Thanksgiving

This year, I have a new understanding of what it means to be thankful.

I saw it in the smile of a 2-year-old orphan who is beyond grateful for a sticker.

I saw it in the eyes of a patient dying of AIDS who just needed someone to talk to.

I saw it in the welcoming arms of every Zambian I met.

I saw it in the families who had to wear the same clothes every day but were happy they had any clothes at all.

I saw it in the lives of the nuns at the hospice/orphanage who dedicate every day to their patients.

I saw it in the people who received a simple bag of maize but knew it would feed their family at least for the next week.

I saw thankfulness in a completely different way while I was in Africa. I was hit in the face, not with a comparison of what I have that they don't, but with a realization that I have SO much to be thankful for in my life. Not just for things like clothes and food but for my family and friends - all of the things that I now know what it really means to take for granted. And rarely do I have show half of the thankful heart that I saw in those lives in Africa.

That's my thought of the day. :) 

Well, I'm back in America. Really happy to be home but also left little pieces of my heart with people there. To be expected, I guess. We spent our last few days in Livingston on a safari and at Victoria Falls. Here are a few pictures from the end of our trip.

Rachel and I in front of the Falls

We got the closest to the giraffes on our safari

Holding a baby crocodile!

Haley, Rach and I at the lake for dinner - I'm so grateful for these girls!

Thank you all so much for following my blog, my adventures, and my life a little bit while I was away from home! I really appreciated all of your support!

HBC & OVC

Last week on Thursday and Friday we were able to go on OVC (Orphan and Vulnerable Children) and HBC (Home Based Care) visits. These programs are both run by WHIZ and are really incredible programs. The first day we visited families who have multiple orphans and vulnerable children living in one poverty-stricken household. We made sure that they had clean water to drink, a toilet (more of a hole in the ground with a brick structure built up around it), and food for their children. We were able to provide them with some clothing and food – a bag of mealie meal, oil, sugar, salt and kapenta.

This was the first family we visited. These children were not orphans but were extremely vulnerable because of their poverty.

This is how one of the families gets their drinking water. This hole is about 3-4 feet in the ground and and is completely muddy.

On the second day, we were able to do home visits of patients who are HIV+. We were able to hear their incredible stories as well as give them words of encouragement and pray with them. We were also able to provide them with some food and clothing. This man was the second one we visited that day. He was so happy to have us there and said that he was praying just the day before that we would come visit him. He lost his wife about 5 years ago and has also lost 5 of his 8 children. I can’t even imagine – yet he was still happy and beyond thrilled that we came to see him!

This is a picture of the patient (in the middle) with his 2 caregivers who live in the community and visit him nearly every day.

The testimonies and experiences of these families are absolutely heartbreaking and raise so many questions in my mind. How can I be so fortunate while this family of 5 just lost their only cow to help them with all of their farming, which is their only source of income? Why should this family have to worry every day of their lives if they are going to have enough food to feed their children? How can I even begin to be a part of the solution? How can I effectively share the hope of Jesus Christ to these people in the midst of the most severe form of poverty I have ever seen?

God has definitely stretched me and I know that when I get home in one week, I will have so much to continue to think through, process, learn from and act on. 

I’m sad to be leaving this beautiful place but am excited to see you all very soon!

“Let the children come to me, and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of God."

These beautiful children completely captured my heart.

I'm adopting all of them and bringing them home with me in 12 days.

Anton

Ruthie

Joey

Joyce

Tom

Happiness

Godfrey

Malvin

Bright lights, big city

We spent the last 5 days in the capital city of Lusaka. I loved it.

One of the things I loved most was a visit to the Mother Theresa hospice and orphanage right in town. I was expecting a small hospice center much like the one Choma but was blown away by everything this place had and stood for. There are 7 Catholic sisters who work in both the orphanage and the hospice center. Too much work for 7 people in my opinion – there are over 100 children (45 babies) and probably around 100 or so adults struggling with HIV-related illnesses. It was absolutely heartbreaking to see, but when we listened as 20 men and 20 women sang to us about how God was healing their bodies, it was incredible. And we found out that nearly all the work around the place, including gardening, cleaning and cooking, is done by the people who used to be patients in the hospice and are now doing much better. Its really inspiring to see their desire to give back to the place that nursed them back to health.

It was also heartbreaking to see 45 babies all in cribs in 2 different, but connected, rooms at the orphanage. They were crying and reaching out for anyone who walked by, yearning for physical touch. Unlike the orphanage I went to last week, these babies were all very young and many of them not in the healthiest condition. For me, it brought the picture of orphans to a whole different level. And my heart broke even further when I realized that those babies who are HIV+ are more than likely going to remain at that orphanage until they turn 18 years old. The stigmatism makes it nearly impossible for them to be sent to grade school with other kids and their diagnosis makes them undesirable for adoption. Incredibly heartbreaking, but sadly true.

We were also able to visit another community school in probably the poorest part of Lusaka. It was incredible to have about 100 children chase after the bus as we rolled into their village and another 200 join to greet us when we stepped off the bus. Hands were grabbed immediately as we made our way to the school for a presentation from them. I was overwhelmed by how happy they were to have us there and really enjoyed spending a little time with the kids afterwards. I hated be torn away from them when we were leaving as the blessed me with tightest hugs I have ever had in my life.

I had them make funny faces – which all turned out to be the monkey face that I was making.

We did so many other things but I can’t even begin to describe everything on this blog. A few of my other highlights would definitely be visiting the American Embassy (even though it was because we were taking photos that we weren’t supposed to be taking), seeing A Christmas Carol at a movie theater while it was nearly 100 degrees outside, bartering (which I love to do now, by the way!), eating real pizza and drinking a coffee shake. No doubt about it, it was a taste of home in  many ways.

With the nurses at St. John's Medical Center in Lusaka

Classy dinner at Four Corners of the World - La Triumph Dolphin

The name pretty perfectly describes the evening we had.

LOVE.

I’m constantly blown away by how loving everyone is in Zambia. And surprise surprise, I fell in love with 21 more children today. I got to spend the day at one of the orphanages here in Choma and was completely torn emotionally. Children fighting for my attention because they craved it so badly. For 6 hours I had kids on my lap constantly – believe me, I wasn’t complaining. I loved the hugs but my heart broke a little each time the kids hugged me. They have no parents to give them the love that they deserve every day of their lives. And every time they called me Aunty Heether (not Heather), I thought about how they have no one to call Mom and Dad. The desire for love is there but they don't get nearly enough of it - its heartbreaking.

This is Tom. He is a total sweetheart and I want to bring him home!

One of the kids took this picture and I really love it. 

Little boy #2 that stole my heart is Malvin.

Bananas and disciples

Friday we spent the day at the Chabbobboma banana plantation. This is a village about 2 hours away from Choma. I had never been to a banana plantation and I don’t really know what I was expecting, but it was an awesome experience! They grow the bananas for 9 months a year and harvest them for 2 months. And there are something like 1100 banana trees and 12,000 bananas! It was in a beautiful area and the wonderful caregiver ladies prepared nshima and the chickens we brought them for lunch! We also got to go to the harbor which was our first glimpse of water since we have been here. Lake Cariba – one of the biggest man-made lakes in the world and home of many hippos and crocodiles!

Rachel, Janna and I with the banana trees

Since our first Sunday at our church, me and the girls that go to Choma Central had been wanting to get involved and help out. Now we had in mind something that was close to ushering or children’s ministry – something like that. Well, what our pastor had in mind when we went to church last Sunday was that he would like us to preach at their discipleship training that week on Saturday.

Reminder: I AM NOT A PREACHER

Nor do I really like public speaking. I don’t mind it too much if I feel confident in the subject matter and am prepared. Well, we were able to prepare but I’m not sure I would have ever been prepared in 2 days to preach to 25 young adults who are training to start and revive churches! But, the pastor wanted us to bring the word of God to these people. So the 6 of us prepared 3 different messages to encourage them in the areas of Missions, Worship & Making Disciples. We each spoke for about a half hour on one of these subjects. I talked about discipleship – what it means to be a disciple of the Lord and how to encourage others as the follow Christ. Believe me, I felt completely unworthy. I’m not a preacher but I was wanted to be a part of teaching soon-to-be pastors. Somehow when I was talking, I felt completely comfortable. I don’t know every thing that I said or how each person took it. But as the interpreter was translating what I was saying, I was blown away by how God was using something in me that I never expected Him to use. I was surprised by how much fun it turned out to be! However, I don't think I'm ready to change my profession just yet.

I wouldn't have missed it for anything.

Last Thursday we were able to go visit a traditional healer. I was really looking forward to this, thinking that we would learn all about herbal home remedies - but right when he started describing the roles and action of himself as a "diviner" we realized...witch doctor. Oh. Ok...Well, it was interesting. He explained how he was a doctor (um, sure??) and that he gets all of his ideas about healing from his ancestors through his dreams. So he went on to explain several of the different things he does for certain diseases such as TB and malaria...none of which make sense in our training in Western medicine. I think it hit me later on how we were in the midst of ungodly spiritual forces and how God was protecting us the whole time we were there. I was never afraid but I have confidence that God was in control of that whole situation.

Last weekend was Independence Day here in Zambia. I loved every minute of the weekend events. Friday we were invited by the lady who runs the guest house here at World Hope, Mrs. Phiri. So finally for the first time since we have been here, we were able to go out AFTER DARK. This may sound shocking but its true. And its mostly because its just really not safe after dark. But this was a special occasion. It was the Rotary Club’s Miss Independent Independence Day pageant. When we got there, we had VIP seats on the side at the front, right by the catwalk. And for the next 5 hours we listened to incredibly loud American pop music and narration by the Emcee as we watched the 10 contestants go through 6 different categories of modeling. My favorites were:

Office wear – The girls would walk out wearing appropriate attire for their aspiring profession and many of them would sit down at a desk while the Emcee made sure the crowd knew that they were “hard at work for the day.” A nurse even had a patient come on stage and we all watched as she listened to her lungs and “saved her patient’s life.” It was entertaining.

Sports wear – This was one of my favorites because 2 girls came out in swimsuits. Many of the girls wore tennis or futbol outfits but these girls decided to come out in the smallest bikinis. And the best part is that they were soaking wet. Or according to the announcement they were “straight from the pool.” Again, hysterical.

Traditional wear – Probably my favorite category because each girl came out and modeled a traditional outfit and did a traditional ritualistic dance. The dances were a little more provocative than we had expected – but I can't say I wasn't a little jealous of the way they can move!

I laughed so hard that night. They also had entertainers come out in between the category – almost all of which were a group of 3 young guys either rapping (aka lip-syncing and jumping around on stage) or break dancing. After my favorite group called The Disciples performed I just kept thinking that I could not be any happier. I wouldn’t have missed it for anything.  

Saturday was the Independence Day program. We went, thinking we would be just watching like everyone else. And we were – only we were told to sit on benches in the middle of the huge rectangle roped-off area. Half of our group sat there, on a bench under the tree while the other half sat behind the District Commissioner under the tent. I have no idea why they had us sit there or thought that we were somehow at all important but we were definitely stared at by hundreds of people. It’s a good thing we are pretty used to it by now! The program was a few hours long and we watched about 12 different secondary schools perform. Most of them were a type of African social dance – probably not appropriate and definitely a little disturbing that young children were dancing in this way. Entertaining for us to watch? – yes. Would we ever get away with it in schools in America? – not even a little.

Our team on Independence Day

Independence Day performances

Monday and Tuesday were my last 2 days at Zimba Mission Hospital. I spent Monday with a P.A. student in the outpatient department (closest thing you get to an Emergency Room) and I really enjoyed that. Then I got to spend all day Tuesday in the surgery department, otherwise known as the theater. I watched 5 different surgeries, including a hernia repair, chest tube placement and a keloid scar excision. I will spare you the details of the others for now, but would love to talk about them later if you want to know!

 

That brings you up to my life in this moment. It's still so miserably hot and we have had 5 girls get malaria – so keep the prayers coming!!

Here and Now

As I’m sitting here this evening, I’m watching the most beautiful fiery red African sunset, drinking a cup of coffee, feeling the evening breeze, writing my resume and listening to James Morrison. This moment in my life could hardly be better.

I’m learning a lot about living in the here and now. As I have been here, I have been reminded time and time again to live in the present. Not that planning for the future isn’t important, but it’s not everything. So often I find myself living for the next event in my life – to graduate school, to find a job, to get married. While I look forward to those things with great anticipation, I have realized that I do not want to be one of those people who are always waiting. I want to be like the Zambians I see every day – living for THAT day because they see each day of life as a gift, no knowing if they will have a tomorrow.

My gift today was playing with children – go figure! I spent the morning at Choma Hospice. There were only 3 patients so after awhile we ventured to the backyard and spent time with 15 children from the community. It is a Day Care Center where children come before and after school for tea, games, and reading. And some of them even come for their schooling. There are 120 children registered and 96 of them are HIV +. They are a joy to be around and speak wonderful English, which is always helpful to us! Today we got to read books, drink tea, teach each other songs, and play Red Rover and Hide-and-Seek. It was one of those days where you realize afterwards how great it was and that it truly was a gift and exactly what you needed that day. Hopefully for those children it was what they needed to.

Nelly, Esther and Fred :)

Overflowing joy.

If you know much about me, you know that I have a special place in my heart for babies and mentally handicapped children. I love non-mentally handicapped children too, but there is just something so precious about the innocence of babies and those with mental delays. They have no regrets, very few faults and take complete joy in the little things in life. And they remind me of how I am called to have “child-like faith” – full of wonder, curiosity, dependency, and wholehearted joy. I could go on and on about why I love them.

Today was one of my favorite days here so far. We visited a school right here in Choma called St. Mulumba’s Special School. This school was for mentally handicapped, deaf, and blind children – grades 1 through 8. There are just over 200 kids total and they all live in dormitories right on the schoolgrounds. We were able to get a tour of the place and visit many of the classrooms. These children have such an incredible opportunity at this school! We didn’t get to stay too long but we will be able to go back soon. We were also invited to go back tomorrow to watch some African and Japanese cultural dancing. YES!!!

One of the classrooms where there are 3 different teachers teaching the hearing impaired.

This is one of many very powerful signs they had at the school.

They waved us off. It was hard to leave them.

Chikinkata

Every week has gotten busier and busier. Monday of last week I spent the day at Choma Hospice. The hospice centers here are different than the ones in the States. They have primarily AIDS patients, however, most of them are expected to improve significantly and return to their villages. So while it is hard to see, it is much more encouraging compared to your typical hospice center at home.

Tuesday I spent the day at Dr. Jain’s clinic. This clinic was started about 5 years ago and is run by Dr. Jain and his wife, called Dr. (Mrs.) Jain. They make a great team and have a wonderful clinic. They are highly respected in the community and do incredible work. Dr. Jain is a very talented surgeon. He is a general surgeon but basically operates on anyone and anything that needs operated on…and at any time of the day, no matter what. He is phenomenal. And his wife is too. She is a gynecologist so she sees all the female patients who come into the clinic. They are from India but have been here for 33 years… they have incredible hearts for the people of Zambia.

On Wednesday, I was able to visit and help out in the ART (AntiRetroviral Therapy) pediatric clinic at Choma General Hospital. This was sad and heartbreaking, to put names and faces with the completely innocent side of HIV/AIDS. These children were beautiful but also very obviously unwell. As good of an experience as it was, it was heartbreaking to see several 12-year-old boys who were the size of 7 year-olds, and with breathing difficulties, visual impairments, malnutrition and many other health problems.

Thursday and Friday were spent at Chikinkata Hospital – the second most prestigious AIDS research hospital in Africa. We spent the 2 days in the different units of the hospital. I spent my time in the Intensive Care Unit, in the nursing classroom with some of the nursing students, in the Out-Patient Department (kind of like an ER), and in the Female medical/surgical ward. It was a really short visit, but I loved my time there and loved that hospital…it was much nicer than any of the medical facilities we have seen so far! My favorite part was working in the OPD because I got to take vitals and talk to the patients about the reasons why the came to the hospital…in Tonga. It was very challenging because of the language barrier. I would say, “Cinzi ciza?”…(or something like that), which means, “Why did you come here today?” And then they thought I spoke Tonga. So they would rattle off their reasons while I’m frantically look at my cheat sheet and trying to identify the Tonga words for headache, backache, fever, etc. But it was so fun and I loved it. I felt very helpful and learned a lot so much in doing that. Busy week, but fantastic.

Here are some pictures from this last week. 

This is their "ambulance" for bringing people to the hospital from the villages.

Working on my IV skills

Smiling, laughing, waving

I have come to really appreciate and love the things in life that are universal. Smiling, laughing and waving. You don't need to speak English or Tonga to communicate this way. When we drive through villages, we always have kids smiling and waving. Even though there are so many times when we are confused because of language barriers, this is a beautiful way to communicate. Especially with children.

The girls from a nearby village having been coming over quite frequently. Yesterday, I sat with them and they colored while I did homework. They speak very little English but we had a great time...

...smiling, laughing, waving and making funny faces. Aren't they beautiful?!?!

Friendship

"Friendship is acting out God's love for people in tangible ways. We were made to represent the love of God in each other's lives, so that each person we walk through life with has a more profound sense of God's love for them. Friendship is an opportunity to act on God's behalf in the lives of the people that we're close to, reminding each other who God is. When we do the hard, intimate work of friendship, we bring a little more of the divine into daily life. We get to remind one another about the bigger, more beautiful picture that we can't always see from where we are." - Shauna Niequist, "Cold Tangerines"

The last few days, I have been thinking a lot about all of my friends and family. I am blessed to have so many and such great ones...in Leesburg, Grand Rapids, Marion and pretty much all over the globe right now! Thank you, friends, for representing God's love, for reminding me of who God is, and for being a very beautiful part of my life!!!

"Today...you deliver a baby!"

Ok, get ready for this long post. Because it has been a LONG week. And so much has happened…I will attempt to put into words what I have experienced and learned this week. Last Sunday we spent the day in Jembo at the Wesleyan Bible College. Jembo is a small village about 75 min or so from Choma. About 25 minutes on a beautifully paved road and the rest of the way on a very bumpy one. This was a great day for all of us. We got to enjoy a youth rally at a church that is run by graduates of the bible school. I could listen them sing praises forever…their singing and dancing was, by far, much better than ours. 

This is a picture of some of them. They loved taking pictures with us! 

 

On Monday and Tuesday, half of us spent the day in Zimba, a town about an hour from Choma. I spent the day in pediatrics and maternity. You all know I love the babies and kids. But this was SO hard. Night and day difference from the pediatrics unit I worked on at Spectrum Health this summer.

This is a picture of the pediatric ward. The mothers of the children loved having us there and loved having their pictures taken!

But the most exciting part about Monday was that I GOT TO DELIVER A BABY!!!!!!! I have always wanted to but didn’t know I was going to be able to on my first day at the hospital! A pregnant mother came in to deliver and the nurse midwife asked Meg and I if we had ever delivered a baby before. Well, no. “That’s ok,” she says… “Today,... you deliver a baby!” Um, OK! And we did, about a half hour later. Crazy. If you are interested in hearing the medical/nursing details about it, just ask me and I will have plenty to tell you! It was SO different from typical American deliveries...but still an amazing and beautiful thing to be a part of!

This is the BEAUTIFUL baby boy I helped deliver! 

Tuesday, I spent the day in the village. I was supposed to be in the ART (Anti Retroviral Therapy) with the HIV/AIDS patients but instead went to a village to be a part of a community education on AIDS transmission and prevention. While waiting several hours to start, I got to play with the kids…of course I didn’t enjoy it one bit…;)

Here they are…they loved us. And copied everything we did!  

Wednesday we spent the day delivering food in the villages. We went to 7 different villages and distributed Mealie Meal and Cabbage. Each 10 lb. bag represented an orphaned or vulnerable child with AIDS. And even though I didn’t feel particularly helpful, it was important that those bags were delivered. It great to see the different villages but also hard to see as well because we knew that each village held multiple sick, orphaned or vulnerable children.

This is a picture of one of the churches in the villages…what better place could there be to worship the Lord in than this?! 

Today, Thursday, we spent the day at a clinic. We thought we were going to be doing immunizations all day but ended up doing prenatal education and monthly assessments of pregnant mothers. We also got to spend time with the doctors and a PA student while they saw patient after patient. We have been going nonstop all week and I have been exhausted but have enjoyed every minute of it!! 

I love field trips to the village.

One of our themes here is flexibility. This is something that is pretty close to foreign for a group of 18 nurses. Not that we are unwilling to adapt, but schedules are important to many of us and we are used to having things start on time. Well, here they are completely event oriented. Things start when they start and happen when they happen.  So keeping that in mind, I don’t think there has been one day so far that has gone according to what we had planned. Monday and Tuesday, for instance, we were supposed to deliver food to the villages. But they ran out of food and so we had classes on those days instead. Today, were going to go interview different vendors in the market, and those plans changed for a few reasons. Sometimes it is lack of transportation, but it can be for any number of reasons. And even more so, things sometimes happen but we may sit around and wait for hours before it actually does happen. So today was a little disappointing to begin with but we ended up planning a “field trip” after all. YES. I love field trips.

 

We have had a few of these this week that our history professor has planned. Library, museum, school for orphaned children, supposed-to-be market today. Not your typical field trips, but this is not really a typical semester in college either. So this afternoon we went to the village right down the road from our compound. A few of them had come over last weekend for a bonfire and they sang this beautiful song about the hardships of growing up in poverty. We went to the village to find out a little more “history” on this song and what it means.

 

However, when we got there, I forgot all about our assignment and fell in love with the kids. There were about 20 of us walking down the path toward their village and we could just see them running from their huts to come to play with us! There were probably about 150 or so...it was so precious! Many kids were playing futbol, but Rachel and I taught a small group of kids how to play Duck Duck Goose. A few minutes later, we had a group of probably 30 or so kids playing with us. They taught us a few of their favorite games, too. Unfortunately we could only stay about an hour. But it one of the best hours of my time here so far! I loved being around this many kids, getting hugs like crazy. They so badly wanted and needed that attention and they didn’t want us to leave. So needless to say, I will be going back there very soon. I hope.

 

This little boy followed us when we were leaving and grabbed my hand and asked me for a kiss. A piggyback ride is the next best thing, I guess. J

 Also, we did a little shopping this week. This is Haley, Lauren and I with the spears we bought at the museum. We speared limes with them and they are very sharp!

Little blessings

Its really no fun being sick in a foreign country with little personal space. I was sick starting Saturday evening after dinner until this morning. I’m still not feeling great but a lot better than I was yesterday. Thankfully, the wonderful Lisa allowed me to occupy her room yesterday so I could get sleep and recooperate. There has been a stomach flu nastiness that has now gotten probably 5 or 6 of us. Pray that we are restored to health quickly and that it won’t spread to more of the team!

 

Before I got sick on Saturday, a group of us took a walk down our street. We have been turning left out of our compound and walking towards town but this time we went right, which is basically just the start of a long dirt road. We were talking an evening walk because during the day it is so hot (some say 95-100 degrees) and we don’t want to bear the heat much more than necessary. So we take some walks in the evenings. Well, we also make sure to be in by dusk because it is just not safe after that. While we were on our way back, we heard about 10 little voices yelling, “How are YOU? How are YOU?” We turn around and see many little kids at the end of the dirt road behind us, waving for us to come back. As this being our first chance to be around many kids, some of us couldn’t resist. We started walking towards them, and they walked to us. They were not quite as bold once we met them in the middle, but quickly warmed up to us and were showing us their Karate moves. J

They even let us try with them.

 

 

This was such a blessing to me. It was hard, too, because the entire time they were walking with us, they were asking us for money, for shirts, for pants, for sweet tea…you name it. It’s heartbreaking to see that – but that’s the reality for many of them. For me it was also very heartwarming though – to see their joy and laughter in the midst of their lifestyle and sufferings. God definitely used them to teach me a lesson about His love. I love children but he loves them so much more than I would ever be able to!

Joshua 3:4 “Then you will know which way to go, since you have never been this way before.”

Story for today: We found/killed a black mama yesterday morning. Not me personally, but a few of the girls. They were going for an early morning walk and one of the girls nearly stepped on it. We came to find out later that its one of the deadliest snakes in the world. After finding out what kind of snake it was, the situation became a little more real for everyone. And because of the expense, we also have no anti-venom here. A slightly scary thought. However, I firmly believe God’s protection is around us here. He has us here for a purpose, and that will be fulfilled no matter what. I don’t tell you this to worry you because we are not worried ourselves. I just ask for continued prayer.

On Monday, we went to the market for the first time. This was an incredible and slightly overwhelming experience. It was incredible because I got a picture of another part of Zambia, other than the airport and the beautiful guest house where we are 

living. It was my first time engulfed in the culture since I have been here. We are the only white people. Well, we aren’t but we are. There are a handful of others, including the missionaries David and Beth from the states, but there are very few and far between. I had heard that we would be stared at when going to the market. I guess I just had no idea what it would feel like to have everyone watching every move I make. To know what cultural ideas people have of Americans, and to be treated according to those stereotypes. People have many ideas of how Americans act, what we have, and what we are willing to do. So they watch us. So its not so much that its uncomfortable as it is something that you have to get used to. The rest of the week has been spent in classes and presentations. It has been a long and exhausting week, but also a time of bonding and building relationships. And I know it will continue to be. I am SO excited about my classes and what community work we will be doing (which I will explain more later). But something my professor said in class this week says exactly how I feel…

This semester is not about knowing and doing, its about being.

This made my heart jump. This is nursing to me. BEING. Being the hands and feet of Jesus to their needs, whatever those may be. Community health nursing is not so much about technical skills and textbook details as it is about the immediate needs of those you are caring for. Giving them food because they haven’t anything to eat. Talking to them because they need someone who cares. Holding a child who has been neglected or abused or has HIV. Being whatever they need. This excites me so much!

Ok - As promised, here are some photos:

This one is of our dorm - my bed is the second from the last on the left.

Rachel, Haley and I outside the guest house