In the Bush

The wind, the sun, and the dust are pretty significant here when riding on the back of a moto, down the open road. As we were heading west, I was pretty much crying because it was so bright and so windy. This was Friday afternoon, and Papa was taking me out into the bush for vespers.

I hadn't been out of the village since arriving in Béré on Monday, so it was nice to get out and expand my horizons a bit. We went out of the village and down the main road for maybe a couple of kilometers before we turned off onto a small track and wound through the landscape, passing huts from time to time, with groups of children calling, "Nasara, Nasara!" 

We pulled up in front of a hut and Papa tapped the horn a few times to announce our arrival. A woman came out of the hut with a very large mat to put on the ground, and something like 30 kids (and a few adults) came and sat down on the mat in front of Papa and I. We sang a few songs in French, such as Read Your Bible, Pray Everyday, Father Abraham, and Making Melodies. There's something cool about seeing kids in a bush village in Africa singing some of the same songs that I grew up singing on the other side of the world. 

After we sang, Papa talked to the a little bit, and then asked me to tell them a story. I told them about David and Goliath. Then we sang another song, prayed, and left. It was a very short meeting, something like 20 minutes, but there was something special about it. It made me feel like I'm in the right place right now, and that I could stay here for a long time. 

After leaving that village, we went to another village on the opposite side of Béré and had a similar meeting. The kids in these little villages are dirty. They have runny noses. Some of them are half naked. Small kids, maybe seven or so, will carry babies on their backs. It's a different world here. And I like it. 

Happy Thanksgiving!

Thanksgiving in Chad was pretty great.

Today was day two at the hospital. So far, pretty much all I've done is follow on rounds and such, trying very hard to learn people's names, understand a little bit of French, and learn a few new words, if I'm lucky. There's lots of patients with malaria and typhoid, some with cancer, some with abscesses and infections of various kinds. And other things, of course. Like surgery patients, and maternity patients, and things like that. Lots of skinny kids, too. They're sure cute, though.

One of my new favorite songs has a line that says "I need to know I can be lost, and not afraid." You could argue that I can't possibly be lost, because God opened the doors for me to come here, and he is with me, and therefore I am anything but lost. And that is true, of course. But some other things are also true. Like the fact that I feel pretty lost here at this point. Because really... I'm in a totally new place, with new people, a new culture, new languages, new food, a new climate, new ways of doing things, and a new approach to nursing.

Definitely the biggest "new" for me right now that the language situation. It's pretty crazy. I'm realizing that I've taken talking for granted all my life. This is quite startling...so startling, in fact, that I might be an extrovert by the time I get home just because I'm so thankful to be able to talk to people. Just to be clear, there are people here who speak English. But there's a whole lot more who speak French, Arabic, Nangéré, and a whole lot of other local languages. And a good number of people here speak multiple of them. It really made me wonder what I've done with my life when a 12ish year old told me that he speaks five languages. What.

As a side note, if I ever learn to read Arabic, I think I will feel like I have achieved a significant accomplishment. Look it up. It's super beautiful. I think reading would be even more enjoyable than it already is if the words were gorgeous like that.

I'm home

Yesterday morning we went to immigration and got my passport stamped, and then took the bus to Kelo. David and Sarah, some other missionaries here, picked us up in Kelo. On the way to Béré we saw a super gorgeous sunset, and also a hippo! 

When we got to Béré, I met my family. They live just around the corner from the entrance to the hospital, which is quite convenient. Their house is nice. It is cement, with a metal roof. My room, which is part of the house, but accessible only from the outside, is probably 10 or 12 feet square. It's quite nice. There is a nice window also. It's currently a mess, as I haven't finished organizing yet. I'm pretty sure I brought twice as much stuff as I need....

This morning I went with Zach to the nutrition clinic. Mothers come with their babies to be weighed and measured (the babies, not the mothers), and they are given formula if the baby still needs it. It was very interesting. Some of the babies are sooo skinny. 

After the nutrition clinic, we went into town to the police and the medical directors office (or something like that). 

Tomorrow I have orientation at the hospital. Oh boy!

Also, I want to buy a baby goat. They are unbelievably cute.