Last Day

What a full and fun last day at Kijabe!   I began at 8AM going to devotions with Mercy, the chaplain, at the Bethany Children’s Hospital.   Several nurses, the OT named Elizabeth (!), and some students were there and it was a great way to begin the morning.  She presented me with a computer briefcase with Bethany written on the side as a going away gift...very unexpected, but very thoughtful.   Then we went on rounds to the spina bifida wards; always an overwhelming experience.  It is my prayer that through Mercy each mother and her child know that God loves and cares for everyone of them and that they can cast their cares on Him.

After hospital rounds I walked up the Hill for my last visit with the fifth graders.  They have become very dear to me!  Seventeen little individuals to be sure!  At the end of the period I went to say goodbye and they each presented me with a handmade original thank you note.  To say that I was overwhelmed was to put it mildly!  I will treasure these notes and hope to show them to you soon.

After lunch I traveled for a last visit to Thread of Hope to check on the progress our ladies from the IDP camps are making with their sewing.  We were thrilled to see that they had finished 6 skirts and many surgical caps!  They are keeping track of who makes what so that they can be paid accordingly.   Ironically, Miriam made the most money this week!   It was also interesting to see that they are taking an interest in stitching straight, using appropriate color schemes, and finishing the hems by hand.  Their enthusiasm is contagious and we left feeling very happy!   By the way all 6 skirts sold, and we placed orders for several more.  Now the challenge is to come up with a business plan that includes new items.

When I returned home I was so happy to introduce my Kenyan friend Monica whose husband works with Marv to an American friend from Seattle.   Alfred has an opportunity to do an MPH at the U. of Washington and Monica has been a bit hesitant about coming to the US.   The really wonderful part is that the American friend goes to University Presbyterian Church in Seattle and will be able to connect them there as well.   Monica was beaming after a short time and I think that they have bonded!   God works in mysterious ways!

Now I am waiting for Dad to get home. They are working him to the last moment!  Our neighbors invited us for dinner which is great as I have given all of my food away!  We will go into Nairobi in the afternoon and then have a long wait at the airport for an 11:30 PM flight. Ugh.  It will be fun to see London if only briefly.  We are hoping that the airports in the US will be free of snow this week.  It will be hard to leave this temperate, beautiful climate as well as the flowers and of course the wonderful Kijabe wind at night.  But it is always wonderful to go home!

See you soon,

Love,

mom

Potluck



Now that our time is coming to a close I have been asking myself lots of questions.  I know that people will ask me, what did you do over there Miriam? (I have not been called Micki even by Marv for a month and I have grown too really like it!)  We all know that Marv made a medical contribution that is measurable, but what was your task and what did you accomplish? I did lots of activities.   I went on pediatric rounds with the chaplain, I listened to 5^th graders read aloud, I went to Thread of Hope, I delivered food to widows and orphans ,and I tried to interact with the many Kenyans I came in contact with.  Those were all good things and I will always remember them and pray for those causes.   But I believe that the most important reason that I was here was to establish relationships and to listen to people’s stories.  Many of these stories are too personal and confidential to share on a blog but I do believe that the Lord put me here during this month to be a friend to several people.    Being a friend often means just listening and I was blessed to be able to do that.   Being apart from everyday life offers the time, freedom, and objectivity to listen.  That is the blessing of mission trips!

I am not expert on mission trips, but I now know that each one is different and that you will be stretched in ways you do not expect.  It is good, especially as we grow older to be stretched in our faith and in our concepts of the world.  My faith has grown as I have again witnessed the simple faith of a people who are poor in the world’s eyes; but rich in   God’s eyes.  My faith has grown as I have witnessed Moms with sick kids come to Christ and cast their burdens upon Him. My faith has grown as I have gotten to know children living apart from their missionary parents. My faith has grown as I have seen Somali Moslems coming to Kijabe for medical treatment because “God is here”.   My faith has grown as I wonder at how the Holy Spirit is moving among the “closed countries of Africa” and among the thousands now living in refugee camps along the Kenya border.  My faith has grown as I have met first generation Christians from many places in the world   who are on fire for the Lord.

So this month has been a time of growth for me in many ways and for this I am very grateful.  I will pray for the people I have met and with the wonder of technology I will be able to maintain and grow these friendships. Thanks be to God.   Thanks for being a part of the journey. 

Love to all and God bless,

Mom

Tea Farm and other stories

Sorry to have missed a day or so blogging. I came down with a nasty cold and was out of commission for a day or so.  There are lots of germs floating around here especially at RVA. Currently there are 70 kids who are in the infirmary which means that they are running temperatures. Some have been sick for over a week with a respiratory virus.   Because it is a boarding school it is very hard to isolate people.  It must be difficult for these children to be away from their parents and to be ill. Likewise I would imagine that the parents are very concerned and sad about the separation. We all want our “Mom” when we are ill! Please keep this situation in your prayers.  On a joyful note, the student who was in the ICU with malaria woke up this morning after being in a coma for 4 days!  Everyone is very relieved and thankful!

On Monday I gathered a van load of ladies (short termers) for a field trip to a tea plantation which was about 40 minutes from here. We had such a “lovely” time!  Our host was the owner, Fiona, whose ancestors arrived here from England over 100 years ago.  So I guess you could say that she is Kenyan now.  She explained how tea is grown, harvested, dried, graded, and finally shipped out of Mombasa, Kenya’s large port on the Indian Ocean.  Her charming home was built by her grandfather in the 30’s and is surrounded by a beautiful English garden.  They have preserved an indigenous forest on the property and so we took a walk in it prior to having a delicious lunch from her garden in the dining room.   Afterwards we made a quick trip to Nairobi to pick up a few items and then were home around 6PM. It was a fun “chick” day!

This morning I went to my last hospital chapel and sat next to Mercy, the pediatric chaplain. She really lives up to her name and does such good work here. Mercy is probably 60 years old, but she exudes energy and love and is on the wards daily bringing the good news and joy into lives that are going through great challenges.   She is a saint.

Tonight we are having a potluck with the other residents of our “apartment” building.  We come from Canada, Switzerland, Cameroon, Michigan, North Carolina, Kenya and Utah!  Meeting notpeople was all over the world is another joy of this experience!   Talk about meeting people, Dad had a funny experience yesterday.  He came into the hall in maternity and was surrounded by a group of white young people, one wearing a Calvin College t-shirt! The story is that this group has spent interim studying in Kenya and was on their way to Nairobi to return to the states. They had planned to do some college recruiting at RVA but due to the illness they were not allowed to go there.  While some of them toured the hospital Dad went for chai with the others in the hospital restaurant.  He really enjoyed meeting them!

Well I must run up to RVA and read with the fifth graders.  I hope that I don’t give them my cold or they give me one of their bugs.

Love to all,

Mom

Finishing Strong?

Today is the beginning of our last week at Kijabe. The time has gone by very quickly and in many ways it is too bad that we are leaving as I, at least, have just begun to plug into life here.  Marv knew what his assignment was from the very beginning! Thankfully another OB has also arrived so that his workload has been lighter than it was the first week.

We had a fun weekend. On Saturday we hired a driver, John, who took us into Nairobi to do some of the “touristy” things that we have never been able to do. We went to Kazuri beads, the giraffe place, the elephant orphanage that was featured on 60 Minutes in the US, and Amani ya Juu as well as the Nairobi Zoo.   On the way home John took us shopping at his village which was also fun and a real taste of African living for Marv who hasn’t seen as much of the villages as I have.

On Sunday we followed our routine and went to both services, first the African Inland Church and then RVA.   Both sermons were from the book of Philippians.  After a good Sunday afternoon nap we were happy to have the Osoti family come for dinner.   Dr. Osoti is the Kenyan OB that Dad has been working with at Kijabe.  They are a cute family and of course Dad had to work on magic tricks with the boys once again.   I was nervous that they might not like American cooking but the boys devoured their dinner of turkey, corn, squash and rice!

Today I am going to a Tea Plantation with a group of ladies.   It should be a taste of British Colonial times here in Kenya which should be interesting.   It is really chilly here today and I have contracted a nasty cold so it will be good to have a leisurely day!

Till next time, we send our love,

Mom and Dad, Nana and Poppy, Micki and Marv

Kijabe - "A Place of the Wind"

 “The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.”    John 3:8

If there is one thing that I will remember and miss about Kijabe, it would be the winds.  The winds are particularly strong at night and usually by morning the winds have calmed.   The question for me and the people of the community of healing here at Kijabe are what will happen to these relationships?  What I thought about before coming and what still is on my mind...Are there ways to continue to mentor/support the individuals working here at this mission?  Even more specifically, can the task of leadership development be done at a distance?  What are the strategies and techniques of making this happen?

What I have learned and seen is that there are young physicians who are competent, compassionate and in leadership/mentoring settings.  They have been “called” and “sent” and they have not been waiting for me!  If I have served any purpose in their lives it has been to “name” what I have seen and by that naming they see God’s plans fulfilled in their work and future.

What about the institutions/programs that are here?  Like the individuals this place and programs have been commissioned to bring “Glory to God”.  There are high expectations of where God is leading this place.   Its history is a witness of what dedicated leadership and discernment have accomplished.  They have not been waiting for me to come! 

So for me, the answer is to listen carefully to what Christians believe is the work of the Spirit of God.   In contrast to our usual ideas of setting priorities to make these kinds of decisions as to the next steps, it means that by being a part of our faith communities we will be able to clearly see the direction that God is leading us.   We have seen and heard examples of this kind of faith community support and direction in lives at this place.  It works and with sometimes unexpected, unplanned and wonderful results!   If we are a part of the body of Christ and the church he established, we will be lead by the Spirit.

So my prayer for all of us is that we will listen and look carefully for the places in our lives and communities where the wind blows. 

Marv aka Dad & Poppy

Elephant Orphans

Check out this web site.   We adopted an baby elephant named "Sities".  Love, Nana & Poppy

http://www.sheldrickwildlifetrust.org/

Old Kijabe Town - The Story

Old Kijabe Town is lies at the bottom of the Rift and is on the railroad line that was built many years ago.  The railroad still passes that way, but as the hospital and school grew up on the Rift the town shrank. “Main Street” is now comprised of a few “dukas” (small stores) and a few people who maintain the railroad track.  However there are many people who have small sambas or farms and live in the surrounding countryside.  Amidst those sambas are also many widows and orphans who are living day to day, often in squatters quarters or mud hut rentals.   I was blessed to visit some of those saints today.  Let me try and put into words who they are and what their needs are so that you can remember them in your prayers. 

Our mission was to bring food to about 10 widows or to women who have been deserted by their husbands.  John, our young Kenyan friend who has such a heart for the needs in this area, shopped for the food and  took us three “mizungas” (white) women with him.   He visits these women about once a month and brings hope as well as food.   He also brings seed so that they are able to plant their gardens to feed their families and if the rains come, and if there is any extra they can sell some corn and earn a bit of income.   It is always a goal to not make the women dependent, but to encourage them to be productive and try to meet their own needs against unbelievable circumstances.   The first lady we met joked with me that we were both getting old and had gray hair!  Funny, how you can converse by sign language. She is raising grandchildren and lives in a rental mud hut.   Her concern today was that hyenas had been trying to get at her goats.  Next we visited Ann and Naomi, a mother and daughter who are raising many children together.  Ann was so proud to show us how she had cleared the small tract of land that she has and readied it for planting in February.  No tractors or even a donkey here.....the land was “plowed” by hand.   Ann asked us to pray that a way is provided for her daughter to attend secondary school.   She has received a very good score, but they do not have the money to send her.   It would cost about $250.00 to send her for the three terms per year.

Next we were blessed to visit Margaret, an elderly lady whose husband was a good provider, but was killed in a trucking accident.  She had the most beautiful, gracious smile!  She, too, is raising grandchildren who are doing well in school thus far.  She is scheduled to have cataract surgery soon and we prayed with her that it will be successful.

Sweet Mary was next on our list!  What a wonderful wrinkled face she had!  Again, she is helping to raise grandchildren as her son who does have a job has not been coming around of late to support his family.   She is trying to learn to read so that she can read the Bible on her own.   She asked us to pray for her family, that her son would be more responsible and support his family.

Mary took us to the home of Ann and her six children.   Ann’s husband left her to marry another woman.   As if that wasn’t bad enough, his parents, her in-laws, came and tore down her house and took everything that was in it.  Don’t ask me to explain why.   Apparently, this happens when a man dies or deserts his family.   How could grandparents do this to their own grandchildren?  So far the only answer I have heard is that it is the custom.  Just remember that we, too, have some strange customs!  Ann is terribly depressed and has no money to return to her homeland where she has family.

Tabitha was our last stop...again, an elderly lady raising grandchildren and great grandchildren. There is some hope here since her daughter has gotten a job in another town and is saving money to bring her mother and her children where she is.   A grandchild named Tabitha, who has cerebral palsy and uses a walker, was  also  living there with her infant son, the product of being raped by her father.

Does there seem to be a pattern here?  Yes.  God made African women very strong; physically, spiritually and emotionally.  Cultural mores are difficult to break and are not something that we can dictate.  This is not our country; we are visitors here.   But we can be in relationship with our sisters and we can support young Kenyans like John who understand how to support these women without making them dependent.   Christianity has given these women hope for their future and also for their day to day living in that they have a heavenly father who cares for them when their earthly fathers and husbands do not.

This is the real Kenya.  This is the developing world.   My heart is heavy tonight when I think of the trials these saints are enduring.  They are loved by God as much as He loves you and me.   God must weep when He sees their suffering.   Pray with me that somehow, someway their lives on earth may improve.  Pray that the missionaries here will know the right way to help these women.   Thank God that they have hope as Christians!  

Lots of love,

Mom and Dad, Nana and Poppy, Miriam and Marv

Old Kijabe Town - Pictures

Good Morning America

Another beautiful day in Kenya!   I am sitting by the large front window in our living room and watching everyone walk to work, primarily to the hospital.   Africa is a walking nation.   Everywhere you look people are walking.   Here in Kijabe walking is not easy, especially for older people.  The “roads” are rocky and uneven.   Finally, after 2 weeks we are not quite as winded as we were upon arrival.

Yesterday, we began the morning by going to the Hospital Chapel service. The singing is always a highlight!    Africans know how to raise the roof!  Presbyterians could certainly take a lesson from them!   After chapel I went to the pediatric ward to find the chaplain, Mercy.   I followed her around the ward as she brought the good news to the moms and patients.   It is not easy to see these little ones suffering and to see the tired moms who share the same beds with them.  I pray that they can soon find out why there is so much hydrocephalus and spina bifida here as well as club feet.  We usually pray in each ward and often sing some of the old standbys which are universal.   “I have a Joy, Joy, Joy, Joy down in my heart, WHERE?”...is a favorite!   One mom asked to know more about Jesus and accepted Him as her Lord and Savior yesterday.  We read scripture with her and prayed.   Mercy will get her a Bible in her own language and visit her again, and try to find a church community for her as she returns to her village or town.  I could not help but keep thinking about Jesus words, “Suffer the little children to come unto me, and forbid them not for of such is the kingdom of Heaven”.  Thankfully these families have found hope amidst their present suffering on earth.

Mid morning I went over to the school to read with the 5^th graders.   I have now listened to all of them read and it has been fun.   Each one is so unique in personality and ability.  I have always respected teachers, but I have a new found respect after this experience as I again see how they try to meet the many varying needs of their students.   Not easy!  Most of the boys are reading science fiction which is foreign to me but they love it!  In one of the books a character was going to appear on the Oprah show.   My student looked at me and said, what is the Oprah show?  He had no idea. (He is American.)   I am so impressed with how they love to read and how often they read!  It certainly brings home the fact that without the distraction of TV kids read!   So turn off the TV American parents!

In the afternoon I went to visit the nursery at the hospital. It is so much smaller than the one at Tenwek.  They did have more modern isolettes though.  I have given some of the knitted hats made by the ladies of First Presbyterian to a missionary who is serving in Maasiland and will give the others to a driver who will bring them to Tenwek as the need there is much greater.   Dad’s work here has involved more gyn surgery than OB as well. We aren’t exactly sure why, but that is what makes each experience different.    Dad has really enjoyed the teaching here as the interns are eager to learn!

After dinner it was such fun to meet four Australian Occupational therapy students who are spending a month here. Of course I bragged about my PT daughter and OT daughter in law!  They were saying that the PT here does everything and that they have learned a great deal!    In Australia they see a lot of CP, and stroke patients.   Here they have had to learn about club feet and spina bifida, but they feel that it has been a very positive experience. They were delightful!

Our bed time has gotten earlier and earlier!  We often go to sleep around 9 PM although I read in bed with my Kindle which I love, love, love!  But we are up early and the day is very full, so I guess we need our sleep!

Love to you all until the next blog!

Mom and Dad, Nana and Poppy, Micki and Marv

Hospital & Maternity

Hospital Entrance

Maternity and Nursery Wing

Sunday

Odds & Ends

 Let me warn you that this blog is not for the faint hearted or those who embarrass easily when matters of personal hygiene are discussed. 

Thread of Hope has another project in mind that could change the lives of many Kenyan young women.  It has been statistically shown that poor women in Kenya often drop out of school at the age of 13 or 14.  Why would you imagine that this would happen?   I thought that perhaps they become pregnant and that is sometimes true, but there is another more common reason.  It is the age that menstruation begins and they have no way of controlling the flow at school. They are too poor to afford pads or tampax.   I was shocked that something as simple, at least in our minds, as this could so profoundly affect women’s lives.   One of the new projects at Thread of Hope is to sew pads from cloth, much like our grandmothers did, and make them available to poor women.  The idea is to make up kits composed of 5 pads and three pair of underwear.   This could be life changing for Kenyan women and also provide business for Thread of Hope.  Currently the missionary wives are researching suitable material (cloth) in Kenya as they would like it to be a Kenyan project; not something imported from the US.   So this gives you an idea of the poverty and one of   the problems it creates.  It will be interesting to follow this project as it gets underway, hopefully soon.

Sunday was a beautiful day here and we started by going to early church at the African Inland Church or AIC as it is called.  There were 600 high school students there for a rally at the neighboring secondary school and they were all in church!  When they lifted their young voices in praise it was truly awe inspiring!   Then we walked over to RVA and went to the 11 o’clock service there.  The services are very different and so it is fun to go to both. 

Dad was on call this weekend with the usual cesarean deliveries.  We did have a chance to Skype our Sunday school class at First Presbyterian.   It was good to see familiar faces and give them a live first-hand report of what our day to day life is like here as well as what marvelous things the Lord is doing at Kijabe!   Even on the other side of the world, we feel connected in ways that a few years ago were impossible.

It is now Monday afternoon and I have done my wash, hung it on the line and gone up to RVA to listen to 5^th graders read!  This afternoon I took Carolyn Boeve, a new arrival, down to the dukas to shop. It is funny that I am now helping others after only being here for two weeks!  Carolyn and her husband Norm, an orthopedic surgeon, are from Michigan and he and Dad are fraternity brothers from years and years ago! Small world again!  Tonight we are hosting an “ice cream social” for   everyone in this building to meet each other.

That is all for now,

Love to all,

Mom and Dad, Nana and Poppy, Micki and Marv

Why do surgeons go to Africa - Is there a "missionary gene"?

I have been reading a book from the shelf in our apartment, “Surgeon on Safari” by Dr. Paul J. Jordan, MD and William Adair.  This is a story of Dr. Jordan’s year in Kijabe, Kenya with his family that happened in 1973.   The book was published in 1976 and 1985.  What is amazing is how similar the stories are after almost 40 years!

There is no question that Dr. Jordan had a Christian calling as well as the other physicians who preceded him.   As an orthopedic surgeon, he believed that there was immediacy and visibility to the results.  “Mission medicine, I soon concluded in the days and weeks to follow, is to a great extent surgical” (p. 68).   There was also the sense of adventure and challenge that was part of his experience.   What he also describes is how these experiences influenced the lives of his 9 children that accompanied him and his wife.

There is always the nature/nurture argument related to behavior and it could be concluded that there is a “missionary” gene!   I was certainly influenced by my parent’s love of Christian missions and they were particularly impressed by physician surgeons.    Like Dr. Jordan, if a gene is present its effects appear in midlife and continue into the advanced years.

For me, the effects of this “gene” began at Duke in 1993 and have continued until now.   All of my children have had a foreign mission experience and now we have the opportunity to communicate this experience to our grandchildren.    We have seen similar stories in the lives of our neighbor physician surgeon family. 

As you have seen in the previous blogs we have many names that end our blog.  I hope that the communication in this blog will continue to influence the lives of our family, but maybe they have already inherited the “missionary” gene! 

Love,

Dad aka Poppy

WEP - Thread of Hope

Hi everybody, sorry to have missed a couple of days but I have been busy and just too tired to gather my thoughts at the end of the day!  So let’s catch up!  

On Thursday I walked up to the Rift Valley Academy to help out in the fifth grade class simply by listening to some of the kids read to me out loud.   The class is small, but very diverse.   The first little boy was from Korea and has only been speaking English for 3 years!  His book was about outer space which seems to be of universal interest to little boys!   He read quite well but in a methodical sort of way so we worked on expression.  The second child was Abby who announced to me that she is Korean/African and from Tanzania.  She was reading “Pippi Longstocking”, again very methodically, but fairly accurately.  I wasn’t quite sure if she liked Pippi or if the librarian had assigned it.  The third little one was Henry from Kenya and although he had the most difficulty reading he seemed to enjoy it the most!  His book had a lot of play on words and so we had a good time laughing about those.  It was a fun morning as I also got to meet the elementary school teachers who are from all parts of the US.  I will go back next week.

On Thursday afternoon(See previous post for pictures),  I was invited to go to the Women’s Educational Project or Threads of Hope which is located in a town called Mauhi Maui and is at the bottom of the Rift Valley on the main highway into Nairobi.  The first thing you are impressed with as you ride through the “town” is the hundreds of “rigs” that are parked along the side of the road. It was explained to me that the truck drivers who are either coming or going from Nairobi or Mombasa stop here to rest and refuel.  They engage prostitutes when they are here which is why the town is known as the Sodom and Gomorrah of Kenya.   As you can imagine this is one of the reasons for the widespread of HIV/Aids throughout the country.  After passing through the town you come upon a large tent village of squatters (IDP – Internally Displaced Persons) as well as a large number of Habitat for Humanity homes which were donated from the US but built by Kenyans.  This village is inhabited by people who were victims of the violence in Western Kenya in 2007 and will never be able to return to their homeland either out of fear (because they are the wrong tribe) or lack of funds.  Most of them are widows or single moms. 

In the midst of this scene is WEP (Women Educational Project) Thread of Hope!  It was started by an energetic young Kenyan named John who has come to know the Lord and has numerous mission projects going while trying to support his family as a mechanic.  “Threads” is one small room in a concrete building that was teaming with the excitement of 17 women eager to learn a trade and be self supporting.   John started this project by singling out a young orphan woman named Florence whom he sent to “tailoring” school and providing her with a treadle Singer sewing machine for which she is paying him back.  Florence although only 18 or so, is now the teacher to this group!  On Thursday my friends taught the ladies how to make wrap around skirts!   If only I could describe to you the intensity of their interest and desire to learn!  They worked so beautifully together as they gathered around the one cutting table and carefully cut out the pattern.  The finished products (2 skirts) were a source of pride and declared to be very “smart” which in Kenya is THE word to describe something very fashionable!  In addition to the skirts the ladies learned how to make scrub caps for surgery.   My friend taught them that it is important to look at the pattern and design the cap to make it attractive so that people will want to buy it.  Why is this something that has to be taught?   Because if you have never owned anything that matched or was coordinated why would you even think of such a thing?   As a “wealthy” American I had to be reminded of that.  

It was quite a wonderful afternoon, but it did not end there. We took the airport (a overgrown grass strip) road home up the mountain and got stuck as it had rained (and hailed) earlier in the day. Fortunately John put it in 4 wheel drive and got us through, but it was not without its tension!  If only I could describe Kenyan roads to you perhaps you would understand the situation...but I will leave that for another day!

********************************

Yesterday,  I traveled into Nairobi with several other wives for grocery shopping and fun.  Because Kijabe is about an hour from Nairobi this is something that they do fairly frequently. What a contrast within an hour!  We went to the Village Market which is a beautiful shopping Center and obviously caters to the upper class.  It was fun to see the diversity of people; lots of Indians whose ancestors helped develop and build the railroad in Kenya as well as many cars with UN licenses plates owned by people from all over the world.  The Maasi also have a craft market there in the parking lot on Fridays which was fun to visit. They are very, very assertive in trying to get you to buy their products and you never pay what they ask so it becomes a bargaining duel.  My kids think that I love a bargain and it is true, but this kind of shopping is very tiring!   I was not going to buy anything, but as you can imagine, I gave in!  

Then we went grocery shopping at the Nakamutt and out for lunch at the Food Court!!!  The trip there is through beautiful scenery and so it was great fun!

Today is Saturday and we are going to be lazy although a man just delivered two chickens to the door that were killed this morning (very fresh mama!) and so I think that I will cook them and make some chicken curry as well as chicken soup.

Love to all and God bless,

Mom and Dad, Nana and Poppy, Micki and Marv

Thread of Hope

Surgery at Kijabe

This is a surgical hospital and the new operating room wing (theatre) is testimony to its importance.   It is very well supplied.  There is also an emphasis on surgical teaching at all levels.  What is most amazing is the presence of surgical subspecialties.   

There is another reality and that are the expectations and variety of patients treated.   Today, we treated a Somali woman that required a good deal of cross-cultural translation.  Before the surgery the Christian surgeons prayed for this Muslin woman!  There are many Western surgeons that are here as mentors/teachers for the surgical residents and interns. 

Like my previous experiences, I have seen what is unusual....abdominal pregnancy and intusseption after a cesarean section for severe pre-eclampsia and a growth restricted fetus.  What is also challenging is deciding when not to operate!   Would you recommend a “fertility operation” in a woman with secondary infertility that is HIV positive?   A prior child died at 2 years of age of pneumonia about 8 years ago.   Her HIV disease is relatively well controlled on medications for the last 3 years.   The American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology has recommendations but do these apply here in Kenya? 

One last observation...The WHO Safe Surgery program posters adorn the walls of each of the operating rooms.   It is my understanding that they have been up on the walls for the last five months.  I have made it one of my missions to implement these in the surgeries that I attend.   It is a good teaching tool.

Marv

House cleaning is universal!

How is that for a profound statement?   I spent my morning doing just that. It is amazing how this red clay soil which turns into dust in the strong wind is brought into the house!   At the Kenyan homes we have visited we do take off our shoes at the door and now you know the reason why!   Most floors are tile so they are easily mopped.   The hospital provides us with house help to do this which is great! 

After a morning of cleaning I went to an afternoon Bible Study on the book of Matthew with other missionary wives, visiting wives, and some folks from RVA.  The leader had done an excellent job of preparing and it was an interesting time.   It was also nice to meet some of the other women who are either long or short term.  I have found that it is difficult to know who is here apart from some of these formal groups.  The long term people are busy raising families or working at the school or hospital and because people come and go so frequently some of the short term people get lost in the cracks.   I am trying to be more assertive and reach out to find my place and to be of service while we are here.

One of the prayer requests at Bible Study was for  two MD’s who left for Somalia yesterday to do surgery for a couple of weeks primarily on contractures because of burns.   Women are often the victims of burns either because their long cotton clothing catches on fire while they are cooking or because they set themselves on fire to commit suicide.   To give you an idea of the magnitude of this problem he was scheduled to do 22 surgeries in the next 3 days! (By the way he is 70 years old so pray for strength for him!)

Dad has had a busy week as he is covering the service while the other OB is out of town. He was glad to come home last night and put his feet up!  He is loving the eagerness of the students; both Kenyan and a couple of American pre med girls. The girls are going to observe a C section this morning and are very excited!

This morning began with an unexpected Skype from John on his birthday!  It was midnight in SC and 8 AM here so I was among the first to wish him a great day and a healthy happy year!   What fun to talk a half world apart.

After my nice chat I went to the hospital chapel service and the singing was outstanding again. What a joyous way to begin the day!  From there I visited the pediatric wards with the chaplain named Mercy and some other visiting gringo ladies!  One of ladies plays a little accordion and so we greeted the wards with songs in Swahili and English.  The chaplain says that I have rhythm so I tried to engage the patients in singing and clapping.  I am glad that my children weren’t there to see their mother swinging and swaying!   At least I got them laughing a bit.   Many of the patients are spina bifida, hydrocephalic children who have come for surgery.   I think I mentioned before that this is the only place in Kenya where there is a pediatric neurosurgeon and that this is the largest service in the world for this particular surgery.   We handed out blankets and stuffed animals that had been made by American church ladies.   We took turns praying in each ward for the Lord’s blessing on these children and their families.  It was very powerful.  Imagine how difficult it must be to have a handicapped child in a third world culture. There is no handicapped accessible law here!  These families face unimaginable challenges and need our love and prayers. 

 

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JOHNNY BOY, GLAD YOU WERE BORN WE LOVE YOU

Mom and Dad, Nana and Poppy, Micki and Marv

Home Town Reunion

Good morning! It is a beautiful morning in Kijabe as I look out over the Rift Valley and see the mountains off in the distance.   We were up and dressed early this morning as new friends from Alberta, Canada who were visiting our neighbors left for home and we wanted to say good-bye.  I think that hellos and goodbyes are a big part of missionary life and often very difficult.   As one wife told me, life here changes every 3-4 months. You just get to know someone and then they leave.  Of course being apart from family in another part of the world is also a difficult reality.  I can’t help but think of how the internet and satellite communication has changed life for missionaries!   My mind often wanders and I imagine what life was like here 100 years ago when the hospital and school were established.  Or what it was like to travel here then.  The flights seem long now but are nothing compared to the voyages that took months.  I can remember  as a young girl that we would have going away “parties” for  missionaries who were leaving  and everyone would cry as we sang, God Be with you Till we meet again and for good reason, because we did not know if and when we they would return.  The courage that these people of God showed is awe inspiring to me.   I know that this thought really dates me, but I can’t help reminding myself of the sacrifices they made and now we are seeing the fruits of their labor.  

Last night we enjoyed dinner with Warren and Miriam Rich who are from Wilmington NC and have served here for 24 years!   Warren, who grew up in Winter Park Presbyterian Church , has established a very busy dental practice here over the course of those years that takes care of the Kenyans, the other missionaries and the students at the RVA.  He has trained Kenyan dentists who are now ready to take over the direction of the clinic and so God willing Warren and his family will be leaving here in July.  Their plans for the future are still indefinite and they are praying for guidance.  Their other prayer request is a bit unusual.  Two years ago an abandoned baby girl came into their family which already consisted of 5 children. (3 of whom are now students in the US; one at UNCW, two in Chapel Hill) They had not planned on adopting Hope, but the Lord had other plans for this family.  Hope is now a bright, darling 2 year old and very much a part of the Rich family.  However, they are having trouble completing the adoption because of some complicated arrangement the US government has with the Hague.  Adopting children in Kenya is difficult even if you have lived here   for 24 years! Only 800 Kenyan children among the 2 plus million orphans have been adopted this year.   Because of this dilemma (Hope has no visa) the Richs are unable to travel to the US as a family. They are currently working with the US Embassy and hope for some positive decision very soon.   Please keep this family in your prayers.

As a side note, the Richs have a Wofford College student living with them for a month during her interim  and guess what John and Anna, she is from Mt. Pleasant and grew up in Hobcaw! She even swam on the club swim team for 9 years!  Talk about a small world!  We enjoyed sharing dinner with her as well!

Bye for now and have a good day,

Love and miss you a lot,

Mom and Dad, Nana and Poppy, Micki and Marv

We have been here a week!

How time does fly when you are having fun!  On Saturday Marv worked until the early afternoon and was exhausted so we both took a nap!  Afterwards we went for a long walk on the station as he had really not had a chance to see or experience any of it since arrival. One interesting stop was the cemetery which has markers dating back nearly 100 years.  Again it points out that the Lord has been at work in Kijabe through missionaries for many years!  That evening we spent a quiet time reading.  Sounds exciting, huh!   But you know there is something very peaceful about our simple life here. There are few outside distractions and the pace is Kenyan time.  Not all bad for Westerners to absorb.

On Sunday morning we walked up the hill and over the ruts to church for the 8:30 service at the AIC (African Inland Church).   The early service is mainly in English with a later service in Swahili. It was wonderful to worship with our Kenyan brothers and sisters and particularly to watch all of the children as they went up to the front and sang “God is So Good” in both languages before leaving for Sunday School.  After the service we walked to RVA (Rift Valley Academy) and toured the campus before going to the 11 AM service.  It reminded Marv and me of our childhood and 2 services a Sunday! 

The service is held in a large assembly hall and was packed with many young families.  It is a contemporary service and the music was soulful and uplifting as everyone really participated. After the service we were invited to lunch at the cafeteria with the woodworking teacher, Mr. Baker and his wife Esther.   What an interesting story they have to tell. He is a retired LA public school teacher of 40 years who came to RVA as a widower 10 years ago, met Esther and they were married 4 years ago. She is a former banker from Toronto who now works in the business office and manages a 2 million dollar budget at RVA each year.   Mr. Baker is the type of dedicated teacher that we all want for our children; patient, gentle, and disciplined. I think that he is particularly effective as a father figure to these children who are living apart from their parents.

Guess what, the Sunday afternoon nap is universal after a big Sunday noon meal! That evening we were invited to Marv’s Kenyan colleague’s home for supper.  He, Alfred, and his wife Monica and their two sons made us feel right at home and we enjoyed Kenyan food of chicken, rice and beans, delicious cabbage seasoned with turmeric and “white tea” (much like warm milk) for dessert.  Dad taught the kids the magic spoon trick which has served him well for many years and many occasions!  I was amazed at the boys knowledge of world geography as I quizzed them about where North Carolina was, etc.  Monica is a math and chemistry teacher at the Kijabe Boys School which is a government run boarding school just outside the mission station. She has 60 students in each class and teaches 4 sections each day!  That’s right, 240 students per day!  She expressed frustration at not being able to meet the needs of individuals, especially those at the lower functioning students.  

Alfred has been funded to come to the US and receive a Master of Public Health under a grant that would study perinatal HIV/AIDS transmission.  He is very eager to do this, but we sensed a lot of anxiety on Monica’s part as to whether she wants to come with him.  While we found this surprising it was a good lesson to us in cultural differences. The reason she is afraid to come is that everyone in her personal experience who comes to the US comes back to Kenya and gets a divorce. Why?  She feels that it is because women sense the empowerment that Western women have and cannot adjust back to Kenyan tradition of female submission and this creates a lot of tension in the marriage.  I would like to talk to her more about this and hope that I have that opportunity.  My heart went out to her as I could see that she was really struggling with this decision. 

We loved Skyping Betsy, John and family this weekend!

Love to all,

Mom and Dad, Nana and Poppy, Marv and Micki