A Hole In His Stomach?

Since Juma P. has moved home, we continue to pray and think about what is best for him. While we were gone Juma’s mom, Cifa, took him to either a Clinic or the hospital trying to figure out why he has been so sick. When we met with Cifa, she told Julia that Juma has a hole in his stomach. That was all Cifa said, no details no remedies… just a hole in his stomach.

After that meeting Julia made plans to go with Cifa and Juma back to the doctor to hear from him exactly what is going on. I eagerly awaited Julia’s return that day. I should also remind you that Cifa speaks Macua (a tribal language) and not a lot of Portuguese. There is a chance that the doctor speaks Macua, but only if he is from this part of the country… so I’m not sure.

Misunderstanding would be an understatement. Turns out the doctor told Cifa that Juma has either Pneumonia or Tuberculosis! I’m not sure when, but he prescribed Juma a medication for the Pneumonia. I guess when Cifa went to the Pharmacy they were out of it and because of her lack of health knowledge… she just left it at that and so Juma never got the medication.

It’s times like these that I have to challenge myself to step back and understand the situation. Cifa, like many living in third-world countries just don’t understand germs or sickness. Even though to you and I, it would be common sense to go to another Pharmacy or to ask when the medication would be available… Cifa didn’t grow up taking Health Education in school and she didn’t grow up with a Walgreens on every corner.

At this point,  Julia decides to go with Cifa and Juma the following week to their monthly pill pickup. I’m not really sure what to call it but it’s when they get their AIDS medication… I’m not sure if they see a doctor each time, or only if they make special arrangements. Anyways, Julia wanted to go with to see how Juma’s levels are testing. I guess there is something they test for with AIDS that could also be an indicator about Tuberculosis. Julia is shocked when she finds out that Juma’s levels haven’t been tested since 2010, but once again I just don’t think Cifa understands.

We’ve decided to appoint someone to accompany Cifa on all of Juma’s health visit. It is our hope that this will allow us to keep Juma in his home and teach his mother about this aspect of caring for her children. It’s actually Joao, one of our 17 year olds. He is hoping to study medicine and since he speaks Portuguese, Macua and Macandi (another tribal language)… we think this will be the best solution. I know it might sound strange to ask a “child” to help in this role, but the reality is that if we were to pick an older person their thinking might be similar to Cifa’s. Also culturally a lot more is expected of kids than in the states, meaning when they are around 15 or 16 many are managing their household while a parent is away earning an income.

This week, Julia will be taking him back to get xrays and try to figure out just what is wrong with him. I did see him at church and he looked happier than I have seen him in awhile. So praise God for that! But please continue to pray for him and his family.

Just a few other stories that have come to my head while I’ve been typing this... Last Sunday at church Cifa commented on how she woke up that morning and her eye was hurting in the corner. I flashed back to the day before I knew I had Pink Eye a few months back and what she was talking about was exactly how I remember the onset. I had Cifa on one side of me and Julia on the other and so I shared my thought with Julia and asked her to tell Cifa to keep her fingers out of her eyes because she might spread it to her children. Julia told her in Portuguese and not even one minute later she was wiping her eye. Something so simple but apparently she didn’t understand it or something (I later asked Joao to explain things to her). A few months back when I got Pink Eye, I avoided the kids at all cost, but I had to go into town to get some medicine for my eye. When Nunu and I were walking out of the Pharmacy we ran into a guy he knew. He introduced himself to me in English, I said hello but held my hand back and said something about my eye. He laughed and was like you American’s are crazy, I’m not worried about catching that you have glasses on. My understanding of Pink Eye is that it’s EXTREMELY contagious and no one wants to be around you if you have it for fear of catching it. Not true here. We are definitely worlds apart when it come to our thinking of germs. 

Getting Settled

Time is flying and it’s making Blogging harder than I had thought. I’m still trying to figure out just what normal looks like here in Pemba… this is going to be the first time I’ve had a schedule and some objectives each week.

My schedule has been created but I won’t be starting it until the middle of August. Julia arrived just about a week before I did and so she has been meeting with all of our staff. She has asked that I sit in on some of those meetings so that I have a better understanding of what is going on, so that has taken up part of my time.

She has also asked that I join the Leadership team with some of the nationals… one of them being Nunu. Part of me would rather not be on this but mostly for the wrong reasons. I usually like to let others lead and then if I notice they can’t handle the situation that is when I’d rather set in.

A few weeks before I left for Mozambique I had a Missionary assessment done. It covered more things than I could even remember to mention but everything from Meyers-Briggs to a Physiological exam. One thing that I walked away from the assessment with was that I need to be stepping up more as a leader. So rather than shying away from Julie inviting me to join this team, I’m sitting in on meetings and praying about it.

Another chunk of my time has been taking up by trying to get settled in. Up until the day before I left for Mozambique, I thought that Nunu and I would be living in the house I was in on my last trip. While the room is small, there is an attached kitchen and lots of cabinet space. Because the price of renting a house has gone up so much, Julie and Adriano have decided to live on-site… in the house. So Nunu and I are in the room I stayed in on my first trip. I like the room, it just doesn’t have the storage the other one does, nor does it have an attached kitchen.

Basically the only things that Nunu and I registered for on our wedding registry was kitchen things. So it’s a little bit of a bummer, but we are trying to use part of the office as our kitchen… minus the sink. Eventually we will get it set up with a small electric stove and hopefully a gas fridge (if it works).

Another reason I won’t be starting my schedule until later in August is that we have many visitors coming in the next few weeks!

We have a couple coming on July 28^th. Ben will be overseeing a soccer camp as well as helping Adriano out with many of the repairs at the Center. Julie (not to be confused with Julia, who I often call Julie) will be teaching some of our kids and staff about basic medical care and help Julia prepare for two PA (Physicians Assistant) students that will be coming out in September. On August 1 another couple will be coming John and Laura (friends of mine… yeah!) are coming to see what life is like for our kids in Pemba. John will also be filming his time here and creating a video for TDP. Laura will also be giving us a little insight about how trauma effects children. On August 11 we also have to visitors “swinging by” on there way through Africa. They are coming to learn more about what we do… let’s hope we can squeeze it all in during their two days with us!

So in 22 days we will have 6 visitors, from 3 groups! As things move a little slower here in Pemba some of the preparations take time… and our plates are a bit full right now. But I couldn’t be more excited to host visitors… especially friends!

Prayer Requests:

- Preparations for all of the visitors… that things go as smooth as possible… for both us and them.

- Safe travels for all. I imagine Ben & Julie leave on Thursday and John & Laura leave on Monday.

- As always continued health. Even thought it isn’t rainy season, I’ve noticed more mosquitoes in our room. 

Change Is Coming

I’m not sure if I’ve ever talked about this before, but about a year ago I got word from Julie that oil had been discovered off the coast of Mozambique near Pemba. Well in the last the oil companies have started moving in. Pemba is indeed in a poor third world country, but it’s coast is lined with some of the most beautiful beaches you have ever seen.

The beach front just up the coast from the public beach is booming! All the empty properties have houses being built. All the rental properties have double or tripled their rents. There is even rumor of a nice house renting for $16,000 per month. To give you and idea a simple house on the coast last summer with 3 bedroom, kitchen, living room and indoor plumbing was renting for $600 last summer. It’s now $1,200. But my guess is if the renter moves out or their lease runs up the rent will jump to around $2,000 per month.

Pemba is changing. We now have high speed internet. A Shop Rite (big grocery store) is coming to town. More banks have showed up and even a few new gas stations. The number of cars driving in and out of town has probably tripled since I first came a year and a half ago. Actually the cars have probably doubled since my last trip 3 months ago.

There is this family who owns the best grocery store in town, they also own our version of Ace Hardware. Apparently he has always kept Shop Rite out of town. I keep joking that he has let Shop Rite in because he could care less about selling groceries. He is selling a toaster for $100, not a fancy one, but one that would go for not more than $20 in the States. I think I looked at a $500 microwave, one that you could easily pick up from Target for $60. This guy must be over selling bags of potato chips, he knows the money is in modern conveniences!

The good thing in all of this is that the oil companies are required to give to local charities. Dream Project is still trying to get in front of some of the companies but we are praying for a positive outcome.

A man from Social Services came by the other day to talk to Adriano and Julie. He is very concerned with the negative impact the oil will have on Pemba. He said the two main things are that people will come from the bush with promise of work, but when they arrive they will find nothing. They will end up on the street. Just today we went into town and looked around. Julie has always known of two children living on the street but while we waited at the one intersection in town (which will no doubt need a light soon) I counted 3 boys. Boys Julie had never seen before. One boy who looked about 13 came to our window and I’m not sure I can even call what he was wearing a shirt. It was ripped beyond recognition and looked more like a few 1 inch pieces of fabric that crisscrossed his chest.

The other issue is that with the influx of single men coming into town, he also tells us that prostitution will likely boom. Nunu has told me in the past of a place where you can find a prostitute at the cost of a chicken dinner… less than $12.

My heart breaks for these children. The need here is great, but the God I serve is even bigger! I will need your prayers more than ever now. Please be praying for focus and that I won’t get overwhelmed. Pray that I continue to find my peace and strength in the Lord and realize that I can’t do this alone. That God would bless Nunu and I with great ideas and that we would be great support for each other. More than anything that we would continue to follow as God leads. I feel like I could ask for a million different prayer requests, but I don’t even have the words for some of them. I will do my best to wear my heart on my sleeve in this blog. 

A Bittersweet Decision

When I arrived last Friday one of the first things I was told was that Juma P had moved home. Juma has been suffering from many illnesses since moving in with us 2 years ago. He has dealt with everything from diarrhea for weeks at a time to seizures. While Juma has been living with us, we have also been helping out Juma’s family and our goal has always been to return him to his home, as he has a very loving affectionate mother.

It sounds like his mom wanted to bring him home to see just how he was doing. So that she could monitor his seizures first hand. After one week at home, she came back to us saying that Juma wanted to come back and live with us again.

Sigh. It things like this that make this job so hard.

I can’t say enough about how great Cifa, Juma’s mom, is. You can tell she cares for him so much. It’s beyond obvious that she wants what is best for him. The only problem is that she doesn’t really have the means to support all of her children and with Juma’s health needs he needs better nutrition and such. But at the same time she is his mother. In that sense she and her family can provide Juma with so much more than we can… I don’t even know how to explain but it’s that weird glue that holds a family together.

Julie, Adriano and I talk all this out and come to the conclusion that it is best for Juma to stay at home with his family. But we will increase the amount of food we give his family each month. We will add more protein, fruits and vegetables. We will also continue to help with his medical expenses. I also brought some children’s vitamins from the states for Juma, so we will be giving those to Cifa weekly for Juma. Finally one of the things that God has really laid on my heart is finding ways to allow widows to support their families on their own.

I’ve always known Cifa would be the first person I would help. I can’t explain how God has soften a corner of my heart for Juma, Cifa and the rest of their family. When I think of what I will be doing in Mozambique it’s their faces that pop into my head. When I come to Mozambique, even though Cifa and I only speak a few of the same words in Portuguese (as her main language is Macua, a local tribal language). I’m always so excited to see her and let her know that I care for her and think of her often.

If you could all be praying for Cifa, Juma and myself in this transition I would really appreciate it. Specifically for Juma’s health, that he would be freed from his seizures and his body would be restored to full health. For Cifa that she would lead her family and be wise with what she has. For all of us that we would be able to encourage each other during this time and do what is best for Juma.

One last thing I forgot to mention. During the meeting with Cifa and Juma we were talking about his age. I was told when I met him that he was 7 and so now about 8, remember he is the size of a 4 year old. Well in this meeting his mom said, “When he came to live here he was 8, so he must be 10 now.” I thought it was crazy that he was 8, but to find out he is 10… what? I’m speechless.

The Life I Live...

I absolutely love being back. But it’s hard not having Nunu here. I’m back in the room from my first visit and so we’ve had to buy a full sized bed. But my old twin is still in here and some office furniture. Our bug tent doesn’t quite fit over our mattress and I’ve got some ideas of how to fix it but it’s one of those things where if I were in the states, I know what I would do. I know Nunu trusts my judgment but I wish he was here to help make some of the decisions… and of course to protect me from the mice!

Last Friday, my first night here, I closed all my windows before going to bed. Mice like to come in through the windows, so I’m happy the weather is so nice. I inspected the Tom and Jerry mouse hole on my door. On my first trip someone put this glue and wood dust mix in the hole… it looks to still be there… at least enough that a fat mouse can’t get by.

So I go to sleep around 9:00 happy in my new bug hut and sleeping on my new bed. But at 11:30 I’m awoken by the distinctive sound of something sliding across my floor and the pitter patter of tiny little mouse feet! I freeze. All I have in bed is a flashlight lantern. I turn it on but I can’t see out of the bug net. I lay in silence until I can get enough courage to unzip my hut and reach 3 feet to the light switch. How did he get in?!

I fall in and out of sleep for the rest of the night. Every few hours I hear ruffling, but I never see anything.

I eventually get out of bed and realize that my curtains are moving in the wind. I guess one window was left open. As I close it I wonder to myself… “am I trapping the mouse in my room?”

Most of Saturday I spent trying to unpack but I don’t have any place to put things because all of the office furniture and the other bed are all still in here. So I just move things around so all the clothes are in one suitcase and I pull out all my plastic storage bins.

I go to grab something on a small dresser and that’s when it happens… the mouse darts from about 6 inches in front of my foot to another cabinet a few feet away. I let out a scream and go running out of my room and send the boys in after it.

In the deepest part of my logical brain I understand that this is just a little animal, not to much different from the cute hamsters I had growing up. But my body just doesn’t understand. I feel my heart rate go up and I feel the tears hiding out just behind my eyes.

I’m still not sure what the boys think… other than that I’m crazy. They try to help but if they really knew just how scared I was they wouldn’t leave my room without the mouse. But they tell me he isn’t there, he went under the door. I know he didn’t the glue is in the same place as yesterday. He is behind my cabinet.

I frantically zip all my suitcases and put anything food like in my air tight plastic containers. I set sticky mouse traps on each side of the cabinet and put a few of the snapping kind on the cabinet.

I stay out of my room till bedtime and then I sleep with the lights on and even my glasses on. Sunday, I wake up and head right out to church.

This is a new church for me. It’s actually not church… it’s a celebration (their words). It’s a bunch of missionaries who meet at a house on the beach… a really nice house. The music is in English, a verse is shared by the man who hosts the event and then everyone is welcomed to share how God is teaching them and finally people share prayer requests. After that we eat! Lots of food, yummy different food. One woman even brought something that resembled tortilla chips (something you can’t buy in the stores here).

Everyone just hangs out till they need to leave, some go swimming and we just keep snacking. Except that I’m still jetlagged, and was ready to leave after about 4 hours… it was really nice. I guess it meets on the first Sunday of the month. I’m not sure if I will make it next month as we will have visitors (yeah!). But I’m happy to get to know some other missionaries in Pemba.

We go home and I unlock my door, but instead of rushing in to lay down I stand and I listen. I hear something… faint but it just might be a mouse caught in one of my sticky traps. I look around and find Njuale in the yard. I send him in to scope things out. Sure enough he comes out with a mouse!

Relief doesn’t even explain what I’m feeling. I’m beaming from ear to ear. I head into my room with confidence that I’m alone.

I go into Julie’s room to celebrate, as she is the only one who gets it… and while I’m in there Antonio, one of our workers, hobbles up to the house. He says, “I hurt my foot, I need my doctor to look at it.” Even thought Julie is a PA (Physicians Assistant) he is referring to me. The last time I was in town, I help him nurse this same foot back to health after a motor cycle accident.

Antonio was playing soccer on the beach and he kicked a rock. He has walked about 20 minutes to our house and his foot is bleeding from at least two places, but it’s hard to tell what’s going on until we get it cleaned off.

While the cuts weren’t great, they were a lot better than Julie and I had thought, there was just so much blood. I did my best to clean the sand out and Latino (one of our 17 year olds who is interested in studying medicine) also put on a pair of rubber gloves to help me… he isn’t nearly as squeamish as I am.

Later that night I walked into my room and something fell into my glasses and for a second was stuck between them and my eye. Cockroaches always end up in the strangest places and I’ve seen them fall from our rafters. It was dark so I didn’t see it but I’m pretty sure that a cockroach fell on me.

I lay in bed on Sunday night almost laughing. I haven’t even been here for 3 full days yet and I’ve caught a mouse and bandaged 3 feet… all without my Orkin man (Nunu). I’m not even really sure what I think about this. Is it a reminder of just what I’ve signed up to do? Will mice become normal to me? How many feet will I bandage before people start to understand the importance of keeping your feet clean? All these questions… but the one thing I know is that I’m where I’m supposed to be. I’m where God has called me and in the mist of all this craziness I couldn’t be happier or more at peace about my life.

It’s now Wednesday night. With a little bit of this blog left to write I took a break to paint my toe nails. I was just finishing and something grabbed my attention out of the corner of my eye. I looked up and on my wall about 5 feet from me was one of the largest spiders I have EVER seen. It’s legs were at least 3 inches from one side to the other. Ernesto killed it for me… now I’m back in my bug net thinking of the bug bomb I will put off!

Traveling is Always an Adventure!

Well I made it. It was difficult parting from Nunu in Johannesburg. Not only because I’m so used to us always being together but also because of having to deal with 200 pounds of checked luggage on my own.

When we arrived in Jo-burg we parted ways as he had to clear customs and catch a taxi to the bus station and I went into the transfer terminal. This way I could avoid having to collect all of our luggage and hopefully save some money this way as well.

It was 6am local time, which is midnight in Detroit, on Friday. I make my way down long winding hallways until I find a few desks. They ask me for my itinerary, which I can’t find. Every time I’ve opened my backpack today I’ve dropped a few papers. The man tells me I can’t pass through without either my itinerary or boarding pass. I start to panic. I’m beyond tired. I haven’t slept in a bed in 2 days. I’m freaking out… which leads to tears.

Logic is gone from my mind. In desperation I start searching for papers in my pillow… why on earth would I have put a paper in my pillow, I don’t know. But I have searched everywhere else. I find the jeans I was wearing on Wednesday (the day my flight left) rolled up. I check the back pockets and I find my itinerary!

So I move on the airline counter. There is almost no one in this part of the airport, yet the counter I need to go to has a man at it. I have about 3 hours till my flight so I’m not stressed about the line, I just want to know what they are going to say about my 4 bags.

At this point I have not been able to check-in for my flight to Pemba, as the other airlines I have flown say they aren’t partners. So I imagine my bags just going round and round on the baggage claim.

I hear that the man in front of me has to go and convert USD to Rand to pay extra for his bags. I explain my situation to the man and he says “Ooooh this is a problem.” Not the words I wanted to hear. He explains that I am allowed 2 bags and that I will have to pay for the other 2. I thought he might tell me that I had to pay for all 4 bags, so I’m okay with this.

It’s just so funny and unorganized though. He calls down to see if my bags are still in the baggage claim for my flight. They are. He then tells me that he needs to know how much my bags weigh, so he isn’t sure that I can check in. But he goes down to the Bitish Airlines desk and finds out. He tells me I need to pay for 34 kilos, (75 pounds). I’m not sure where he got this number because all of my bags weight 49 or 50 pounds.

He tells me I need to pay $240 for my bags, but when I do the math I come up with $200. So I ask if I can go convert my USD in Rand. The 1700 Rand I need to pay comes up to $225 at the Currency Exchange. I hate not knowing if I’m being taken advantage of, I hate feeling like a target. So even thought $15 might not seam like much, I’m glad I saved it. Then it’s just so funny, he asked if I want a receipt and the tags for my luggage. Uh… yes.

In the end, I made it to Mozambique with all of my and Nunu’s luggage. When I arrived a the airport, Julie and Adriano and some of the kids were there waiting for me.

It’s kinda surreal being here. I think because I was only gone for 3 months, but maybe it also has something to do with being here without Nunu.

The kids have all been really great. I feel like each time I come they understand more that I’m not leaving any time soon.

The weather is amazing! This is the first time I’ve been here in July. I think it is there winter, but it’s beautiful. It’s not as hot or humid as it is in February and March. And it hasn’t rained yet. 

Nunu will be in Maputo until Wednesday visiting family and then he will be taking the 40 hour bus ride up to Pemba. He should arrive here late Thursday night.

Prayer Request:

- Health for both Nunu and I - Jet lag, Malaria, and water born illnesses

- Travel for Nunu

- That we would be able to settle into our new home and get to work!