Friday I walked with Claire and Elizemon to Talentes house. She is doing well and very pregnant. She will be at clinic on Monday and together we will work. I asked her to teach me. She said yes and asked that I teach her too! We will make a great team. We will buy supplies for the clinic on Tuesday. She says that the clinic has a problem. “We buy medicine but people do not have enough to pay. So the clinic can not buy more medicine. Some Patient’s can’t even buy food. Medicine with poor nutrition is not helpful to people.”
I talked to her about the Moringa tree. How it
has protein and lots of Vitamins. This way once the trees are growing we can
harvest it and give it to patients. Giving them better nutrition to help combat
diseases! She loved the idea and asked for one to plant in her yard too. I of
course said yes! Praise God, He has provided another friend for my grove.
Together Talente and I are praying against disease and pestilence for the
trees. Lord please bless these trees!
Friday the church was having a crusade. They took their instruments
to the streets and with loud speakers preach the word of God and worshiped. I
went with Wisely to the evening
service. Two blocks away one
could begin to hear the worship. As we arrive we slipped in through a small
door to a room with dirt floor, open rafters, and goats. I was led through another
door, and told to sit in a chair just inside. As my eyes adjusted and I got my
baring’s I saw two stout women to my right that gave me stern looks. The band, directly
in front of me, played enthusiastic worship. Wisley promptly went to the drums
and requested that he play the drums, because he wanted to show me how good he
was. The current drummer complied rather slowly. Looking to my left I began to understand the
stern looks indicating I was in trouble.
I was in the pastor’s seat, and worse I did not have my head covered!! Sitting on narrow wooden benches was a crowd.
Women dutifully wearing head coverings sat on the right, and men on the left. After
the song prayer began. Everyone got down on their knees and bowed their heads.
I used this opportunity to quickly slip back out though the side door and then
come around to sit inconspicuously in the back.
Pastor Milo from the Orphanage was
in the back and greeted me. He asked if I understood the words being sung and
preached. I replied no, but together we
agreed that although different languages and culture we all serve the same Big
God.
People continued to pack in and the
worship continued to get more exuberant.
You may not normally choose to sway as an expression of your worship,
but in this church service there was no option. Everyone was packed so closely
you better move with your worship or be thrown about as someone else does!
I’ve had my first patients.
These consisted of two foot sores and one ear infection from an unauthorized
ear piercing. Oh and I shouldn’t forget,
One pair of shoes that I MacGyvered with duct tape.
Saturday I was given the task of making Jello. As a true McCormick I made it as difficult as
possible. After putting into two shallow pans I slowly escorted them to the
fridge. Then the fridge door wouldn’t shut and one pan fell into the other
spilling everywhere. Don informed me that the door would not shut because the
magnet that was rubber banded to the door was gone. Somewhere is the ruckus I
had lost it! So we search and search to no avail. Until I finally had the
thought to look on the pans. Sure enough my woefully placed pan had stolen the
Fridge door magnet!
Don told me that we won’t start
veggies till October. Moringa will be started next Tuesday and Peanuts will be
planted Wednesday or Thursday. Wisley, Gavon, and Danialson helped me plant
flowers by the church. We loosened the rocky soil, brought dirt from the
garden, and then planted. After that we watered with a container that Wisley
crafted using a tin can. It was an all afternoon job! Well worth it the end.
This evening one of the kids asked
me to come. I followed them to a random part of the orphanage where they asked
me to clap my hands. I looked incredulously at them but willingly complied sure
that this was a trick. To my amazement, as I clapped an entire herd of goats
appeared and ran toward the enclosed pasture and then filed into the barn. The
cows and bull were a bit trickier requiring actual herding skills. Even though
I’m a farm girl from Iowa my heart still raced as the bull stared me down while
walking through the gate I was holding open.
Saturday I played sponge tag with
the kids and had a blast. They didn’t understand that you are supposed to run
away. They all eagerly waited to get picked to be refreshed with a soaking sponge
being thrown at them. After Washing up,
we sat on the porch of the baby dorm with the kids. Watson grabbed his guitar
and together we sang until the mosquitoes chased us inside.
For those of you curious about the food. Yes,
we have lots of rice and beans. Also we have a variety of fruits and veggies
including potatoes and bananas. The Avocados are huge!
Prayer
requests
·
Praise God for safe travel!
·
Praise, the kids have started to have noon
prayer again without prompting from Don and Doris.
·
That I will learn language quickly and not get
discouraged in the task.
·
Rebellion in the teenagers that affects the
entire atmosphere of Orphanage.
·
Moringa Trees to grow and be protected from
pests
love you! keep telling the stories! i'm praying for you.... Alicia
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