A week in review

It is Saturday which means another week has zipped by in a technicolor blaze of activities, meetings, routine and observation.

Some highlights:

* After two months of living solely on power the public electric company felt like doling out thanks to our inverter getting fried by some "bad current," we finally have a replacement inverter and 24 hours of electricity once again. We were good sports during the "outages" reminding ourselves that most Haitians live permanently on the whim of the electric company's schedule or manage with no electricity at all. What I found a bit maddening was the lack of any sort of schedule or predictability. Most days the electricity would blink on after we'd go to bed, flooding our dark room with light at about 11pm, but mercifully spinning our fans until about 5am. Other days we'd be graced with power in the late afternoon, or it would spill over into the morning allowing us to make coffee the modern way with our Mr. Coffee maker. After all is said and done, we have to admit we really like electricity. It is fun to see Solomon's face after 6pm and not loose him to the shadows hiding behind by candle light, to walk around the apartment without the aid of a head lamp, and to not have to wake up at 4 am in order to work on the computer or print off lesson plans.

*Sometimes I think watching our landlord react to situations must be like watching a rooster enter a cockfight. Patrick and I are better about mastering our own reactions these days (thanks to Haiti-weathered tuff skin and experience), and instead sit back fascinated at the display of puffed chest, splayed tail feathers and nervous bawking. We've learned if we sit still long enough, nod and smile, usually the cock will loose his fight and a compromise can be reached.

* A couple of really sick kids presented to the CONASPEH clinic drenching Miss Fanor and I in worry. We were able to place an IV in a dehydrated 9 year old and giver her enough IV fluids until she could start drinking again without throwing up. We sent a little one to the hospital for a more complete work up after her mom brought us to her after 16 days of fever and 3 days of no food or water. Our own rehydration attempts failed with throw-up all over the floor, and the little girl looked like she was quickly loosing her reserve. I'm praying that she got the help she needed before it was too late.

*One man I've been following weekly after he suffered a crippling bout of meningitis came to clinic this week with good news. He has slowly been recovering his eyesight and easing out of the throws of pain. He walked into the clinic unaided for the first time which made Miss Fanor and I high-five each other in relief.

*The staff at Carrefour found a lab technician, and this week was her second week working with the materials in the mobile lab. She was able to do a couple of malaria screening tests, start some blood work, check urine chemistries and blood sugars for us during the coarse of the clinic day. She won my respect after arranging the lab materials to her approval and diving into work despite a space that wasn't in ANY WAY designed like a modern lab nor did it provide sufficient space for her to work well in. She's offered to come to CONASPEH a couple of days a week to get our lab up and running while Carrefour works to build up enough money to buy its own supplies allowing for a functioning lab Monday through Friday. I'm glad to steal her for a few days a week! Good help is hard to find, and I think we found a gem in her.

*Thursday's Mobile lab took us to a rural area outside the town of Leogane. Three second-year nursing students accompanied us this week, and did great work helping by taking vital signs, working with Miss Fanor in the pharmacy, or sitting with me practicing exam skills. Each of the students presented a topic to the waiting room of patients. One gave a mini-lecture on heart-burn and reflux, discussing foods to avoid and some natural remedies to try. Another discussed anemia and sources of iron in the diet. I was proud of the students for jumping in and giving very well-received lectures. Group teaching was then re-enforced in a one-on-one setting. I enjoyed a moment of pride watching my students become educators before my eyes. The students brought a renewed energy to the mobile clinic with their bubbling enthusiasm, so a fun day was shared.

*Patrick, Solomon and I were thrilled with an invitation to visit another missionary family living in Port-au-Prince. The Livesay family invited us over for dinner, play and conversation Wednesday and we all had a ball. Solomon loved having someone other than his mom and dad to play with, and proceeded to follow the Livesay children around, kissing and grabbing at them to no end. He showed no fear toward their gentle giant Mastif, and motored about like he owned the place. Patrick and I loved meeting some fellow Americans in Haiti, sharing stories of lives that brought us here, the inspiration for and arduous process of adoption, work and observations about the crazy life in this country. There is nothing like the healing power of chatting with people with similar backgrounds to make one feel a little less crazy and have a lot more fun. So a public thank you to the Livesay's and their big, beautiful family for extending the hand of friendship.

*Patrick started basketball class this week. He is to teach a skills class during the school day to several very-interested classes of kids as well as conduct practice for a CONASPEH team after school. This week he found himself standing in front of 30 pre-teen boys, under the 11-o-clock sun, with two basketballs and a half concrete basketball court. Of course chaos eventually ensued. The class is a big hit. Patrick just needs a few more assistant coaches. Any volunteers?

*Patrick also has come to the "anatomy" lecture in his English classes to the nursing students which makes for an interesting earful. Although he prefers his theology lectures for the content and conversations stimulated, you can't help but enjoy a chorus of overly eager voices reciting with enthusiasm body parts from head to toe.

*During the end of my lecture in obstetrics this week, I fielded an array of questions regarding stories or some public beliefs regarding pregnancy. "I heard about a woman who carried a baby in her stomach for 2 years, is that possible?" "If you surprise a pregnant woman out of sleep, will it lead to deformations in the baby?" "There was a woman in Haiti that gave birth to fish, how do you explain that?" I have learned to answer questions based on my own background and referencing my responses as such. "In my experience, that isn't possible." Some students seem to nod, their doubts confirmed. Others smile knowingly at me. One such student spoke up, clearly not satisfied with my skeptisism. "It is different in Haiti than where you come from," she said. "There is magic here."

Vodou or not, she is right. There IS magic here.