Day 14
Wednesday, Sept. 24
Ngodzi
We began our day with team devotions led by Mark on the Parable of the Sower. He used the different “soils” of the parable to challenge us to think about how we might respond at home to what we have experienced here (from apathy, to temporary concern, to a life change).
Connie and Hank went out on the final net distribution for this week. Tomorrow we will hear exactly how many nets were given out and about plans to continue after we leave. We have already informed the staff here that funds for additional nets (approximately another 4000) have been raised. That would bring the total to about 6000, a significant legacy that we are able to leave behind thanks to the generosity of donors at home. The villagers have been SO APPRECIATIVE and we want our family and friends to know that.
Stephen, Myrtis and Mary went to an outreach clinic at least an hour away, close to the escarpment (mountain). It was a busy clinic, 156 patients seen, in the scorching heat. They were late getting back, so our afternoon plans to go to a museum founded by a Canadian priest in Mua had to be postponed.
The main clinic in Ngodzi was less busy today, as it usually is in the middle of the week. However, there were several severely sick patients that challenged us (a child with cerebral malaria and a newly diagnosed AIDS patient with Kaposi’s sarcoma).
This evening just before supper we were saddened to hear that Kinn’s brother passed away of AIDS at the age of 37 (Kinn is a Malawian lab technician and a very likable fellow who has been sharing a room and meals with us at the guesthouse). This brought the AIDS epidemic closer to home, touching someone we have gotten close to.
Day 13
Tuesday, Sept. 23
Ngodzi
Stephen led our team morning devotions about reaching out to other cultures. After breakfast, Mark did a teaching session with the clinic staff on resuscitation of the newborn.
Today, more nets were distributed, and many given out door to door by the team. The expressions of thanks from the village chief and from some of the recipients were that the nets “were a gift from God”. In the clinic, many if not most of the patients are suffering from malaria, some very seriously, particularly the young children, so the nets will make a definite difference in this community when they are all distributed and used.
Kim saw baby Sophia again in the village; she is the youngest of 8 children. They’ve been calling her Sophilia, so that might stick.
All the women, and Hank, went to the village school today. There are 1250 students and 10 teachers, teaching in 2 shifts mornings and afternoons, class size of about 75 children! Some classes are outside under the trees. We see the work of other organizations like World Vision in the village, with school improvements and a feeding program. Last year’s team helped with building materials for toilets for the school and they are working well.
Then Myrtis and Stephen led a children’s program at Pastor McDuff’s church with over 150 kids. They did a craft to illustrate their message using tongue depressors. The school and the church were happy to receive some of the donated balls that we brought over and the kids wasted no time starting games with them.
The clinic time was busy with some extremely ill patients.
Everyone’s tired and missing home but looking forward to another productive day tomorrow. We have invited the Lifeline Malawi staff and families to come to the guesthouse tomorrow evening for a showing of the Jesus Film.
Day 12
Monday, Sept. 22
Ngodzi
On the way back from Livingstonia yesterday, we stopped for more shopping, and then had to find fuel for the van – and suddenly it was dark as we were headed home! Driving in the dark in Africa is not for the faint hearted. Our driver and all of us were pretty stressed but thankful to get home safely. The deep darkness, all the people and bicycles along the road with no lights, and oncoming traffic make it hair raising.
Today the temperature hit 31 degrees and we are feeling the heat and humidity. Kim was on crowd control during the net distribution today – there was a lot of commotion among the women as they waited for their nets, a real palaver! She calmly confronted the crowd with pointed questions which settled things down so that the rest of the nets could be distributed. Our initial 2000 nets are really only a drop in the bucket to address the needs here, and we are glad that more funds came in after our departure to help address the remaining needs.
We had a good day in the clinic. Mark, Stephen and Hank all worked with a translator and saw lots of interesting cases. Some of them are a challenge diagnostically due to the lack of x-rays and sophisticated lab tests. We do what the regular Malawian staff do – the best with the limited resources.
This afternoon the girls went to see baby Garnet in his compound. They gladly received the gifts the Stewarts had sent along but the baby continued to fuss having his picture taken.
We have started preparing for the Jesus Film which we hope to show on Friday evening in Pastor McDuff’s church. It looks like we will be using a generator and we checked it for reliability. And tomorrow, we (mostly Myrtis and Stephen) will be doing some children’s ministry in the afternoon.
As we write, a breeze has started off the lake and hopefully things will cool down for sleep.
Wednesday, Sept. 24
Ngodzi
We began our day with team devotions led by Mark on the Parable of the Sower. He used the different “soils” of the parable to challenge us to think about how we might respond at home to what we have experienced here (from apathy, to temporary concern, to a life change).
Connie and Hank went out on the final net distribution for this week. Tomorrow we will hear exactly how many nets were given out and about plans to continue after we leave. We have already informed the staff here that funds for additional nets (approximately another 4000) have been raised. That would bring the total to about 6000, a significant legacy that we are able to leave behind thanks to the generosity of donors at home. The villagers have been SO APPRECIATIVE and we want our family and friends to know that.
Stephen, Myrtis and Mary went to an outreach clinic at least an hour away, close to the escarpment (mountain). It was a busy clinic, 156 patients seen, in the scorching heat. They were late getting back, so our afternoon plans to go to a museum founded by a Canadian priest in Mua had to be postponed.
The main clinic in Ngodzi was less busy today, as it usually is in the middle of the week. However, there were several severely sick patients that challenged us (a child with cerebral malaria and a newly diagnosed AIDS patient with Kaposi’s sarcoma).
This evening just before supper we were saddened to hear that Kinn’s brother passed away of AIDS at the age of 37 (Kinn is a Malawian lab technician and a very likable fellow who has been sharing a room and meals with us at the guesthouse). This brought the AIDS epidemic closer to home, touching someone we have gotten close to.
Day 13
Tuesday, Sept. 23
Ngodzi
Stephen led our team morning devotions about reaching out to other cultures. After breakfast, Mark did a teaching session with the clinic staff on resuscitation of the newborn.
Today, more nets were distributed, and many given out door to door by the team. The expressions of thanks from the village chief and from some of the recipients were that the nets “were a gift from God”. In the clinic, many if not most of the patients are suffering from malaria, some very seriously, particularly the young children, so the nets will make a definite difference in this community when they are all distributed and used.
Kim saw baby Sophia again in the village; she is the youngest of 8 children. They’ve been calling her Sophilia, so that might stick.
All the women, and Hank, went to the village school today. There are 1250 students and 10 teachers, teaching in 2 shifts mornings and afternoons, class size of about 75 children! Some classes are outside under the trees. We see the work of other organizations like World Vision in the village, with school improvements and a feeding program. Last year’s team helped with building materials for toilets for the school and they are working well.
Then Myrtis and Stephen led a children’s program at Pastor McDuff’s church with over 150 kids. They did a craft to illustrate their message using tongue depressors. The school and the church were happy to receive some of the donated balls that we brought over and the kids wasted no time starting games with them.
The clinic time was busy with some extremely ill patients.
Everyone’s tired and missing home but looking forward to another productive day tomorrow. We have invited the Lifeline Malawi staff and families to come to the guesthouse tomorrow evening for a showing of the Jesus Film.
Day 12
Monday, Sept. 22
Ngodzi
On the way back from Livingstonia yesterday, we stopped for more shopping, and then had to find fuel for the van – and suddenly it was dark as we were headed home! Driving in the dark in Africa is not for the faint hearted. Our driver and all of us were pretty stressed but thankful to get home safely. The deep darkness, all the people and bicycles along the road with no lights, and oncoming traffic make it hair raising.
Today the temperature hit 31 degrees and we are feeling the heat and humidity. Kim was on crowd control during the net distribution today – there was a lot of commotion among the women as they waited for their nets, a real palaver! She calmly confronted the crowd with pointed questions which settled things down so that the rest of the nets could be distributed. Our initial 2000 nets are really only a drop in the bucket to address the needs here, and we are glad that more funds came in after our departure to help address the remaining needs.
We had a good day in the clinic. Mark, Stephen and Hank all worked with a translator and saw lots of interesting cases. Some of them are a challenge diagnostically due to the lack of x-rays and sophisticated lab tests. We do what the regular Malawian staff do – the best with the limited resources.
This afternoon the girls went to see baby Garnet in his compound. They gladly received the gifts the Stewarts had sent along but the baby continued to fuss having his picture taken.
We have started preparing for the Jesus Film which we hope to show on Friday evening in Pastor McDuff’s church. It looks like we will be using a generator and we checked it for reliability. And tomorrow, we (mostly Myrtis and Stephen) will be doing some children’s ministry in the afternoon.
As we write, a breeze has started off the lake and hopefully things will cool down for sleep.
posted by Dr. Hendrik Visser at 9:09 AM
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