May 22
Our last day at the clinic was today…so many mixed emotions. Our day started in the chapel (as usual as they have chapel together every morning at 7:30). Today was different though as they prepared a wonderful breakfast for us as a going away party for ALL of the staff to attend. Each department had a spokesperson tell us of their gratitude and appreciation, the nurse anesthetist wrote a song for us, they all gave us more gifts (Everyone has been giving us gifts all week in preparing to say good-bye!), and we all ate together. It is difficult to leave people like this who have welcomed us into their families and their homes and their beloved workplace. They are all urging us to stay longer, to come back soon, or to come more permanently! They are so thankful and loving. We all spent the day working our last turns at different posts, doing surgery into the evening, packing, taking final pictures, and saying good-byes. All that, and we still have another good-bye party tonight in a few minutes with just the senior staffers, who've been hosting our meals all month, and taking care of our every need, our every whim to go to the market! So, for me, more crying will ensue soon, as we will hear more from them and their praise over us and over the God who sent us to them. It is all VERY humbling and hard to take in. As I said, mixed emotions. We are eager to come home (not eager for trip we must endure!) and see our children and spouses and friends we left in the states! I'm sure we must all admit we are anxious to experience a hot shower and our own washing machines! We have much catching up to do, much decompressing from our trip and all we have experienced, and much jet-lag to recover from. We all anticipate we will be learning from our trip for many months, even years, to come…as God will continue to show us things and open our hearts to new ways of thinking. Again, thank you all for your prayers. Yosef (the little boy with burns, I think I've forgotten to share his name with you all) needs prayer again as he returned to the clinic yesterday after falling off the moto with his momma, and freshening ALL of his burns wounds! It is so sad, yet it is their every day struggle to survive. Thank you for loving him, and all the other patients here, by loving them with your prayers, even though you did not know every story, or every name, or every result. God knows. And He will continue to be with them and draw them to Himself through the love shown through this clinic! See you all soon!