Am I really halfway?!

I’m sitting on the lovely veranda watching the sparkling Zambezi as the sun reflects off it, after going to church this morning. It’s so lovely listening to the amazing African singing in the local languages and trying to follow the words, then the sermon also in the local language which is usually translated which is nice. I love listening to them singing – the other day I went with Grace to the nearby school and before she taught her lesson they sang a couple songs – the sounds that filled the room were just amazing!

The class were very welcoming

There have been a few busy days at the hospital and I am continuing to learn so much about medical work as there is such a range every day. I so admire all the people who are such a witness who work at Chitokoloki, from the doctors and nurses who work long hours to those doing maintenance who work so hard to keep things running. There are some very sad cases that you see most days but I know it would be a lot worse without the work that goes on at Chitokoloki. It’s just inspirational seeing a vital service being provided; medical care to the people of rural areas here and places far away (even patients from Angola – some walk for a few weeks to come here for treatment) and seeing them hear the gospel while they are here. It gives me a smile when patients ask for bibles in their language!

I love helping out during surgery, from setting up IV fluids and filling in anaesthetic charts to passing different instruments to the surgeon and adjusting the lights, I even got to hold an instrument that was holding back the trachea the other day because there weren’t enough hands for that moment. When not in the theatre I’ve done a range of other jobs. In a busy hospital there isn’t much time for the doctors and nurses to sort and tidy all the time so I’ve tried to do bits here and there; the other day Grace who is a teacher who visited and I spent a few hours till about 9 in the evening sorting and tidying one wall of a little cupboard. Although time consuming and tiring we had a good laugh and were proud of the slight improvement by the end. When on ward rounds, although a lot of it goes over my head I have learnt a lot about the different illnesses and the doctors and nurses are very helpful with explaining things. I go around with a little notepad so I can write down little jobs that they let me know I can do like changing dressings or simple physio or giving out toys and reading glasses – it’s great getting stuck in and getting hands on jobs!

Lydia and I doing our bit in saving lives - sorting the kitchen cupboard

Cleaning a little child in ICU

Seeing the masterpiece of a colour by numbers I gave this little boy

Helping the doc

The last two weekends have been so much fun and its been great seeing other places around Chit. The first weekend I was here we drove up river to the only bridge till the Victoria Falls – Chinyingi bridge. It was a narrow swinging footbridge in a beautiful setting. One of the scrub nurses, a Zambian called Kayombo, had never been there before and his shout of glee when he saw the bridge was brilliant – he was worried it wouldn’t hold all of us so I enjoyed running and bouncing across to scare him and the other adults a little – don’t worry I only did it for a moment. We then looked around on the other side at an abandoned mission station, which was pretty and a little overgrown. Then back over the bridge to have a lovely picnic in some shade before heading home. When we weren’t on the long straight tarmac road us ‘young’ folk sat on the roof while the car drove through the bumpy sandy off road tracks through trees and long grass and by villages full of happy waving people. It was so fun and funny riding along on the roof (don’t worry mum, the driver was very careful and we held on to the roof-rack tight!).

In mid-air over Zambezi 

Horay for Chinyingi Bridge! The whole group of us

What a picture by Doctor Paul!

Confused and happy waving onlookers

The next weekend we went on another trip, so the truck was filled with me, Lydia, the two medical students and some patients who needed a lift and it was driven very well by Nathan – the ride is a lot of fun as it bumps about so I was surprised when a few of us had a little snooze on the way back! We got to Dipalata which is a smaller mission station with a hospital – the few nurses have to deal with about 400 births a year – and there we set up to go fishing for the day by a very pretty little tributary which flows into the Zambezi! It was such a sweet relaxing day and was so lovely getting to know the family who work there – they are such a witness and were a great encouragement. We also found out that one of their sons was in my brother’s year at RVA – a boarding school in Kenya – love hearing about connections like that. We didn’t catch any fish but as Jeff said ‘we caught a good time’ and we still had fish and chips for tea then a fun game of dutch blitz to finish off the day.

The beautiful setting for fishing 

Jeff cheated by putting a freshly bought fish on his hook to trick the 2 boys who had been patiently fishing without success

Evenings have also been very well spent over the last couple of weeks, when we’re not inside chatting, laughing and playing games (usually dutch blitz) we’ve been outside looking at the stars (Doctor David got his telescope out the other day and we were able to spot Saturn and Jupiter which was cool) or around the campfire with some local boys. It’s been really interesting getting to know the local people and about their culture. One night they showed us how to cook ‘tshima’ which is the staple food in Zambia made from kasava and maize pounded into a powder then mixed in water till it becomes a thick dough. We then ate it with fish (eyes and all) from the Zambezi – they were amused at us questioning whether we should eat the whole fish including the head. After it was all eaten up I was stuffed full! The other night around the campfire they showed us some dancing which was quite impressive and they taught us some local games. As Graham and Lydia were leaving the next morning they sang a song in their language, which they explained wished them well on their travels and that God would bless them. They are very sweet and very good at catching animals I might add – in just one evening they caught a little mouse, a few fish and a crab (which we put in the sink to scare Grace and Rachel in the morning – was funny waking up to them gasping). I’ll not forget to mention the fun we have playing outdoor volleyball which the locals play every day – they are so talented and it’s brilliant watching their games – they are very gracious to let me play!

Lydia's farewell gift from the boys?

The winning team - the result of which I made little input to

Saying goodbye to the fish before cooking

Bon appetit!

I was sad to see people leave, they’ve all been such a blessing to have around. It makes me admire the permanent missionaries here who are so hospitable and see people come and go all the time. I am now sharing the guest house with just a few frogs and gheckos as Grace and Rachel have left, the laughs they gave us will be missed! As nurse Tanis is away for a week I am alone in this little corner of the mission station but I am coping well especially with the practice I had in Warwick and the fact that all visitors are invited to different permanent missionaries here every lunch which is just so lovely – delicious food and great company! I got on very well with Lydia and Graham. Graham was so helpful around the hospital, explaining things to me and making me feel settled around the hospital and brought a lot of fun to the group. I spent most of my time with Lydia who really helped me settle here and loved the chats and laughs we had. She will be starting her nursing this year and it was so lovely seeing her excitement about coming back to Chitokoloki as a nurse – God has placed a love of this place in her heart and I know she will do so well!

Saying goodbye to Georgia last week

Rachel, Grace and I looking snazzy in our scrubs

Will miss Lydia's reckless driving - our mode of transport on the mission station - very fun!

I am halfway through my time at Chit which is strange because it feels like I just got here despite all I've seen and done already - hoping I'll be able to take advantage and embrace the next few weeks before heading off to Loloma.

'He heals the broken hearted and bandages their wounds. He has decided the number of the stars and calls each one by name. Great and mighty is our Lord; his wisdom cannot be measured." Psalm ch 147 vs 3-5