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A Day to Remember

The abandoned clinic.

A long day, a hiccup or two, and a few wins made this a day to remember. Far out into the bush was a small abandoned medical clinic, accessible only by a hole laden dirt road and a canyon left from the rainy season. By the time we got there, the crowd was building, mostly elderly and many with old age disabilities and a long list of ailments. The medial clinic had not been used in many months, so we took it over and squeezed in doing our best to make it work. And we did.

The patients.

A seventeen year old girl was seen by our extraordinary Dr. Bryman, who on first glance thought she was 8 months pregnant. As she was explaining to the interpreter why she had come to us for, he began to cry. This mass in her belly had been there for a year, and on examination, it was evident that it was a large cystic tumor. Removal by surgery would change her life. We are finding out what it will cost and we will make sure her life is changed.

A young child, malnourished and wasted, sat quietly waiting to be seen. No smiles, no emotion. A simple placement of a hand on his shoulder did two things: the bones of his shoulder bones were easily felt, and a smile emerged from a frozen face. A smile perhaps that had been hidden for a very long time. He is now on the way to a nutritional rescue program.

A day to remember.

Two stories of only many many more, gives light to how a day can become deposited into our memory bank. A day to remember. We came not knowing what to expect and left knowing what was expected of us. To care. There’s nothing wrong with that, is there? Bubbles blown, pillow case dresses given, being present when present, all made this a day to remember.

In all things give thanks,

David

 

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