unexpected turnout!

It is 5AM and I can't sleep because I'm worried about my son, Glenn getting on the plane in Chicago since there's a sheet of ice on top of the snow and freezing temps! It looks like he might make it on time to Istanbul to catch his flight with his sister & husband to see us for Christmas. The older brother will follow in a couple of days. What a wonderful feeling of anticipation as we await our children's arrival. God sure loves to give us good gifts.
Last Saturday night was our Christmas program at our church. We had put a lot of work into it and planned & practiced like we should. We all invited friends and hoped that some of them would come. Everyone in the congregation was asked to bring cookies for the occasion. Our normal attendance has been running around 50. We put out 80 chairs thinking that our faith was huge and we'd never fill them. The people kept coming long after the play had begun and we ended up with about 110 people at the end. It was so thrilling to hear many people say that it was the first time they'd ever heard the Christmas story. After the play, Darrell closed with a short message on the Light of the world and everyone lit the candle they had received when they arrived. The funny thing was that so many people had cigarette lighters, that they all started lighting their own candles so there was instant light instead of a slow lighting of the room. Oh well. The fellowship afterward was wonderful and people stayed around forever. God multiplied the cookies and there were plenty for everyone. Someone was able to sneak a picture which I will include here. Also the cast of the play minus our two Kurds and 1 Arab wisemen. They were awesome.

Christmas musings

This may be the only blog I get to this month since my children will be arriving in exactly one week and then I will be all theirs until they leave! I'm sure I'll have lots to blog about when they leave and hopefully some family pictures. This season is so different overseas than in the US. Although I sometimes wish I could stroll in a mall all decorated with Santa, lights & Christmas music, I do rather enjoy the calmness of our Christmas here; hardly a decoration to be found and the scrawny trees & Santas hardly remind me of the "season to be jolly"! We put our tree up early this year and I love the lights & gifts under the tree, candles burning and music playing. But the focus is so much more on Jesus and the real reason we celebrate this holiday. We are putting on a performance of the Christmas story at our church this Saturday and it promises to be a great event. Many who come will never once have heard the story. Even I, after having heard it maybe hundreds of times, actually cried when I read the play script the first time. It is an amazing story that we never tire of. Our week is packed full of activity: girls' Christmas party tonight at one of our teammates' houses, team Christmas party tomorrow with a few extras invited, our Christmas program at church on Saturday, baking & cooking & freezing for the arrival of my kids next week and then celebrating twice as my older son arrives the 29th. What a wonderful time of year! I read a blog this morning from a friend suffering with cancer. His attitude and character is so God-honoring. He admonishes us to enjoy and love our families as never before because we never know how long we'll have with them. They are truly God's most wonderful gift to us after Jesus! I pray that we will all remember this as we gather with loved ones this Christmas season. The other night at our prayer meeting, we sang just about every Christmas Carol in the book. Before we chose a song, we had to tell why we liked it. I really love all the carols and the concept of Immanuel is so special; to think that God left heaven and became a man so that he could be with us on this earth and show us how to live, is just mind-boggling. If only we could explain this very complex truth to our friends here. Only the Holy Spirit can open their eyes and help them to understand! Have a wonderful Christmas and a joyous time of celebrating the greatest gift of all time: JESUS.

Never a dull moment

As we prepared to leave for our English classes the other night, we began hearing loud noises and crackling sounds outside our window. We looked out to see flashes of light and sparks flying everywhere. By the time we all ran out onto the lawn, there were flames leaping up the side of the house and neighbors were running from all over. We happened to have 4 visitors from the States with us plus the 7 people that always live in our house. There was quite a crowd that gathered to watch. A neighbor ran with a fire extinguisher and they stopped a taxi to get another one since the flames kept coming back. Black smoke was pouring through the neighborhood and into our house. When all was said and done, our electric box and all the wires were burned to a crisp and of course we had no power. Fortunately we know people in the electric company who came running to our rescue and before we returned from English class, we had temporary power hooked up. It is a thin wire that won't carry our heaters but at least we have lights and hot water. We are just entering 4 days of the Muslim holiday so everything will be closed. Hopefully we'll get straightened out by next Monday. Recently our electricity has been extra terrible and we've spent many nights with only candles. We've been told this is temporary while they change all the old wiring in our area? Who knows?

continued...

I was in the middle of my story when the power went out and I lost the rest of it! Let me see if I can reconstruct it. After watching surgery for quite awhile, I asked my doctor/student friend if I could go over to the burn unit and get an update on the women we had visited a few days ago. He went with me and I was impressed with his level of compassion for the women. We both gowned up and went into the ward to find one woman walking around (the one whose 17 year-old daughter was burned to death trying to rescue her). Another young girl who was 6 months pregnant was breathing her last breaths. Her baby had already died and she was not far behind. The fire had not only burned her on the outside but completely destroyed her lungs and internal organs. It was so sad to see her family standing outside her window waiting and weeping. While we were there, they wheeled in the woman who had just undergone surgery for skin grafts and she was writhing and screaming in pain. A very ironic note is that this woman's name is "happy heart". Nothing could be further from reality! It took me a couple hours to get rid of the sick feeling in my stomach. There's nothing more difficult than to observe human suffering and not be able to do anything about it. One thing is for sure, it made me more determined than ever to learn this language so that I can share the love of Jesus with these women.

No words to describe...

I was utterly unprepared for what I experienced today. One of my English students is a plastic surgeon at the burn hospital where I went the other day. He mentioned that he often does skin grafts on these women and I said I'd love to watch him do that one day. Last night he asked if I'd be ready to go with him today? Of course there is nowhere I love to be more than in the hospital and especially the operating room so I agreed to go this morning. My student called at 9AM to tell me that I should hurry as the patient was already under general anesthesia and being prepped for surgery. I arrived and quickly changed my clothes into hospital scrubs and went right into the operating theater. I didn't think there was anything that could shock me or take me by surprise in a hospital setting; I've really seen a LOT in my lifetime. But what I saw this morning pretty much took my breath away and left me speechless. I wanted to say "forget it, I change my mind, I can't do this" & run out of the room. I was disturbed to think that I no longer had the guts to face such gruesome sights. But I quickly gained composure and tuned into what was going on in the room. The woman on the table looked like a huge slab of raw meat; the sight was repulsive to say the least. I began to imagine the frightened, lonely woman inside that body and my heart went out to her. What circumstances could be so desperate that a human being would douse themselves with kerosene and light a match? I became engrossed in the whole skin graft process. Thin layers of skin were shaved off her only unburned leg and put through a process of stretching and "meshing" and then laid carefully on her severely burned torso. From her neck to her thighs, there was not an inch of healthy tissue. It all had to be removed and replaced with this new thin layer of skin. I was impressed with the skill of the doctors and told them so. They seemed very happy for the encouragement, something I'm sure they rarely get in this culture. The chief surgeon put both arms up like Superman because I called him a hero. After watching the skin grafts for awhile, we went to another room where I observed a major operation underway. That one didn't bother me near as much. Perhaps it's because I had talked to these burn victims a few days ago and knew their stories; their life of pain has just begun and will never end until they die.

Crying for help

This morning I visited the emergency hospital where all burn victims are sent. I accompanied a journalist friend who is visiting from the US. She wants to set up a website where Kurdish stories can be told. One of her passions (and mine) is to document the plight of women in this country and the desperate measures they go to in order to get out of their miserable circumstances in life. I had heard that many women here commit suicide by burning themselves. The sad thing is that many of them do not die! We visited 8 of those women today and their stories are heart-breaking. Because of huge family shame, they all have a story of how it happened but everyone knows the truth. The first woman we met was swollen beyond recognition and wrapped in bandages from head to foot. We learned that her 17 year-old daughter had tried to rescue her as her body was enveloped in flames; she was also severely burned and had just died this morning of her wounds. Doctors told us that every day they carry away 3-4 women who succumb to their severe burns. Those that are more than 60% burned have about a 100% chance of dying. For 3 hours we went from room to room, listening to lies & fabricated stories, trying to piece things together to get to the REAL story. At times I would stay outside with the family member, usually a mother or a sister of the victim, while the journalist and translator (who's my best friend)went inside and talked to the patient. Often the story I got from the mother was totally different from what the burned woman was telling. By the end of the morning, we learned the questions to ask that would bring out the truth. Rejected, lonely, helpless & without hope, these women feel they have no other recourse than to end their lives. One mother told me that her daughter lived in her husband's family's house. He was an only boy and adored by his mother. They hated her because she wore pants and refused to cover her head. Right there, I could imagine the whole scenario and how awful her life must be. She is only 21 and has 2 children, married when she was 14. Her mother asked me if the scars would go away. When I told her NO, big tears welled up in her eyes. Her poor daughter is covered from the waist up with huge, oozing bandages and she thinks she's going to avoid having scars for the rest of her life. Someone told her there's a cream that will make them disappear! Another young girl, 6 months pregnant and burned over 48% of her body. The baby survived but it's still not known if the mother will make it. Another very young girl, 2 months pregnant...she was itching all over as her wounds began to heal. I told her she should put cream on her stomach to keep from itching so badly. She said they told her the baby would be deformed if she put cream on her stomach! I gave her a tube of lotion that I had in my purse and told her to cover herself with lotion and nothing would happen to her baby! Oh the lies and old wives' tales that they feed one another; it makes me crazy. The statistics are daunting; 90% of burn victims are women. In the past 10 months, there have been over 200 women who have been admitted to this one hospital with severe burns and the doctors all know they are suicide cases, though the truth is never voiced because of FEAR. One lady told us that they once had 3 women admit to trying to kill themselves and when they went back the next day, they were all dead. We were told that the family most likely poisoned them because they brought shame to them. It is truly a hopeless situation because those that survive are kept hidden in the home for the rest of their lives; never allowed to be seen in public with their scars lest someone find out the truth and mar the family name. If only we could go to those women, shut away forever, and tell them that there IS hope. If only we could put our arms around them and let them know that they are loved & still beautiful in God's sight. I pray that the loving heavenly Father will come to them in a dream and let them know how much he loves them. I pray that somehow they will reach out to Him and find the hope they so desperately need! I dare not include photos here as they are too gruesome for most eyes to behold. Just PRAY for these women.

A perfect day!

After a week of much-needed rain, we were very happy to see the temperatures rising again and bright sunshine covering our land. Friday we had 3 visitors here from the US and they joined us on a picnic to the Kurdish countryside. It was an absolutely picture-perfect day; mid-70's and warm sunshine. With young men along to do the barbecue and make the tea, I mostly sat and watched and relaxed. After setting up "camp", we noticed that we had front row seats to a Kurdish wedding that was about to begin. After climbing the high mountains behind us, our group decided to go down and check out the wedding. Before long, I noticed from afar that Elise was in the group dancing, then I saw Sarah also & DJ leading the dance procession! The people were overjoyed that these Americans had crashed their wedding party and joined them in their celebration. It was such a fun, relaxing day in every way. It may have been the last of this season but you never know; last year we were picnicking into December.

busy days

I really thought I'd be a great blogger but I'm finding out that I stink at it! Almost every day I find a blog from my sister-in-law Katie or my colleague Rachel and I'm lucky if I get out one a month. I'm pretty sure all those that have followed me in the past have now given up and quit checking. I would say that I'll promise to do better but I don't dare say that! Anyway, it's not that I'm sitting around with nothing to do these days. Adding to my already-busy schedule has been a non-stop stream of short-term teams from America. While we love having these visitors with us, all the help they give & the goodies they bring, it does add a whole new dimension to our busyness. We also have 3 one-year interns living with us and a 13 year-old boy and our Napali house helper so always 7 people to feed. The empty nest didn't last long for us! I like living life in the fast lane but once in awhile one must take time out to reflect in solitude. That is what I plan to do on Monday! I'm heading for the mountains all alone and spending a quiet day with God. I am SO looking forward to this day. I've been planning it for a awhile. It's been too long in coming. This is the only window of opportunity I have before the next visitors arrive. I have blocked this day off on my calendar and am determined that nothing will interfere with it. The coming months will be just as busy as the past have been; I don't want to go through them in my own strength - I need His strength and help. I want to "run and not grow weary". I want my youth to be renewed (now there's asking for a miracle!)so that I can serve my King for many years to come. I pray that the spirit of Mary will come upon this Martha and give me a heart to worship and to sit at my savior's feet for awhile. There I will find rest for my soul and be renewed to run the race.
Always a heart-felt thank you to those of you who have run with us all these years. We couldn't do it if we didn't have you by our side! What a winning team.

entertaining Kurdish style

We've been told that it's rude to turn off your TV when a guest comes for a visit. Something about it makes him feel unwelcome?? Tonight we went for dinner to a Kurdish home in the mountains. When we arrived, there was some kind of music video station on and the women were wearing little to nothing. Everyone in the room was watching! It was kind of strange but it definitely kept there from being any silent moments since the music was so loud we could hardly hear one another talk. This was one of those homes where we sat on the floor, ate on the floor, etc. It was just a big empty room with 2 mats and a huge flat screen TV with naked women on it! When the meal was set before us on a plastic tablecloth we continued to watch MTV while we ate our rice & chicken. Then of course we had the tea with 1 inch of sugar in the bottom. I didn't stir mine one bit and it was still like syrup! This guy was an English student of Darrell's and speaks pretty good English but his wife doesn't speak a word, thus making things a little awkward. We really needed MTV to fill in the silent places:)
Funny how different cultures think about things; we'd think it pretty rude to keep the TV going at top volume with X-rated pictures on it while our guests have come to visit us. Here, guests would think it rude if we turned off our TV when they walked in. Just a different perspective!

Put to shame

Last week we held a 5-day training course here for leaders in the Iraqi Church. The 14 men and women came from 3 different cities in Iraq. Two teachers came from the US to give 2 courses. The students were full of excitement and anticipation as they began the course. I noticed one man with his arm in a sling and seemingly in a lot of pain. I asked about his story and this is what I was told: This guy has been a believer in Jesus for 2 years and has suffered terribly for his faith. Two days prior to coming for the course, he was beaten and his arm crushed by an AK-47. The doctors were unable to do anything with his arm because it was so badly injured. He lived on strong pain killers. He ran away from the village and arranged to meet the pastor on the highway to come to the course. I also found out that his group of 6/7 believers meets in a van because it would be extremely dangerous for them if they were known to be worshiping Jesus. In the nice weather they meet up on the mountain. It was moving to watch this man during worship time as he sang and praised Jesus with his one good arm uplifted. He was told that if he returned to his village he would be killed! While at the conference he received a phone call from his older brother who's in the gov't and he promised to come and settle things and warn the villagers not to bother him. I thought over and over about the price some people pay to follow Jesus. My faith doesn't really cost me anything; this man's faith costs him everything. I'm sure when he wakes up in the morning he often wonders if this will be his last day on earth. I can't say I've had that thought very often!!

Sacrificial love

Yesterday I went to the children's hospital to visit a friend whose baby is in the neonatal ward. This young girl just had a C-section 4 days ago but insists on sitting by her baby's bed all day long so that she can feed her when she awakens. The nurses are nowhere to be found; the mothers do all the care of their tiny premature babies. My friend's baby looked very good & I have high hopes that she will come home soon. The father was an English student and has become a good friend. In the incubator next to my friend's baby, there was a baby born at 7 months. His arms and legs were maybe 3/4" in diameter. He gasped for every breath as his mother sat by his side. I watched her as she expressed her own milk by hand into a little cup, then poured it into a syringe and gave it to her baby through a tiny tube running from his nose down into his stomach. She does this every 2 hours all day long. I have not been able to get this picture out of my mind; the unbelievable sacrifice that a mother is willing to give for her child. There are few things in life so powerful. I recently heard of God's love referred to as a mother's love and that took on a new meaning today as I was reminded of what lengths a mother is willing to go to in order to save her child.

Silly in Suli

The younger members of our team finally convinced these oldies to go to the amusement park with them after our Sat. night meeting. Usually we're just too tired and would rather go home and crash than go on silly rides & play cheesy games:) Last night we decided to join in the "fun" and a group of us headed for the park. I have to admit I was skeptical that I would enjoy it at all since I was so tired & had a sore back. But it turned out to be a crazy, fun, silly night of acting like kids; riding bumper cars, playing air hockey, basketball, boxing game, riding the Ferris wheel, etc. The best part was discovering a delicious black cherry popsicle that tasted so good on a very warm evening. Kirsten reminded me that it didn't take much to make me happy; just a cherry popsicle. I guess it is nice to revert to children once in awhile and enjoy the simple things of life. It was also very nice hanging out with 3 guys that we've come to love, one of them having already joined the family and another definitely on the road. As I've said before, there's just nothing to do in this city for fun so we have to make our own and we definitely did last night!

This and That

An overview of the last few weeks:
- 7 short term workers joined us & kept a very busy schedule of teaching both
children & adult classes, morning and evening
- occupation of the new LIFE center
- renovation of this center, with the help of 3 men from Salem, OR
- vacated our old, rented facility
- left for Jordan and our annual field retreat - great refreshment & relaxation
after a grueling summer
- visited our old stomping ground in Aqaba; good to see old friends
- a few days in Amman & then back home!
- this year we'll have 4 young people living with us and helping with teaching &
other aspects of ministry; 2 guys & 2 girls.
*I hope to post pictures soon of our new center all set up and ready to go

This summer has been a whirlwind of activity as we've been 10-11 people at all times in our home. Mostly it's been a blast and I've thoroughly enjoyed it all. In fact, last night as I was falling asleep (which comes very easy these days), my last thoughts were "I love the sound of young people talking and laughing in my living room". I can't wait for Christmas when it'll be my OWN children here!!
These days here in this country have been consumed with everything politics as they've geared up for the elections. Banners & posters are plastered everywhere, every conversation seems to center around what might or might not happen. There is tension in the air as people await the results of today's election. Thus far, we have not seen or heard of any trouble and we pray it stays that way.
Right now we have 3 men from Salem Church in Oregon who have come for 2 weeks to help finish up the work in our new LIFE Center. They are truly a gift from God and we don't know what we would have done without them! Darrell has seen true miracles happen as he's gone from office to office trying to get more electricity for the building & numerous other things that people said were impossible. (especially the speed with which he obtained important documents) Yesterday, with the help of some of our guys, our sign went up on our building and it was exciting. All the neighbors were on their balconies watching and passing cars slowed down to see what this building was going to be. From the main highway that circles the city, our sign can be seen clearly. What a location God gave us. We are overwhelmed and amazed at his goodness.

Happy 4th of July

Last night we had some friends over and had a fun night making homemade pizza & playing games. I'm so thankful for my big living room that can seat so many people.
Today is the 4th of July and just another dusty day in this part of the world. No grassy parks or backyard decks, no flags flying or patriotic songs sung, but we did have a party and made the most of our humble circumstances. We had grilled hamburgers and hot dogs, potato salad, baked beans, jello salad and apple pie. Can't get anymore American than that! (I did have to go to the butcher this morning and order the meat for the burgers. It was freshly killed and still hanging on the hoof)
The men took care of the grilling. I felt so bad for them out in that awful heat and dust. We're experiencing one of the worst dust storms since we've been here; our friends down south say they can hardly see their hand in front of their face. Our big generator also broke down today and Darrell spent half the afternoon working with the repairman trying to get it fixed. Then it was off to our Int'l Ch Fellowship and a pot luck dinner afterward. Another great evening with a large attendance and wonderful spirit. Made us forget all about our electricity woes & the thick dust covering everything (until we walked back outside!) God is good, all the time.

Day at the LIFE Center

Our summer course is off to a great start with about 125 students registered, including adults and children. Yesterday our day began at 8:30 when we arrived at the center to get ready for kids' club. There were already 6-8 children there waiting in a little patch of shade, trying to avoid the intense sun. Within minutes, the children began pouring in, so excited about their English lessons. All went as planned and the kids were well-behaved for the most part. They all come with money to buy snacks at break time even though we provide snacks for free. They just love to spend their money. When the parents arrive to pick them up, they are eager to tell them what they've learned. After lunch, an afternoon nap & lesson prep, it's back again to the LIFE Center for two back-to-back classes in the evening. Last night, halfway through the first class, we heard a huge BOOM that shook the building. And we were plunged into darkness. We discovered it was our government electric box that had overloaded and blown up. We had been having electrical problems for a couple days which culminated in this! We lit every candle we could find and the students had fun sitting around talking with our short-termers by candlelight. The second class of students arrived while the first was still there so there was quite a crowd at one time. It was getting stifling hot by this time and we wondered if we'd make it until the neighborhood generator was turned on. There were electricians and all kinds of people coming up and down the stairs, trying to figure out the problem. We made it through until the motor came on and continued our classes until 10PM. Today Darrell has spent hours running from office to office in beastly hot temps, trying to get a new meter box assigned to us. It is a process that normally would take 2 weeks but because he knows someone, will hopefully get done today. Oh the joys of life in these parts...never a dull moment.
Here are some pictures of our kids' club.

A late summer day outing

We have quite a house full of people this summer and there is always lots of activity around. I love the sound of laughter & music & discussions going on all around the house. I love having a big table full of people, sitting around talking after a meal. I love all the extra help with housework and teaching and shopping. It looks like it's going to be a great summer! We have finished our registration for our English classes and will begin our full program starting this Sunday. Thus far, we've had a great response and are excited to see who God is bringing to our center during this summer intensive course. This afternoon after 4PM we decided to head to a spot in the mountains that we were told would be very cool. That sounded awfully good since it was 107 degrees here in the city today. When we got to the mountain spot, it was 82 degrees and just beautiful. Even though the green of springtime is gone, the mountains still hold one in awe with their splendor & beauty. We enjoyed eating, talking, playing games and just relaxing. At 8PM we arrived back in the city to 100 degree temps; so thankful for air conditioning and a comfortable home:)

contemplating sobering thoughts

A fellow worker just wrote along similar lines and got me thinking too...After the news of a worker being killed in North Africa this week (leaving behind 4 children) and having thought SO many times over the years about my friend Bonnie who was killed, I have pondered the question of "is this worth it" more often than I care to admit. At times negative thoughts are given full reign in my mind and that is a dangerous thing! I begin to think of all I've given up to serve God, of the darkness in the places I've been called to and I wonder if I'm living my life in a manner worthy of this calling. Because these places are dark, we tend to make all kinds of excuses for NOT sharing the great news that we've come with. I've heard myself say more than once "if I get kicked out, what good am I doing for the people?" But when I think of the ultimate sacrifice of laying down ones life for the sake of Christ, it seems to me a great honor and if I were called to martyrdom, I would not want it to be in vain. I am not enduring this hard lifestyle just to be known as a great English teacher or even a kind person. If I am not making a difference in people's lives for eternity, then this life is certainly not worth it. I didn't give up my children & my comfortable life & Walmart & much more to come to this far away place and just survive; going through the motions of daily routines & obligations. My God is worthy of so much more than that! This is a high calling; one that requires taking up the cross and following closely behind the Master. Come to think of it, every single one of us is called to the very same thing. My calling isn't any higher than any of yours. We all bear the name of Christ and as such, should be willing and ready at any moment to live for him or die for him.

blog blahs

Realizing how I love to open my "Google Reader" and read other people's blogs, it is apparent to me that I have let MY readers down greatly in recent weeks, or dare I say months?? It's not that there hasn't been plenty going on in my life to write about; just doesn't seem like stuff that YOU would be interested in. I will attempt to bring you up to speed on happenings around here. As you probably know, we were in the US for Council & extra time to see our children. It was wonderful and refreshing in every way. One quickly forgets the refreshing part after experiencing the trek back to this part of the world. Darrell came back a week ahead of me as I was attending a seminar at Ashland Seminary. I left Chicago and flew 8 hours to London, waited there 3 hours then got a flight to Istanbul where I waited another 7 hours. I then boarded a plane to the capital city instead of our city because the flight was changed. Upon arriving there at 1AM, I got on a bus with my 2 huge suitcases & 2 heavy handbags and was taken to a taxi place where I could catch a taxi to my city. Yes, I got into a taxi with a total stranger at 1:30AM and came all the way home, arriving at my house at 4:30AM. The jet lag has been worse this time than ever! It didn't help that the next night we had 4 short-termer's arrive at 3AM and got to bed again at 4:30. Oh well, I know this too shall pass...
If you receive our monthly update, you know that we have purchased our dream building for the LIFE Center here. The thought of all the work involved to clean it, paint & remodel & furnish it is quite daunting. We do have all the furniture from our present rented building that we will be moving over come August (when our rent is up). But there are many more rooms and possibilities in the new building; such as guest rooms,clinic,offices ... these will all need to be newly furnished. Praise God for lots of short-term help this summer; it will make the job so much easier.
We have begun the registration process for our summer English program. That will run for 4 nights and then we will begin classes on Sunday, the 28th. We are also doing 2 mornings of children's classes which is always a challenge. Pray for a great summer of new relationships being formed and old ones strengthened!

Family Fun in America

We have been in the States for 3 weeks and have enjoyed some wonderful times with our family. We arrived home in time to attend Rachel's graduation from Trinity University. She was our last child to graduate from college and the only graduation we were able to attend. Nathan flew in and spent a week with us. Besides spending lots of time with my sister Elin & her family in Wheaton, we also saw many other members of our family at council in KY. My parents were there as well as brother John and Mark & his wife and 4 kids. So we had a wonderful time of connecting with everyone and feel blessed beyond words for all of God's wonderful provisions.

Pool party on the roof

Today was a glorious spring day and Bruce decided to invite us to the roof for a pool party. He blew up the pool and filled it with water and we all showed up with pizza & soda & ice cream for a wild party on the roof. Only Bruce and Olyvia enjoyed the rather cold water but the rest of us had fun sitting in the sun and sharing the beautiful day together. I think we do a pretty good job of making our own fun around here.

This is what you get when you pay money!

I was recently introduced to a very nice, upper-class, well-known family here in our city. They own a huge supermarket & apartment complex. Their son & wife were expecting their first baby and a friend from another company asked if I'd be willing to help this young girl deliver her first baby. I met her last week and went over the basics of natural childbirth. She was a sweet 24 year-old girl without a clue as to what she was getting into. I figured I'd meet with her once a week from now until she delivered. I was surprised to get a call yesterday saying that she'd gone into labor and asking me to come quickly. I got dressed and flew out the door to their house. Upon arrival at the house, I knew the girl was nowhere near ready to deliver so we sat and talked for awhile and I kept a close eye on her progress. It was 9AM when I arrived at the house. That stretched into quite a few hours of sitting at the house, having lunch, many cups of tea and coffee and finally about 3PM I deemed that she was getting close. We went to the private "luxurious" hospital where you actually pay for their services. I was anxious to see what that would be like compared to the gov't hospital. Wow! As soon as we arrived, the mother gave the cleaning ladies some money so they'd take good care of us and make sure things were clean. At one point I mentioned about the squeaky delivery room door and within minutes someone was there putting Vaseline on all the hinges and no more squeak! I guess the main advantage is that there was only one woman in the delivery room and as many family members as wanted to could come in. At times it was an absolute zoo; I even had to chase everyone out at one point because I could tell my patient was getting very annoyed. I was especially excited because I succeeded in getting the father to attend the delivery, something I was told has NEVER happened in all of history here! He thanked me today for making him go in and take part. He was a huge support and really beautiful to watch him with his wife. The labor & delivery itself went like clockwork, sometimes intense at the end as this was a first baby and we'd only had one lesson together in breathing and pushing techniques. Fortunately the girl spoke a bit of Arabic and some English so we were able to communicate quite well. As usual, I was exhilarated by being in the delivery room. The facilities were absolutely wretched. No lights in the bathroom, a wrinkled doctor's coat thrown over the table for a sheet, no stirrups, no frills of any kind, but very competent midwives and everything came out just fine. In fact, 2 hours after she delivered she was home in her own bed. And I still had an hour to run home and get a shower and make it to my English class! Amazing what you can pack into a day.

Does it look like all we do is party?

Anyone who knows me knows that I'm always up for a party. I believe the success of a strong team is not only to work hard together but also to play hard together. Our rather fun-filled weekend started on Thursday with a team dinner to our favorite (and only) Italian restaurant in town. It was Bruce's birthday and since he is SO special to all of our team, we decided to do it up big for his special day. Part of the team arrived early and put up banners and balloons. I had sent along a cake also and the restaurant owners even got in on the party and went out and bought other decorations! By the time we arrived with Bruce, everything was ready and the fun began. After a wonderful meal we came home to get ready for our "movie night" at the LIFE Center coffee shop. The next day was Friday and we continued our fun by going bowling. We invited several friends from here to join us and really had a very fun afternoon. We even took in the "Scary Cinema" where you wear 3D glasses and the objects jump out at you. It wasn't very scary but we sure made the most of it! Can you believe how dorky we look with those glasses on?? By the time we got out of the scary movie it was pouring rain so the party moved to our house. More snacks, sandwiches, drinks & fun. Saturday is our normal "church" day and afterward many stayed and played games, some of us until 10PM. Don't know when I've laughed so hard! If laughter is the best medicine, we should be a pretty healthy team because we do a lot of it together!!

what's so hard about painting ONE wall brown??

I just moved my living room into the former classroom and the dining room into the former living room. I was excited to paint, decorate and fix things up a bit since it looks like we'll be staying in this house another year. My dear husband offered to go and get me chocolate brown paint to paint ONE wall of the living room. He came back with a gallon of paint that said "chocolate" on it and we all trusted that the label was correct. (first dumb mistake) I woke up early this morning to start painting. When I opened the can it looked very red to me but I figured that's the best they can do here and I'd just have to be satisfied. I "cut in" all the edges and was quite proud of how much I'd gotten done by 7:30 this morning. When Darrell got up and inspected, he realized it was oil-based paint, although he'd been very careful to ask several times if it was water-based. By then, the tray, brush and everything had to be thrown out because nothing would remove the dark red oil paint. When the stores opened up, he went downtown to another store to see if he could find true water-based, dark brown paint. He came home with a bucket of salmon-colored paint! I was horrified and said it was unusable. He said that's the darkest they had. The second trip downtown, I went with him (which is what I should have done in the first place)and chose another dark brown that looked more like what I wanted. After mixing it, the guy opened the lid and it was purple! Come on, this was becoming a comedy show. Then Darrell asked if he'd mix some brown into the salmon-colored paint and see how it looked. After adding brown three times, it came out quite dark and somewhat to my liking. Now I discovered that I'm going to need another gallon because it didn't cover very well. The guy gave me his number and told me to call him and he'll have another gallon ready for me. He wrote down what he did with the first batch and I'm holding my breath that he'll get the second right! Only problem is that it's Friday and everything closed at noon so I'll have to wait til tomorrow. Maybe I'll post a picture of the finished product when it's done.

A hero of mine...

Many reading this blog may know a man named John Stumbo. I have always admired him for so many reasons. Over the past 2 decades that I have known John, I have often been awe-struck by his brilliant mind and his deep spirituality and humility. I love to listen to John preach. Recently John was struck with a strange & brutal disease that has wracked his body and left him weak and unable to function in so many ways. A team from his church were visiting our home this week and showed a video of John talking to his church, his wife by his side. I would hardly have recognized him if I hadn't been told it was him. This cruel disease has robbed him of so much including the ability to swallow. Subtitles were included in the DVD because his speech was sometimes so slurred you couldn't understand. But every word that he spoke was like gold. I can't stop thinking about it. How can a man in such agony have such profound things to say? The things he writes in his blog are so rich; I have truly been blessed & challenged by what he's written. In all of this, his theme is the goodness of God. Yes, he has wrestled with God and cried out in despair to him but he always ends by saying that God is good and he does all things well. I'm not sure, in fact I'm pretty unsure, that I could ever respond with such dignity and grace in the face of what John has had to deal with. His wife has to feed him through a tube in his stomach, he carries around a machine that cleans a large wound in his thigh and he can't even swallow his own saliva. Yet he writes the most incredible things...I'm including a poem he wrote recently, called "The Dance".

Dance upon my window

Dance upon my soul

Dance throughout my spirit

Come to make me whole.


Darkness stalks about me

Weakness lurks within

Sadness lies in shadows

Wearing resolve thin.


Holiness holds position

Forgiveness stands in place

Passion still arises

Calling out for grace.


Come, Delightful Healer

Come, Mysterious Dove

Come, Maker of Music

Dance your song of love.

As you read this blog, will you take a moment to cry out to God on behalf of John Stumbo, a hero of mine? And as I pray for John, I pray for myself, that if God would ever call me to suffer even a portion of what John has, that I would allow him to use the suffering, as John has, to bring much glory to Himself.

A new kind of normal

A week ago someone called me and asked if I'd do an ultrasound on a worker who was new in the country and seemed to be having a miscarriage. The young girl came to my house and after checking her, I saw evidence that she was indeed still pregnant. I didn't want to get her hopes up since she was bleeding pretty heavily and cramping too. A few more days went by and things weren't much better so I checked her again. The gestational sac had doubled in size so I was really stumped but still couldn't see a clear fetus. I decided to take her to a "private" hospital to see my friends' sister who is a doctor. The doctor was insistent that no one would come in the room with her but I insisted and pushed my way in. There were no fewer than 10 women in the room with a woman in labor, yelling loudly. They told this girl to take her clothes off and get up on the table. (the table was way across the room) We looked at her like "right here, in front of everyone?" Of course, it's normal. She dutifully undressed and walked across the room in front of all those women. She checked her and was pretty sure she had miscarried and said she would need a D&C. Praise the Lord she let her wait a few more days to see what would happen. The girl laid in bed pretty much for 5 days, the bleeding stopped and she began feeling very nauseous. Tonight I went over to her house with my portable machine and did another ultrasound on her. Funny side note is that there is only one plug in the bedroom and it couldn't reach the machine so we had to do the ultrasound on the floor. Normal. Sure enough, there was a baby, big as life with a strong heartbeat! How exciting for this young couple, far away from home in a rather primitive place. The thought that that doctor was ready to do a D&C is pretty scary! I believe that she could have been carrying twins and miscarried one of them. Praise the Lord for my portable ultrasound machine which was bought many years ago with Alliance Women's money. It has been a blessing to so many women and continues to be. Thank you!

The real Kurd'sh New Year

Here, Dec. 31st is considered Christmas and March 21 is New Year's. So this was the weekend for huge celebrations. We had no idea what we were in for but were told that everyone wears traditional Kurd'sh clothes so we dutifully went to the bazaar & bought them. Friday we got dressed up in our garb and went downtown to a certain street that was blocked from traffic and where the party would happen. When we arrived, we were shocked to see literally hundreds of thousands of people walking the street in their beautiful, colorful clothes. The party basically consisted of walking for 3 hours or more, up and down the street. At certain points we could not even move one inch because of the crowds. Surprisingly, in those mobs of people we saw quite a few that we knew. In fact, we started out with just 3 of us and by the time friends started joining our group, we were more than 10. There were random groups of people dancing all over the streets with loud music, food & drink stands,and just an incredible air of celebration everywhere. We even saw a large group of US soldiers and they greeted us warmly. I actually forgot that I was wearing high heels until after about 3 hours and then my feet started killing me. It also started raining so we were walking very fast to get somewhere out of the rain! We finally decided to go back to a friends' workplace and eat at the cafeteria there. It was a perfect end to a fun day as we sat around and relaxed, ate a delicious meal and drank tea. We arrived home exhausted but so happy. Little did we know what lay in store the following day...
Saturday morning we awoke to pouring rain and dark, cloudy skies. We had a picnic planned with lots of friends in the mountains. It seemed our plans would be ruined but we delayed an hour and decided to go for it; the internet said sunny & 68 degrees so, although we don't always believe the internet we hoped they were right. By the time we arrived at our destination, the sun was beginning to peek through and it actually became hot after a few hours. We found a gorgeous place, overlooking a lake and set up camp. The scenery was breath-taking. The hills were alive with people covering just about every square meter but we had lots of room to spread out. It was a picture-perfect day and so much fun to enjoy God's nature after a long winter. We are truly blessed with wonderful friends here and we long for them all to someday join our family. From the time we left our house until we got home at night, it was 13 hours; a pretty long day but oh so much fun. I'll include a short video here of some of us singing around the traditional New Year's fire! There was dancing going on from the first hour until the last and it got wilder as the night went on. These people know how to have fun! We look forward to lots more picnics this Spring as we've been told that every Friday we'll be heading to the mountains with our friends. Let the good times roll..

Bittersweet visit

I'm afraid I'm losing my readers since you probably check so often here and find nothing new! Sorry about that but I really have been crazy busy, being away from home for 3 weeks in Thailand and then Jordan. Now it's back to real life and I must say I've had a hard time getting back into the swing of things.
I want to tell you about a visit I had to Aqaba. Of course it was nostalgic for us as we drove into that city (where, by the way, we were sure we'd stay until we retired!). Within a short time of our arrival the phone began to ring with friends wanting to see us. A beach party was planned to get several of our friends together in one place for us to see. It was wonderful to reconnect with so many and to see some BIG changes in the hearts of some. It was also very wonderful to be able to communicate freely in the language I love. I didn't realize how frustrated I've been not to be able to talk to people about meaningful things! (It made me more determined to learn this new language) Sitting on the beach at sunset talking about my best friend to a group of people who are hungry for truth was so rewarding. I spent other times with different friends and had some incredible conversations, talks I can't imagine happening just a year ago. There are so many opportunities in this city and so many open people that I felt a bit sad that we weren't still there. The good thing is that as we boarded the plane in Jordan and headed back to this place, I felt like I was coming home. I had a deep sense of THIS being where God wants me right now. I also know that I give my heart away very easily and find that anywhere God puts me I quickly put down roots & fall in love with the people and culture. It is good to be at peace.

Morning with a friend

Today is the usual day for my Kurdish lesson but instead I asked my language helper if she'd be willing to go with me to the bazaar. I really don't like going down there because I don't know my way around but I needed to buy a Kurdish outfit for the upcoming New Years' celebration in March. On this day, everyone wears their traditional clothes to show pride in their culture and history. We drove down and parked the car and then walked through mud and filth to get to the "fabric bazaar". It was a beautiful sunny day today but yesterday was rainy and thus the mud. I have never seen so many fabric stores and colors & glitter as I saw today. I was so sad to find that I only had room for one photo on my camera but let me describe our morning for you. We went from shop to shop, looking at dozens of patterns. After seeing the color that I wanted, we began to bargain for the price. My friend was a master at it and I didn't have to say a word. I wasn't aware of all the other things that go with this outfit. After buying the fabric, we headed for the accessories' bazaar. It is the oldest bazaar in our city and I wish I had a picture. You enter through a narrow opening and head down tiny little alleyways lined with shops that have so much gold and glitter that you can't see anything. Most prefer to make their own necklaces and there are 1000's of little cups full of beads that women choose from and carry off in little white envelopes. I chose 2 necklaces to go with my outfit and paid about $3.00 for both. Then I needed a belt I was told. My friend insisted on buying the belt as a gift. It was more expensive ($20) and really nice. I then needed special open-toed shoes to go with the outfit. Unfortunately they didn't have my size so I'll have to look elsewhere. I was very pleased with my purchases and we headed back to the car to go and visit her sister where a seamstress friend would be waiting for us. As we unpacked our wares and showed them the fabric and accessories, they were thrilled with my choice and congratulated me on buying my first Kurdish clothing. After taking my measurements, we sat and had tea and cookies, then left for home after a long morning out. I'm sure I learned way more language being out with people all morning than I would have with my notebook & pen in hand. It was a wonderful experience and I bonded even more with these people and their rich culture. You'll be hearing lots about our No Roz celebration on March 21st and many more pictures to follow. This one is of my tutor and friend, Hanna, in front of the accessory booth where I bought some of my things.

another morning in the hospital:)

This morning when I arrived at the maternity hospital, it seemed quiet and not as many patients as usual. I thought it would be a slow, rather boring day but all of a sudden women starting coming out of the woodwork and just about every delivery bed was full! At one point during the morning there were 3 women delivering in the same room, side by side and all screaming at the top of their lungs. The nurses started laughing because they couldn't hear each other talk. Because there is only one examining table for the newborns, all babies from the 3 delivery rooms are whisked into the one room to be examined. There are usually at least two babies on the bed at the same time and sometimes more. This morning there was no one with the midwife to help so I grabbed the baby and wrapped him in a cloth and took him to be examined. One of the women had no one to care for her, to bring the baby's clothes or anything. After delivery her baby lay on the examining table for almost an hour wrapped in a doctor's gown. The mother also had no clothes or supplies so they literally taped 2 baby diapers to her! Oh my heart. I can just imagine how painful it will be to peel that stuff off afterward. Someone finally came and we got the baby changed into his own clothes and everything squared away. Another woman had "placenta previa" at 31 weeks and was in a lot of pain. Come to find out, her husband had died suddenly a month ago. They planned to observe her and possibly do a C-section if she bled anymore. I never saw the woman shed a tear; you'd think that someone who lost her husband and now was in danger of losing his child would be totally grief-stricken but everything here is "God's will" and they just accept it as that. I had my camera with me today so I snapped a couple pictures to show you the labor room (notice the rusty delivery table) and the baby bed with 2 babies being examined. I probably assisted in no fewer than 10 deliveries this morning! My body feels so beaten up and bruised. But I love every minute of it and can't wait to go back in a few days.

The Art of Entertaining, Kurdish style

For some time I have wanted to invite friends and have a big dinner party. But recently I lost my house helper and realized that this would be a huge job to do by myself. Still, I decided to take the plunge and started inviting...We ended up with 20 guests + 2 toddlers. I cooked for 2 days and still felt like I didn't have enough food. When one entertains in this culture, one is expected to have an abundance of food to show people how much you honor & love them. Thus, I had 6 main dishes, 4 salads, 4 desserts and fruit to finish off the evening. Of course at least 2 rounds of tea also. The trick was to come up with a menu that I thought they might actually eat. I was pleasantly surprised at the positive comments I received about the food! We began the evening by standing in a huge circle in the kitchen and giving thanks to God for the food and our friendship. Some commented on what a nice thing this was. After eating the main course, tea was served and awhile later the desserts, then more tea. When it looks like people are getting ready to leave, the fruit should come out. This is the last thing served in any gathering. Even after being in this part of the world for a long time, I still feel intimidated by the process of offering hospitality because they do it so much better & with seemingly little effort. There definitely is a protocol that they expect & I'm always afraid I'll mess up. When I came out with the fruit at the end, one guy said "now, I'm really impressed!" As if I had passed the test of proper hospitality etiquette. During the course of the evening, it was fun to watch all the camaraderie as some played a game in the kitchen, some sat and talked in the living room and others played with the babies in the classroom. (which opens onto the living room) It was a fun evening and though a lot of work, well worth it. I had help from a couple gals on our team and Darrell helped a ton with cleaning the house & washing dishes. All of the people that we had for dinner are on our "hit list" and we would love to see them join the family. Here is a picture of some of our guests playing a game at the kitchen table.

No country for the feeble hearted. by D.P.

Going to the Dentist is scary enough in a country with the best trained dentists with the latest equipment. So in a country where everyone warns you against the medical care, the last thing you want is a toothache. The last thing we did before leaving the States was to go to the Dentist and take care of our dental needs.
So it was no fun to wake up here one day with flu symptoms AND my teeth aching on one side. Of course I hoped that the aching teeth were caused by the flu and that when the flu went away my teeth would be fine. Nonetheless, I asked a 8 year veteran here who the best dentist was. He said his was trained in Germany but DID NOT have an x-ray machine. He told me the name of an Arab dentist from the capital and trained there who had an x-ray machine.
What to do? The known guy or the unknown with an x-ray machine?
When the flu cleared up and I knew I had a serious toothache,-I went with the x-ray machine. This guy's clinic is in his house. In the 3-week process of helping me,
he disclosed that his equipment was from the 80's but top notch stuff.
On the first visit I learned that he did not have the alleged x-ray machine, but he told me he could send me to the university for them or MAYBE he could pinpoint the problem without one. Cheryl had started me on antibiotics because I had swelling around my gums. The dentist and I thought we probably had found the problem tooth, but I still thought we were going for the university x-ray options to make sure, when he started drilling! Well, I hope he got this one right. No shots or anything. He said the tooth turned out to be dead. He drilled out an old filling and began the first step of a root canal. Now I thought that because this was just an "inspection", he had skilled some of the niceties of dentistry.
But obviously, he was going far beyond "inspecting." It was when he told me to "rinse" that I realized what was missing. There was no drainage tube hooked over my teeth and into the bottom of my mouth, nor even a bib.
Another strange thing is that he packed the "root canal" with a disinfectant that smelled like detol or pinesol. Not only could I not stand it; no one I talked to could either! It was on cotton down the root canal and then he blocked it in with another piece of cotton. He instructed me to replace the "retainer" cotton regularly with another pick of cotton, using a toothpick or a match stick.
In 2 days, I replaced it just once.
Now the story has a great ending. After 4 visits (all with no bib, no drainage suction hose, and no anesthetics) I went home with a good root canal and filling for $83.
The dentist had a very interesting story. He was kidnapped from his home down in the capital and ransomed with money. He came here looking for safety but found the housing too expensive, so he went back to the capital and continued working. Friends told him he would not be kidnapped again. But one day at his office, while changing the oil in the generator, 3 men came in and asked for the doctor. He knew they were kidnappers. He told me this is the ONLY lie he ever told in his life.
He said, "He's out to lunch. I'm the secretary." They left and he immediately moved here.
Back here at home during that time we had our pipes freeze. Now you know how in the States, this is no small problem. But here everyone's solution is, "Just wait till 11 am and the sun will thaw them out." Strangely, with no water due to frozen pipes, I go into our kitchen and find flies on the window and ants on the counter! What a place: the inconveniences of winter do not even spare you from the inconveniences of summer.
At one time, each of our teams' 4 houses had problems:
ours: water leading from inside the concrete bathroom floor down to the first floor.
another: no hot water. another: generator not starting, and the last: wires burned up so no electricity could come to the house. Like he said: "In America, wires don't burn up: breakers are flipped."
Such is life here. Never a dull moment.

more stories for my gore-hungry readers

Today was another marathon morning at the maternity hospital. From the minute I arrive until I leave, my adrenaline is pumping hard and I feel energized like in no other situation. When I arrive home, it usually takes a couple hours to come down off the high. Since there is no one at home but my husband, he has the privilege of listening to all the stories fresh in my mind. I just have to tell someone. Maybe that's why I'm telling YOU, because there's only so much a guy can take of this stuff:)Upon making my rounds this morning I looked in the delivery rooms to see what was going on. I found a young 18 year-old girl having a hard time so I went to her aid. Halfway through the delivery I discovered that she spoke Arabic so I continued throughout the rest of the time to speak quietly in her ear and give her instructions on how to breathe and push properly. The midwives were all throwing up their hands in despair, telling her she was going to have a C-section because she didn't know how to push and threatening her that if she didn't get the baby out soon, it would die! I, on the other hand, was whispering in her ear that she was doing a great job and that she & I together would push that baby out. She told me afterward that if it hadn't been for me, she could not have made it to the end. It was a rewarding experience. She delivered a 4-kilo baby boy that unfortunately had some sort of deformity. I went and looked at him and his one arm was grossly oversized, as well as some other parts of his body. It was so sad. I learned later that her husband had divorced her when he found out that she was pregnant. You can't believe the heart-breaking stories I hear every time. I again went around the delivery rooms to see if there was anyone that needed help. I found a woman crying quietly; the cleaning lady translated that she felt so alone because her mother hadn't come with her and everyone in her family abandoned her. I wiped her tears and rubbed her back and she grabbed my face and hands and kissed me. Such small acts of kindness that make all the difference and yet I rarely see the nurses or midwives touching the patients in any way. I attended at least 4 other deliveries this morning, some very quick and easy; others pure hell. One of the deliveries that I attended was also being watched by about 30 nursing students. Some of them watched in horror with their hand over their mouth; one male nurse told me he's never getting married. This particular baby ended up being pulled out by the vacuum so there was extra tension & drama. As I was getting ready to leave. I saw a nurse running up the stairs and through the hall with a baby. When I went down to the lobby, I discovered that a woman had just delivered twins; one in the taxi and one on the waiting room floor. Both babies were fine but the taxi driver was very traumatized! Since there is only one baby examining table on the whole floor, there are always nurses running through the hall with freshly-delivered babies. I often get to help clean up the babies and dress them and I love that. Until next time...

More labor & delivery stories:)

For those of you who enjoy this kind of thing, I must tell you about another day on the labor ward. I promise I won't post too many of these on here:) I arrived and got changed into my white coat, notebook & pen in hand (for all the new words I'm learning!) and popped my head into the delivery room to see if there were any interesting cases. One of the women was on the delivery table and ready to deliver twins. That definitely caught my attention and I decided to stay and watch. Her little old mother from the village was by her side but not helping at all so I gently pushed her out of the way and went up by the woman's head to give her some advise and help her push. It was a very intense time as the first baby took almost an hour to push out. It came head first. What a surprise when the second twin came down feet first. I was horrified to see them literally twist the little body like a pretzel to deliver the shoulders and head. I can't imagine how that baby could have survived the trauma but she did. They were two identical baby girls, both in good health. I helped clean them up and dress them and put them in a little metal bed side by side. I was so bummed that I didn't have my camera. I'll take it from now on. Someone came over and looked at the babies and asked if they were boys or girls. When they heard they were girls, they turned up their noses in disgust and walked away. I stayed with the mother through the extensive & painful stitching (no anesthesia whatsoever!)After cleaning her up and getting her dressed, she lay on that uncomfortable 1/2 bed for another 30 minutes. I went out in the hall and demanded a wheelchair for her and they finally brought one. At first they told me there was no bed for her. Then they decided to take her to another floor. The poor thing was so exhausted and when we tried to get her into bed, she fainted dead away. After splashing cold water in her face a bit, she came to. There was no sheet on the bed, no blanket, no pillow. We covered her up with her coat. The old mother kept plastering my face with kisses and thanking me. It was a true pleasure to be able to help that sweet woman deliver her first babies and to see them survive a very traumatic delivery. Throughout the morning I also helped two other women, one who delivered her 4th child quite easily and quickly. She was weird; she kept covering herself up and not wanting anyone to see her! Who cares about that when you're delivering a baby?? At one point a man (intern) came into the delivery room and she freaked out. The other lady that I helped a lot ended up having a C-section at the last minute because of fetal distress. I was told that there are about 50 deliveries a day on that ward, usually 15-20 of them C-section. Even after all the deliveries I have witnessed, I still am awestruck every time at the miracle of it all.

Coffee Shop nights at the LIFE Center

The LIFE Center is definitely a happening place on Thursday nights in our city. We arrive an hour early to get set up and plan our evening but students are so eager to come that they also begin arriving an hour early. Our Starbucks Lattes and homemade baked goods, along with lively English conversations and fun games make our center a very popular place for our students to hang out. This semester we are particularly packed out with more activity than ever before. It takes 3 of us behind the counter to keep the orders going and another to serve and clean up. That leaves only 4 or 5 of us to talk to people. With 40 people in attendance, you can see that we need more help. If you're out there and considering a short-term opportunity, we sure could use you! It is a rewarding (though exhausting) experience to spend several hours talking to students who are so interested in what we have to share with them. They are eager to learn about our country, our culture, our opinions and our beliefs. I'll try and post a video of some coffee shop action but no promises as the internet is very slow here.

Not for the squeemish

I've held out for 7 months since arriving here, knowing that there were many other things that needed my attention. Yet deep down inside I knew that one day my passion for nursing would woo me back into the hospital. Today was my first day in the gov't maternity hospital and I could write a book already. I arrived at 8:30 this morning to find my Dutch friend who introduced me to everyone and showed me the ropes. She then took me to the labor ward where I was to spend my first morning. After making rounds to the rooms and seeing the patients, I found one woman who was obviously in need of some help & comfort and who had no family member with her. I decided I would stay with her for the morning as this was her first baby and she was so afraid. With the few words I knew, I managed to communicate the basic things I needed to. As the morning went on, 3 other women were admitted to the same room. One of them was pretty far along and screaming out in pain. There was another young girl who had a dead baby in her womb and was being induced to deliver it. My lady was also entering the stage where they scream and cry out for God and their mother and say they're dying. The 4th woman was overdue and being induced so she was happy with no pain yet. So I had two screaming women on my hands and two that were being induced. The nurses would come into the room and say "Oh, that's the patient with the dead baby", "this one will be here forever, she's a primi and only 5 centimeters, "this one is hopeless; just leave her alone and let her scream". I couldn't believe my ears; such callousness! At one point I looked over my shoulder and saw the young girl with the dead baby crying quietly. She was 6 months along and the exact circumstances that led to me losing my first baby. I left my screaming woman and went and put my arms around her and we both wept together, me not being able to say a word to her. I went out and looked for kleenex, for we both were in need but not a kleenex in the whole hospital. The midwife came in and examined the other screaming lady and told her to get up and walk to the delivery room; she was ready to deliver. I thought to myself "someone is certainly going to come and help her?" But no, she was left to get off her bed by herself and carry her own IV with her to the delivery room down the hall! I left my lady and ran to her aid. Well, once I entered the delivery room, it was all over. I never wanted to leave again the rest of the morning. I stayed with this poor soul who begged me not to leave her. I figured she needed me more than the one who still had a long way to go. When we entered the delivery room, there was a man at the far end banging loudly as he tried to fix the window. A woman in labor was lying on the floor wrapped around the kerosene heater. We literally had to step over her! With much difficulty I helped my lady climb up onto the delivery table. It was only half of a table with nowhere to put her feet so they hung down in a very uncomfortable position. After 30 minutes of pushing, the fetal heart was very weak and slow so they rushed her off for an emergency C-section. The delivery room was like a circus; people wandering in and out, laughing and talking and shouting. At the same time the 3 women who were delivering all at the same time were shouting at the top of their lungs for someone to come and help them. WOW! I was so energized by the experience and can't wait to go back again in a few days. It is my passion and I realized once again that even without the language, human touch is so powerful when someone feels abandoned and in distress; just a sip of cold water, a back rub, an encouraging word, a gentle voice to quiet fear, is all that's needed.