Traveling to Bedralal was no easy task. I'm not sure we were really on roads some of the time.... they looked more like rutted bumpy foot paths. We had to drive through a river at one point in time. Then more bumps and ruts and winding "roads"
We arrived around 8am. When we first arrived there was a little confusion. They weren't expecting us so early, so I had a chance to take a few pictures. This is the sign, hanging on a tree in front of the dispensary
Except for a lunch break, once we started to see patients we just kept seeing patients. Sean, Kirk and Etienne in one room and Noel (the nurse who runs the dispensary in Bedralal), Kay and I in the other small room. Unfortunately, the picture below is from a distance because I couldn't stand in the middle of someones field to get a closer view of the dispensary. It's a simple brick building with 4 small rooms. The room on the far left is where Kay, Noel and I worked. then next room was Noels office, but Kirk, Sean and Etienne was patients in that room and the two rooms on the right side of the building were used for storage and to dispense medications (like the pharmacy). You can't see the doors to those two rooms because of the vehicle parked in front of the building.
As we waited for Noel to get organized I had a chance to take a few pictures of people as they gathered at the well and went about their daily business of farming. I loved taking pictures of the people. Theses are some of the faces of the people of Ch^d that I learned to love and miss very much
This picture was taken across from the dispensary. A man and his sons were plowing the field. When they finished that last strip of land, they all posed for some close up shots.
Of course you can always find women and children at the well.
What I hope you can see in these pictures is the welcoming, patient, determined, "can do" attitudes of the people. What you can't see in these pictures is the hunger and disease that invades every part of their lives.
Some of the people came very early in the morning to be seen by us. Some had to wait a long time and by dusk, when we had to stop seeing patients because we didn't have the light to do that and we had to set up out tents, there were probably 30-40 people still waiting to be seen. The only time I ever saw any of the Ch^dians become upset was for the few minutes between when they announced that we needed to stop seeing patients and when Etienne spoke to them and then prayed with and for them.
To this day, tears come to my eyes when I think about all the "work" we left unfinished. Although we were going to see patients again the next day, we still couldn't see everyone. At the time, I was grateful that Etienne was able to talk to them in a very calm, confident way. I could tell that the people listened and respected what he had to say. Essentially he told them that even though the "white doctor and midwife" couldn't see all of them, that they were going to be see by Noel after we left. He asked the people to be thankful that we sacrificed to come there in the first place... that we left our families to make this effort.
Etienne has a special gift of encouragement and is able to help people see that what ever happens in G*d's plan and will for them is in His sovereignty and they need to accept it.
Over the course of the next few hours, I was about to learn a similar lesson. After we finished seeing patients that first evening in Bedralal, we needed to set up our tents as the sun was going down quickly and there was a storm brewing. I don't really like storms unless I have a lot of protection around me. I don't really like camping either, but tonight I was about to experience both at the same time!
We quickly set up our tents. We each had our own tent, just big enough for our cot and a little foot room at the side of the cot to take sit, but not tall enough to stand. I made sure my flashlight was handy. Secretly I was hoping that Kirk would just tell us to go wait it out in the Land Rover... but he didn't. The knot growing in my stomach was a big as a bowling ball... As the storm began to hit, we all got into our tents to keep them from blowing away. The lightning flashed closer and the thunder rumbled louder as the rains pelted our tents like hail. I tried to ignore it, but the mind over matter think didn't work and I had a little 60 second meltdown. But almost as quickly as the tears started to flow, a calm came over me - I felt G+d saying to me " I did not bring you here to harm you. I need you to work for me. But I need to provide rain for the people too." Dave Guiles words came to mind again. "When you are in the center of G*d's will, you have nothing to fear."
I turned off my flashlight, Used some hand-iwipes to wash up, laid down on my cot with one arm and one leg each outstretched to support the tent walls from caving in on me turned my i-pod and fell asleep. Believe it or not, Noel's family brought dinner to us in our tents,but I was too tired to eat. I woke up early, to a rooster announcing sunrise, feeling rested and ready for whatever G+d wanted me to do. I still don't like camping in storms, but I do like the fact that G*d always has our best interest in mind, even if I don't like the way He chooses to show us that truth.
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