7/16/2010 Friday

Since the pipes are so small, we cannot put toilet paper in the commode. So the rule is that if you put toilet paper in the commode you have to “go fishing.” It happens, but toilet paper is sometimes hard to come by! One of the anesthesiologists told me that she forgot to take toilet paper to the bathroom and there was not any there, so she improvised and used her surgical mask. We do what we have to sometimes……

One of the pediatricians said a 10 year old little girl walked one hour by herself to come to the doctor without any shoes. She had small feet, of course, and upon observing that she had on shoes, one of the team members gave the young girl her flip flops to walk home.

The stovers rode the vans about 1 ½ from the hospital today to two schools. There we put in a stove and distributed water filters to the schoolrooms. The families and children drink unfiltered water that flows through pipes at only certain times during the day. They often get sick and have to take medicine from getting sick from drinking the water. At the first school, the 40 or so kindergarteners greeted us with signs that said: “Welcome” and “Buenas Dias”. They all yelled welcomes to us and sang us songs. We then went down to the field and played soccer and taught them the game of duck, duck, goose in a big circle. Our play was ended because the children needed to go back up to the building to be fed; as we walked them up, the children fought to be the ones to hold our hands. Our stovers walked back up the mountain hand and hand with these boys and girls in a whole line of children holding each others’ hands and giggling. Such blessed children who have so little and appreciate so much.

At the second school they had a assembly of the 350-400 children, teachers and principals where we showed them how to put together the Helps water filters to use in the classrooms. They were all very excited and seemed to understand the importance of good water. They were also excited about seeing “gringos” from the U.S. The stovers took the water filters in each classroom and showed the class how to put it together. We then took their pictures with our cameras; many had never seen cameras and would laugh and want to have their picture taken again and again. I told them the English words for some of the Spanish words that were on the chalk board and they taught me Spanish words for other objects and things. Afterwards, the teachers treated us to delicious cake and coffee or tea in appreciation. Some of the translators and younger stovers went down on the field and played basketball and soccer with the children. The children loved the attention.

Last, we went to a Church in the community where we have been doing the remodeling and stoves all week and the mayor, secretary and officers of the community were there along with the women’s counsel and the women of the houses that we had worked on this week. The people were most gracious and appreciative for our coming and putting in the stoves and playing with the children. There were many smiles and handshakes all around. The women of the ladies’ counsel had prepared a meal of tortillas and a chicken soup that was delicious for all to eat. It was quite a banquet.

Thankfully, nobody on the team has gotten sick. Yea for the kitchen team and the Helps team and Praise God.

The nurses report that they laughed and laughed during the week and that is the what we hear a lot around here…lots of laughter. We have also seen tears of joy from the realizations and touching experiences. These Guatemalans claim that they do not show emotions publicly, but we have shared plenty of laughing and crying with them this week.

In recovery, the nurses talked to one man who had been in pain for a year and waited at the gate of our hospital for 24 hours before he was seen to get this gallbladder removed. His surgery went fine and he did well.

Our chaplain would approach people who were going to have surgery and ask if they wanted him to pray with them in the few Spanish words that he knew. The patients and their families would pray also and openly express emotion and cry at the prayers. They would call our chaplain to pray with them in recovery and in the hospital after surgery. Their faith and trust in us was so touching.

In clinic the Guatemalan teenage interpreters were handing out the little wooden cars that were left. One child received a car and then the interpreter saw him again and asked him where his car was. The little boy said that his little brother did not have a car, so he gave him his car. She asked him if he wanted another one and he said YES. He waited right there while she found him a car and was thrilled to have another since he had given his away.

Back at the hospital folks were winding up. They were performing the last of their surgeries and many were out shopping with the vendors who had come with their colorful Guatemalan wares including bed spreads, table cloths, jewelry, purses, knives, knickknacks, hair decoration, decorated bags, pants, embroidered blouses and shirts and many other wares.

The small hospital staff that takes care of the hospital when we are not here provided dinner tonight so that our kitchen team gets a break. It was a delicious Spanish dish with homemade tortillas and the mayor and the chief of the hospital graciously thanked us for the service. We gave them both SAGE shirts.

We have had a videographer/photographer here with us on the trip. He has been terrific in recording the experience and it will be up on Sagemission.org web site soon.

Surgery reports that there were 60 general surgeries and 20 OB/GYN surgeries in five days with only three anesthesiologists. This may be a record!

As I write this blog, there is a group singing enthusiastically to the guitar including Ring of Fire, Beetles songs and Wild Thing and another group is playing cards or dominos in the cafeteria.

Worship tonight was awesome. The sharing was incredible. The eye team told of a man who see very little and they really could not do much for him. The man asked for crayons that we were giving the children. He drew an incredible picture of a flower even though he cannot see. What beauty. … We will post it to the SAGEmission.org website when we return.

The Guatemalan teenagers who were our translators talked about how patients have touched their lives and shown such love and appreciation for the little that we were able to do for them. It is clear that as important as the help we have given the folks with their homes and their health, this HELPS team was an instrument for these teenagers from Guatemala City who were our translators; through our HELPS organization, these teenagers have seen their country in a new way and feel a calling to care for and help their country. These 16 and 17 year olds of Guatemala are full of enthusiasm for making a difference in the lives of their fellow Guatemalans. God is Good.

And after worship at about 10:30 p.m., a man walked into the hospital having walked a long ways asking for help with his vision. The member of the vision team was not sure that the doctor would let him be seen since the clinic was closed and he was not working anymore, but she went ahead and asked the doctor and the doctor said: let’s get him taken care of and they did.

Saturday we will be packing up the hospital, the kitchen, the eye area, the pharmacy and our own stuff (our own stuff that has not been traded for something with the vendors). We end the day with a HELPS provided meal and a skit night that always loud and lots of laughing.

On Sunday a.m. after communion we head out for a seven hour ride back toward Guatemala City but head on to Antigua which was once the capital of Guatemala. It is surrounded by volcanoes and quite picturesque. We will have excursions such as visiting the volcano, or taking a trip to the Lake Atitlan or going up the Mayan ruins or bike riding or shopping and site seeing. The night before we leave for the U.S., HELPS treats all 80 plus team members to a wonderful banquet in Antigua. It will be much needed and deserved R&R. We miss everyone at home but know that we have been touched and touched lives in this wonderful country.

As was said in Worship, our hands have done many things this week: they have performed surgeries, they have given anesthesia, they have cooked food, they have given hugs and handshakes, they have held little hands, they have played ball with the children, they have built stoves and put in cement floors so that wooden cars can be rolled on them instead of dirt, they have given medications, they have made music with the guitar for worship and they have broken bread.