Mombasa, Kenya: 18

Today was an easy day to get frustrated. We arrived at the hospital at the same time that Beatrice did and as I was preparing to redress her wounds, the matron informed me that there was no more gauze in minor theatre. Running out of supplies is not a wholly unusual occurrence so we waited for a while and then we were brought exactly 4 pieces of gauze that I’m pretty sure were stolen from the emergency room next door. Beatrice was in great spirits today though and we exchanged numbers so that I can be sure to find her tomorrow in out-patient. The next patient that came in was a little boy who needed his wound to be redressed and evaluated. We waited another 45 minutes to get some more gauze and then proceeded to dress the wound. At this point in the afternoon I split to see what else was going on and found myself in ward 7 assisting the doctor in holding down a line of children who were having their blood drawn. What an ordeal! The lesson I learned from this point in my experience is that kids are pretty much the same everywhere and the second that they see white gloves and a needle, we are not friends anymore. The wards are a pretty dismal place to be but I wanted to see for myself what things look like outside of the operating room. Frustration seems to be a choice that I am running into a lot more often lately. Tonight I am choosing to rest my body and soul in the fact that while it seems I am doing so little, the Lord is doing so much more than what I can see.

In other news, a good pal of mine named Joel arrived last week and on one visit to the orphanage became inspired to get involved. He is now pioneering a major project to get some real walls for the orphanage and a suitable bathroom. The total cost for the project is somewhere around $1000 USD, which is pennies if we consider this a community project and all chip in. I’ll be posting a link on my facebook that can lead you to a spot to donate, if you feel so inclined. Any contribution is helpful and so so so appreciated.