Weekend Outings

We were very busy last weekend and have only just caught our breath. On Saturday we had a vehicle signed out and the five of us took a spin about town. We made our way to the intersection of Gurley and Benson streets and found a shop where there were about a dozen tailors producing shirt/trouser sets, dresses, etc. Each tailor has a sample of their work hanging on the walls above their own work station. I found a very dressy outfit that will be nice for Christmas, and we bought a few other articles of clothing, too. My outfit needed some adjustments, so as we waited, we walked around the block to kill time. Of course, John got some pictures as we walked...

After the tailors, we drove further downtown, and shopped at one of the craft shops across from the US Embassy. There were lots of interesting things there, and we just HAD to have a couple flip-flop cars. They were a good example of how you can recycle here!

On Sunday we were blessed to be part of a celebration and dedication of a new church in Bomi county, about an hour up the road. The church is in a village in 'the bush' and was started after a team from Mercy Ships took the Jesus Film to them a couple of months ago. Several of the villagers were deeply touched by the message and wanted to disciple new believers. Part of the celebration was a baptism. Everyone walked about a mile away from the village to a 'good' spot in the river where those being baptized could be immersed.

"Don't you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life." Romans 6:3-4

Jenny

Clinic Dedication

Friday I had the pleasure of travelling to the site of the Tenegar Clinic that Mercy Ships helped to rebuild at the request of the Liberian president, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf. The Tenegar village is just up the road from where she was born.

The ceremony on Friday was a dedication of the clinic and the guest of honor was the President, herself!

There was a great crowd, both from the community and also from the ship, that came to celebrate the opening of the clinic and to see the President. The event was supposed to start at 2:30pm, but true to the culture, the President and her entourage arrived a couple hours late. Around here, the time serves as a rough estimate to when things may happen. This whole issue of time keeping was emphasized in a humorous way as we waited. To my left, Glenys, my fellow OR nurse from New Zealand, happened to look at her watch and announce the time was 3:30. We agreed that surely the President would be there at any moment. Then, ten minutes later, my Liberian neighbor on my right looked at her watch and exclaimed that it was already 3:15! Their watches were 25 minutes different! And I think Glenys' was closer to correct. But what is time, anyway?

One part of the ceremony was the "gowning" of some of the key facilitators of the revival of the clinic and it's surroundings. Below is the managing director of the Africa Mercy, Ken Berry.

Not only did the team from Mercy Ships help the villagers to rebuild the clinic, they also helped them to plant crops and to dig a well. It was very exciting to see the work that is being done in the communities while surgeries are in progress on the ship. This was my first "field trip" to see what some of the other Mercy Ships team members are doing in Liberia. It was a good day!

Jenny

Palliative Care

A couple of weeks ago now I had an opportunity to work with one of our writers on a story about Mercy Ships' palliative care team and the work they do on a daily basis. They give what support they can to patients that Mercy Ships is unable to help through surgery. We visited four cancer patients, two very young boys at St. Joseph's Catholic Hospital, one teenage boy in his home, and an older woman in her home.
The hospital was a very somber place. There were more than one occasion while we were there that we heard loud wailing in the corridors. Also, in the room with the boys we were there to see, there was an infant girl who had recently had malaria which had left her conscious, but basically unresponsive for the week since. While we were there there were two Christian men praying at her bedside. I know that scenes similar to these are not particularly uncommon in Western hospitals (although malaria is rare in the West), but I think perhaps it is the rustic nature of the place and the knowledge of the vast difference in the level of care that is available in Liberia as opposed to Western hospitals that is a bit difficult to swallow.
The homes we visited were very basic shelters with little to keep the elements out, let alone pests like mosquitoes and larger varmints. The people we found inside, however, were always a joy. I felt very privileged to be able to see what palliative care does here and to see more of what things are really like for the sick in Liberia.

John

Shoe Shopping

On Saturday afternoon I took Bethany and David to Water Street to find tennis shoes (or "trainers" as they are refered to by our English friends). Above are snapshots of David inside a shop wearing his new shoes and of the shop where Bethany got her shoes (the one with the pink doors). The whole thing took a bit of planning. Things had been building up for several weeks. David had destroyed his shoes on the little buggies they have here on the dock for the kids to ride on and I had been trying to find an appropriate time to go find replacements for about a month. The whole process is so simple, by comparison, back home. You just go. Well, here I had decided to go into town a couple of weeks ago with a Liberian friend of mine to scope out the situation and get his advice on what type of vendor(s) to look for before taking the kids with me. I found out then that the actual shops and not the street vendors were probably the best bet in order to be sure to get new shoes and not to end up paying too much more than the shoes are worth. I also found out that I would not be able to make it on a weekday since the shops all close at 5:00. Water street is too far to walk to with two kids in tow, so it would have to happen on a weekend during the time I have a vehicle for personal use. Each driver on the ship can sign out a vehicle for only 4 hours per weekend for personal use, so arranging that would take a little bit of planning. It would also mean no recreational trips that weekend that require a vehicle since shoe shopping would take the better part of that time slot.

Well, we got it done on Saturday. Jenny had been out for about a 6 mile walk in the early part of the day with several other moms and was not up for shoe shopping, so it was just Bethany, David and me. We got David's shoes at one shop and Bethany's at another. They are not great quality, but the price was right. David's were $10 and Bethany's were $7. They were happy to have new shoes and I was happy to have met the challenge of shoe shopping for children in Monrovia.

John

For an interesting perspective from a Scottish journalist who recently visited us here go to http://www.sundaypost.com/postindex.htm and scroll down to the story entitled "Terrifying car journey down the road to hell". Some that I have talked to here have responded negatively to this article, saying that it is too grim and sensationalistic and too heavily weighted toward promoting negative stereotypes about Africa. I like the bit at the end about Dr. Keith's starfish.

Backyard Zoo

This past Tuesday after the 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade kids beat their dads at soccer 1 to 0, we had a great opportunity to see an interesting animal - a chameleon! One of the crew members here that spends much of his time working in the bush outside Monrovia aquired a chameleon from a Liberian fellow who had apparently caught it in the wild. He brought it back to the dock for the children to see before releasing it. I'm not sure any of us had ever even seen a chameleon in a zoo before and here was one in our "backyard". What a cool opportunity, especially for the kids. And what an amazing creature!

John

Hey, Mom, Don't Look Now!

Last weekend we had quite an adventure! It was one that no one's mother would have approved of, I am sure! We, along with about 25 others from the ship took a trip to the Bong mines where iron ore used to be mined. In our 3 Mercy Ships Land Rovers, we drove a short distance to where we eventually loaded onto a flatbed train car. The vehicles (with passengers inside) were driven onto the train by our brave drivers, one of whom was John! The hand brakes were applied and the tires were secured with large rocks on either side to prevent the cars from rolling. Then, we all climbed on top of the vehicles to enjoy the 1 1/2 hour (plus waiting time for various reasons) trip up-country. We were quite high up and Bethany, especially, was very nervous in the beginning. But we were up and down and inside the vehicles as we travelled and generally had fun.

The vegetation was lush and green after we left the city behind. There were little villages here and there that I imagine must be fine living compared to city life in Monrovia.

We felt a little like we were in a parade as we rumbled past the towns and villages. Children, and sometimes adults, would run down the paths and wave to us as hard as their hands could wave as they yelled out their greetings.

Once we got to the mines, our guide, Odecious, gave us a good history lesson as he pointed out what each structure once was. He had been employed at the mines before the war broke out. He was in charge of the large dump truck that you can see in the photo.

Odecious said that one day they were working and rebel forces came in and held weapons to their necks. They demanded to know which tribe each worker was from. If the answer was an opposing tribe, they shot them right then and there. Six men lost their lives that day. Those who lived left the mines and never returned. Only the framework of the buildings that once were a thriving industry remain.

It seemed very sad and such a shame that it has all gone to waste. I was tempted to feel that Liberia's situation is hopeless. How can you rebuild a place that has seen such devastation? But we know that with God, all things are possible, and we have a reminder from the Psalmist:

"Why are you downcast, O my soul? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God." Psalm 42:5

And I would like to pray for the year of the Lord's favor for Liberia, according to the scripture we find in Isaiah 60:2-4:

"...to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor and the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all who mourn, and provide for those who grieve in Zion -- to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of gladness for mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair. They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the Lord for the display of his splendor. They will rebuild the ancient ruins and restore the places long devastated for generations."

This lake was at one time a valley where many dead were laid to rest. Now there is beauty for ashes here.

Our adventure to the Bong mines ended as the sun dipped low. It was a good day and we all returned safe and sound...and quite sooty!

Jenny

Rubber Trees and Rainbows

This past Saturday we got together with some of our friends and took a trip to the Firestone plantation out near the airport. Rubber trees are grown for their raw, white sap on the one million acres of the plantation. It took about 2 hours to get there, but it was nice to get out of the city a bit and see lots of green grass and trees.

We went to see the rubber trees and to learn about the process preparing the sap for rubber production. Most of the work of harvesting had already been done for the day, so we didn't get to see the process in action. Instead, we visited the clubhouse at the golf course on the grounds and enjoyed a can of coke. We decided to share within our family because the thought of buying 5 canned drinks at between $2 and $3 U.S. each wasn't appealing. The "greens" on the golf course, by the way, are not green, but black. They are made by adding oil to sand, so it will pack better, and smoothing the mixture down. I couldn't help wondering if Tiger Woods has ever tried his hand at playing on a west African course. I imagine that the challenges would be quite different. While sitting on the porch of the club house with our friends a storm blew in and we got to see a really nice rainbow over the golf course.
Despite seeing the rainbow, we wondered, as it was raining, if our trip might be a bit more dull than we had hoped, but the rains didn't last long. Very soon after it began to clear, the most wonderful thing happened! A lady whom we had been talking with who helped to run the club house began yelling at some folks who had begun to drive vehicles up onto the grass. A wedding party had arrived to take advantage of the scenery for photos! We all really enjoyed seeing another rainbow, this time one of colorfully decorated wedding party members meandering their way up onto the grass directly in front of us. I couldn't resist the temptation to go and ask if I could join the other photographers and get a few photos. The organizers were more than happy to let me join in with the agreement that I would mail them a few of the photos that I made.
Being able to see the wedding party in all their elaborate, traditional clothing was the real highlight of the afternoon. God blessed us with the ability to see and touch rubber trees and to see not one, but two rainbows. It turned out to be better than we had hoped it would be. Isn't it true that we often have a certain set of expectations for how we think things will be in life. I think it's true that very seldom, in the end, do things look the same as we had imagined they would. I believe that as we step out in faith, we often find that it is God's desire not to meet our expectations as we have laid them out, but often to show us something more than what we could have possibly imagined about His beauty. Thus, He often exceeds our expectations if we allow ourselves to see it.

John

Hope and Rest

Well, here is another weekend. Time is flying by so quickly! I remember when I was much younger, my mother told me the older you get, the faster it flies. I couldn't imagine it passing more quickly than then. Oh...but now I see!

We are nearing the end of our outreach to Liberia now, and the community in and around the ship are feeling the effects of this fact. With only four more weeks of surgery left, we have no more space on the schedule to fit any more people in. This is very sobering and creates quite a dilemma in our hearts when we still meet so many people who are in need of our help.

Our Eye Team that goes out into the community during the week has seen the desperation of the people wanting aid give way to violent pushing, shoving and injury. Last week a man from a local church who was helping to provide security to the team was brought to the ship for urgent help because his finger tip was cut off in the violent crowd. Our crew physician provided care necessary for sewing up the shortened middle finger and then last Saturday we brought the fellow back to the OR for a revision. He was very grateful and wished us the Lord's blessing and long life.

All of this could leave one feeling hopeless, but the truth is that God is still in charge. He said to Joshua in Deuteronomy 31:8, "The Lord Himself goes before you and will be with you; He will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged." We can walk in this truth as well, and know that just because we will be heading to give aid to the people in a different country next year, God will not forsake His people and the work He has been doing here. Please pray that people will know this truth and be encouraged.

We on the ship can be encouraged with the promise from Matthew 11:28-30 that says, "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for you souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light." Thank you, Lord, for Your rest!

Jenny