling with the transition process. I have been very grateful for the people, now friends I met during my layover in Brussels; an older Australian couple, a nurse from the US and another one from Sweden. It has been awesome to see how God works in even the little things like providing friends and encouragement. After a half day of orientation, which was day 2 of ship life, I arrived to my cabin door to find a card taped to the door with some verses of encouragement (Ephesians 3:14-19 & Philippians 4:13) from a girl who was reaching out to me and later I asked, who I thought was a random girl a question only to find out that she was trying to find me cause she knew a friend who was just on MS (thanks Ann!). Its great to see when you ask God and He provides in His time. He is continuing to provide and I am adjusting to ship life. I made it through my first 2 Nursing shifts and am working on learning parts of the language, with the help of translators!! Please continue to pray for the adjustment, that I am able to get involved where God wants me and that God will guide the surgeons hands through all the surgeries they perform!

Goodbye....

at this time tonight, 6:30pm my plane will have been in the air for 30 minutes, hard to believe that the time is almost here. i can't say that it has truely hit me that i am leaving pretty sure its still a little surreal. currently i have a peace about my near adventures however i have been praying that God provides me with continued peace, which has been awesome to experience-praise God!! thank you all so much for your support and continued prayers, i will miss you all a ton. as i begin this journey across the ocean i ask for continued prayers for peace, minimal bouts of anxiousness and that i am able to get some rest while in the air. for now goodbye