Time to reflect

I have been continually overwhelmed by the Lord's provision and faithfulness in my life since this past May. Life has been absolutely crazy and I haven't taken the proper time to reflect on it but it's time to now. I need to look back and acknowledge the Lord's continual provision and faithfulness in my life. I have made 6 moves since May and in each place I didn't know anyone and I didn't have any idea where I would live but never once did God leave me sleeping on the streets or in my car, instead he introduced me to the most amazing of people that welcomed me into their homes and their hearts.

I want to rewind back to May when I moved out from Iowa City and finished my last ever PT school classes. I was so sad to wrap up that stage of my life and to leave my bestfriends but I was also nervous about moving to Chicago because I didn't know anyone there and I had no where to live for the 9 week internship. I contacted a lot of old college friends that I hadn't kept up with and one happened to have a friend that was going on a mission trip to Thailand the exact dates I was in Chicago for my internship so I was able to sublease from her. I was blessed to have an awesome roommate who welcomed me into her super fun group of friends. We had so much fun adventuring and exploring the city and I learned a lot professionally at my clinical!

Then came my next move which seemed a lot more scary because it was way farther away and I knew absolutely no one within a 10+ hr radius, and again I had no idea where I was going to live. I moved to Durham to work at Duke hospital and it turns out that an old neighbor of mine from Ames went to PT school at Duke and she knew of a girl who was also on a PT away clinical and needed a subleaser. I got to move in with 2 girls that I had never met before but they were great and they helped show me how Durham is such a wonderful place. I was able to meet terrific people and families in the area and I absolutely fell in love with NC and also with PT in a neuro rehab setting!

Then my next move was to CO which I was super excited for until 2 months before it was supposed to start when I found out that the clinic I was scheduled to intern with (Steadman Hawkins in Vail) cancelled on me and I had to frantically look for a new internship and find a new living situation. Again, God provided. It turned out that I had very distant relatives that I had never met before that lived 20 mins away from my clinical internship. My empty nester relatives welcomed me with open arms for the 9 weeks I was there. I got to build some amazing relationships with people in Boulder and again learned a ton from my clinical. While living there I also got to build some connections in CO in attempts to eventually land a job there.

Then I took a quick break from the difficult but great moves across the country and I moved back home temporarily. This wasn't necessarily an easy stage though because I had to study for the biggest test of my life...PT BOARDS. I really didn't know if I was going to pass because I've never been a good test taker. During this time I was also applying for jobs because I really wanted to go to Kenya not feeling the pressure of having to apply for jobs over there. I was extremely anxious because I didn't know if I would be able to get a job in the state I hoped and dreamed to work in because over and over again I was told that there were no jobs available for new grads in CO. I applied for a lot of jobs during the time home studying but all of them said no because they needed someone earlier than I could work since I was going to Kenya. I had seriously completely given up on the idea of 1) getting a job before leaving for Kenya becuase I was running out of time and 2) getting a job in CO because I was told it was impossible as a new grad. One day I literally pulled out an atlas and made a list of every place I'd consider working but none of them was as exciting to me as CO. Thankfully I was able to pass my big boards exam and the same day I flew out to CO for an interview at a clinic I had job shadowed once as a student and had left knowing it was my dream job. I didn't have high hopes of getting the job at the interview because they had told me they'd never hired a new grad before because it was a job with big expectations. But a day before getting on the plane for Kenya they called me and offered me the job and I was completely surprised and ecstatic! It was my first PT job interview ever and I had landed my dream job in my dream location! The thing that was so unique about it was that it was after I finally surrendered my plan of getting a job before going to Kenya and finally gave up my dream of living in CO is when God opened up the door for the job. It's when I finally stopped saying "God I need to have a job before I leave and I need to be in CO. You need to make this happen," and I started saying, "God put me where you want me and when you want me there, I trust you."

Then I hopped on the plane to Kenya and I had the most humbling/challenging/rewarding experience of my life that I'm still learning and growing from and trying to process. If you want to know more about the trip then read my blogs from my time there or ask me about it because it was completely life changing. God provided for me in so many ways during my time there but one main way was with my housing situation. My parents left Kenya after two weeks working at the hospital/school and we were told it wasn't safe enough for me to stay in the apartment alone as a single white female so I needed to find another living situation. God provided a wonderful missionary woman who worked at the school up the hill and she had an extra bedroom and she welcomed me in with open arms. I was sick the entire first week I lived with her but she took care of me and encouraged me through some really rough days working at the hospital.

Since I left so quick for Kenya after being offered the job I didn't have time to find housing in Fort Collins and due to the lack of internet and phone service in Kenya I didn't have time to work on it while I was over there. Unfortunately, my start date at work was two days after I got home from Kenya so I didn't have much time margin. 4 days before I was flying home from Kenya my mom was randomly chatting with a family friend and she found out that they had family friends who lived really close to my new job location. She immediately called them and asked if I could live there for 2 weeks before I could find my own housing situation. The family completely took me in and helped me by answering all of my many questions about the new area. They let me stay there for over 2 weeks, 10 of those days being when I was extremely sick with a parasite and really overwhelmed with culture shock.

The 2 weeks of living with them quickly came to an end and I still had no idea where I was going to move in Fort Collins. But again...God is so good and he provides. I thankfully had some amazing friends who were working hard to find me housing. A friend of a friend messaged me and said she was thinking about moving out while at the same time her roommate was talking to the family I was living with at the time and said that she had a room in her apartment opening up. The two girls didn't know they were talking about the same person until right before I showed up to check out the place, haha. I just moved in last weekend when my awesome parents packed up all of my stuff in a Uhaul and drove it out to CO because I didn't have enough time to pack up and move out before my work start date. Now I get to live with 2 awesome young ladies in a great apartment in a perfect location, both close to work and the foothills ; )

Even though I'm overwhelmed with all the adjustments and transitions of another move and I'm still feeling very burdened with being back in the States and not knowing how to process everything I saw and experienced in Kenya, I can't help but give thanks to God for how he has continually provided for me and been faithful during this long period of moves across the country/world. I have moved 6 times to new places and in each place I had no idea where I'd live or who would be in my life to help/encourage me but God knew exactly what I needed and he provided for those needs. And now I am beyond blessed to have my dream job in my dream living location.

I don't know what you're going through right now- you might be struggling with health issues, you might be stuck in never ending school work, you might be facing tough pressure at work, you might be in the middle of relationship problems, you might be having a lot of family conflict, you might be in some really challenging stuff because this life on earth is full of challenges and difficulties but I just pray that you will be encouraged by the beautiful story of provision and faithfulness that God has written in my life and in the lives of everyone.

God provides. And he is always faithful. I encourage you to take time to reflect on how that has been true in your life up until now and also take hope in knowing that his provision and faithfulness will hold true for your future.

(Above picture was taken in Kijabe hospital- my dad did surgery removing the heterotopic ossification from the young female patient who had a burn 10 years previously, and I was privledged to do her PT and re-teach her how to bend her knee and walk. The Kenyan Dr. next to my dad was an ortho resident that my dad got to train and the Kenyan physio on the end was a young physio that I got to work with and train.)

Eyes wide open

This is the last blog I wrote on my trip to Kenya:

When you come here and see the desperate need of the people (and the country as a whole) it is extremely overwhelming and it makes you either want to a) run away because the need is so deep and you don’t even know where to start or b) jump in head first, get your hands dirty and serve.

I have to be completely honest and admit that I usually felt like doing A. I was so overwhelmed with the extreme need that surrounded me that it made me want to run the other direction. I would look around at the poverty, brokenness and corruptness and I didn’t even know how to respond or what to do. I had no idea where to start helping and I didn’t even know if I could even make a slight difference on the people around me. It honestly just made me want to get on a plane and fly home. Thankfully, I didn’t choose A like I often wanted to. I don’t regret choosing option B one bit but the thing is when you jump right in you have to be prepared for what you’re going to see and encounter and how it can change you forever…

When you see things like the slums and the hospitals in a third world country it rocks your world. It makes you want to turn around and pretend that you’ve never seen it and convince yourself that it doesn’t exist. As I write this I’m ashamed to admit that I can’t wait to go home and be safe and comfortable again but the question is…will I actually be able to return to my life of comfort in the US? The answer is I can if I choose to live unchanged. I probably could block everything I saw from my memory and pretend that the last month didn’t happen but I don’t want to. I want to live radically changed by what I saw and experienced.

I feel like God was constantly telling me “Please observe, please listen. Please open your eyes.” So much of our lives are lived with our eyes closed to the world around us. We don’t look the homeless man in the eyes when we walk past him on the streets because we don’t want to see the depth of his brokenness. We don’t drive through the rough parts of the cities because we don’t want to see the poverty that exists in those neighborhoods. I personally didn’t want to walk into the hospital every day because of the overwhelming smell and sights that hit you like a brick wall every time you set a foot in the door.

But here’s the thing- we’re not supposed to live with our eyes closed. Sometimes I wish we could. Honestly, I wish I could unsee the poverty and the severe need at Joy town (school for the disabled kids) and at Kijabe hospital. Now that I’ve seen it I feel this overwhelming sense of obligation to get my hands dirty, jump right in and help. What I’ve been reminded of during my time here is that we’re not supposed to live with our hands clean. I wish we could because it’s easier, it’s more sanitary. (Maybe if I would have stayed  a little bit more “clean/sanitary” I wouldn’t have gotten a bad virus in Kenya and I wouldn’t have brought a little parasite friend back in my intestines to the US.)  But standing back and keeping our hands clean is not how Jesus lived and that’s not how he called us to live either. What would Jesus do in this situation? He’d jump in and get his hands dirty. What did Jesus do during his life here on earth? He washed the dirtiest of feet. He hungout with the sickest of sick and the poorest of poor.

Here are some examples of what living with my eyes open to the need in Kenya looked like…

1)      I didn’t want to keep my “eyes wide open” when I saw the way that the villagers in Kenya poison their children with disabilities because they’re not wanted in those communities. I didn’t want to know that and I didn’t want to see the effect that has on their culture.

2)      I didn’t want to see how so many Kenyan families were starving because the parents had very basic orthopedic injuries, that in the US would be treated very easily, but there they’re not able to be treated, which means they’re not able to work and not able to provide for their families. I didn’t want to see how common this scenario was or how preventable it could be.

3)      I didn’t want to see the kids that have cerebral palsy and can’t come in for any therapy because they don’t have the $5 that is costs for an hour treatment. I saw this on almost a daily basis and it broke my heart every time.

Examples of jumping right in, serving, and getting your hands dirty…

1)      It was hard to “jump right in” when I would have a Kenyan patient that had severe chronic lower back pain and I was the only PT there who could teach her how to do proper core exercises (they don’t learn those in physio school) but she only spoke Swahili. The language barrier was extremely frustrating but I would just jump up on the dirty table with her and show her what to do. (Side note: it was REALLY funny to see the variations of exercises they came up with while trying them for the first time)

2)       It was hard to serve at the orphanage when literally you have kids pulling on each of your extremities and jumping on the front and back of you at the same time and you kinda just want to have your “bubble” again…Don’t get me wrong this was AWESOME because I loved those kiddos to pieces but there’s a point that you just need some personal space.

3)       It was hard to choose to “get my hands dirty” when I had patients who came in both smelling and looking like they hadn’t showered for months and having to treat their broken foot that they had been walking on the red dirt clay barefoot on every day. I wish I could say that it was easy to ignore the smell and begin treatment with no problem but it wasn’t. It was very difficult. (but so worth it!)

Here’s my challenge: go get outside of your comfortable life and see/do something challenging and let it radically change you. Go to a homeless shelter and serve food. Go to a house of residents with physical and mental disabilities and play games with them. The first step to meeting needs this world has is to go see the needs of this world. Open your eyes to the world around you. You never see the need if you never get out of the daily routine that you live your life in. We were not meant to live small and comfortable lives. Even though home in the US is where I want to be more than anything else right now, if I just remain in my nice house then I will be ignoring the need around me and refusing the change that God is trying to take part in my heart.

I feel partly like a hypocrite because as I write this I’m on a plane going back to the US. And honestly I don’t know if I’m going back to Kenya. I would like to but I don’t know what God has it store for my future. But wherever it is and whatever I will be doing I can’t turn a blind eye to the needs of this world any longer. I’ve seen the desperate need that exists.  I saw it at Joy town, I saw it at Kijabe hospital, and I saw it all over Kenya. But it doesn’t need to be Kenya. Although there is much need in this country of Kenya there is also so much need beyond it as well. Look outside your backyard fence. Where is the need? Who is in need? What is the need? And what are we going to do about it? 

Open your eyes and see the need. And then jump right in and get your hands dirty.

 

 

(Comment: This is a message God has written on my heart and I am the first to humbly admit that I need to have it spoken to my heart more than anyone else because I fail at this and constantly need God’s grace and forgiveness and I need his reminders to live this out on a daily basis.)

Relational beings

I’ve found out that I can use the same strategy in Kenya as I do in the US in order to make friends… I cook and bake for them ; ) Unfortunately, cooking and baking is way more of a challenge here so it takes more time and sacrifice and I can’t get as fancy with the cooking dishes and the cakes. I frequently brought in treats to the physios in attempts to “suck up” to them and show them that I wanted to be their friend. They LOVE white cake so the first week I made that and they devoured the whole pan amongst 7 of them. Then the following weeks I decided to bring them “American” foods that they had never experienced before. The cooking and baking worked well because we have all become good friends but unfortunately the “sucking up” also caused me to get into another really awkward situation. The physio who told me a couple weeks ago that he was going to ask my dad for my hand in marriage brought up the topic of marriage again. The whole physio staff had gone to visit a staff member who was sick (she served us porridge and their version of coffee cake in her little house I described in my previous blog) and we were all sitting down chatting and eating when in front of everyone the physio asked me “What do you think of you and I getting married? You are so busy so the only place I can ask you is here in front of the rest of them...” Yikes, that was an awkward question! Thankfully the rest of the physios there were laughing so I was able to play it off.

This week I decided to have the physio staff to the house that I’ve been staying at in order to properly thank them for the last month we’ve spent together. (The first two weeks I stayed in the hospital housing with my parents and the condition were really poor. I was blessed the last two weeks in that I got to move up the hill to Rift Valley Academy, a boarding school for missionary kids throughout Africa. I lived with a really sweet single woman counselor who let me stay in her extra bedroom.) The area the house is in is really nice and the physios called it “Little America” when they arrived. They had never been there before because it’s a gated community and they were so excited when getting the tour of it! I had to meet them at the gate to let them in and then we made the moderately steep climb up the hill to the house I live and I seriously thought the physios weren’t going to make it up. We had to stop and take breathing rest breaks every few minutes because they were so tired and out of breath. The walk ended up taking 30 mins (usually takes me only 10 mins) and they literally collapsed on the couches panting when we arrived. (This is the reason why I’m trying to get the exercise classes to continue after I leave…even the physios themselves can benefit from it!) Once we arrived the feast and the laughing began. I brought out all of the snacks that my family had brought from home and they were so intrigued with them and they were so happy that they literally laughed the entire evening. I wanted to bake an American treat for them but there are very limited supplies in Kijabe village so the easiest thing for me to make was chocolate peanut butter no bake cookies and they LOVED them. (It was really entertaining because they actually took the no bake cookies and dipped them in the almonds and popcorn and ate it all together- very humorous to watch!) The Kenyans were especially intrigued with the almonds because they’d never had them before. They also loved the raspberry lemonade. We enjoyed a night of laughter, food and fun together. When the night was coming to an end they asked me if I would stay forever with them at Kijabe hospital forever…and then they asked me again if I would marry the physio in the dept (he was right there with us which again created an awkward situation).

The thing that I am most reminded of with all of these interactions in Kenya is that although there are many cultural differences between Kenya and America and there are LOTS of difference between Kenyan and American healthcare and PT, both groups of people have the same primary need and desire for one thing. Relationships. For Kenyans the most important thing in life is the relationships that they have. For most Americans I know I would say the same thing. I know that personally relationships are what I cherish most in this world.

Because relationships are what Kenyans value most I quickly realized the thing that the Kenyans appreciated most about me wasn’t my PT knowledge or my white skin. It was that I wanted to get to know them and I spent time and effort doing so. I was reminded this week that I didn’t go to Kenya just to give lectures and in-services. I didn’t just go to Kenya to lead chapels. (Side note: this morning I got thrown into 3 of the above. 7:30am lecture to the whole nursing staff on total hip precautions because the patients keep dislocating in the wards due to mismanagement. 8am devotions to nursing school students- they told me to “preach the word” giving me only a 5 min warning. 8:30am in-service to physio staff on bilateral amputees. BUSY MORNING!) I didn’t go to Kenya for the Safari or for the beautiful landscape views of the Rift Valley. I went for one sole purpose…to build relationships.

When I first arrived at the hospital I had a hard time adjusting because I wanted to make a difference and completely revolutionize the way they do PT and help them make the necessary changes that I thought they needed. Throughout the time I’ve been here I’ve been looking for ways to help and different avenues to bring about change. I tried my best to do all this but I know that I epically failed. I really think that very little changes will be implemented after I leave. Even though I gave over 25 in-services/lectures and everyone seemed very enthusiastic about them at the time I’ve heard from missionary medical professionals that long term change is hard to come by here. A lot of them come back year after year because the love Kijabe but they’ve noticed that when they come back things are just the same as when they had left a year before even though they tried to implement a positive change it wasn’t enforced. However, I am VERY proud to announce that my first ever recorded exercise class exists on a DVD at Kijabe hopsital. I have been asked by dozens of people in college and grad school to film my classes and post on youtube so that they can watch and do the exercises but I’ve never done it before. It brings me SUCH great pleasure that the only ones ever recorded are in a tiny village in Kenya that I love so much. I don’t know if they’ll be used or if the exercise class I started will continue but I hope and pray so. They say it’s going to ; )

I have been thinking about the book “Purpose Driven Life” and although it’s been a long time since I’ve read it I always remember how it talks about how relationships are the sole purpose for our life, the reason God made us. I so strongly believe this. If I wouldn’t have made relationships with the physios or other medical staff I worked with then I would have had a horrible time in Kenya and it all would have been all worthless.

I’m so very thankful for the relationships I made at Kijabe. Sadly, I don’t know if I’ll ever see my Kenyan friends again. I hope to but either way I am very thankful for the relationships I made with them. They have changed and impacted me and I hope I’ve done the same on them.

Today when I was saying my goodbyes all the physios went around in a circle and shared with me what they appreciated about me and how much they had enjoyed our time together. They said the nicest things to me and told me that I was forever a part of them. At the end they all prayed a blessing over me. (In it they included that I would get married soon- they’re seriously desperate for me which is completely ridiculous!) Although they shed tears at our goodbye we also shared laughter (at least I laughed a lot) because they had framed the certificate I had won at the Kijabe race a few weeks back and they placed it in the bare walled physio room and they also took turns wearing the medal I won saying that they’re going to wear it until they day I return to Kijabe.

My heart is overflowing today. Isn’t it wonderful that God has made us to be relational beings? In every place I’ve lived over the past year I’ve been reminded over and over again that people are worth investing in. All relationships are worth pouring into, no matter what location they take place in or how long they last.

JOY Town

One of the most life changing and eye opening experiences of my life was my trip to Joy Town this week. Joy Town is a boarding school run by the Salvation Army that has 300 physically and mentally handicapped kids. The requirement is that all kids accepted into Joy Town have a physical disability that requires at least 2 physiotherapy sessions a week. There is only one school that focuses on helping these kids with disabilities in Kenya and that is Joy Town and there is only one main hospital that primarily focuses on treating these patients with hydrocephalus and spina bifida, etc. in Kenya and that is Bethany Kids (part of Kijabe hospital.)  3.5% of Kenyan’s 40+ million have disabilities, which means that at least 1,400,000 throughout Kenya are not receiving the quality medical treatment and care that they both need and deserve.

The cost of Joy Town is low in American standards, 13,000 shillings for room and board all year, which is equivalent to $150. (This price can unfortunately be too expensive for most Kenyan families.) The school is from grades 1-8 and following 8^th grade they take a National examination which either places them in high school or vocational school. (About 50% of students get high enough scores to continue on with their high school educations. The administration told me that increasing this percentage is an important goal of theirs!)

The administration at Joy Town has huge vision and they want to build a rehab center, not just for the kids within the walls of the school, but for other kids with disabilities as well. They have such a need for this! For example, 200 kids apply to the Joy Town school every year and unfortunately they are not able to take more than ~40 per year due to lack of funds. That leaves thousands of other Kenyan kids with physical and mental disabilities that need more rehabilitation and care.  Right now they are only able to open the rehab doors for outsiders to come to the physio clinic once every 5 weeks, which is not even close to enough therapy for kids with disabilities.

The other huge vision they have for Joy Town is having an orthopedic/prosthetic workshop but again they lack the funds and resources, as well as the education in these areas. All of these kids need assistive devices, wheelchairs, etc. made specifically for them but that is not possible due to the reasons listed above. Thankfully, they do end up with donated wheelchairs or walkers of some sort, however, they are very worn and weathered and can be very hard to fit properly for the kids.

I’ve mentioned in a previous blog that having a disability has a very bad “stigma” in Kenya. Often the child with cleft lip, hydrocephalus, spina bifida, CP (or really any type of physical or mental disability) will be abandoned by the father for sure, and usually the mother as well, because it’s really hard for a single mother to make the cost of medical bills on her own. These children can be found abandoned in bushes or killed by poison frequently because it reflects poorly on the family to have a child with disabilities. The Kenyan villagers are rooted in their false beliefs that these disabilities are caused by their own families’ sin and it is shameful for their family to show these kids in public.

One of the physio assistant’s name at Joy Town is Francesca and she has an amazing story that I want to share briefly with you. Because no one in her village understood what disability meant they thought she was a curse so her family when she was born so they had planned to soak her in poison like they did to the rest of the infants that had disabilities in their village. Thankfully her mom’s heart was softened by Francesca and she ran away with her as a baby before any damage could be done. Even though her life was spared, Francesca had a very hard childhood because of her undiagnosed spina bifida. It was very challenging for her to walk and she had no friends because she had no bladder control and had frequent accidents at school and home. She would often be abandoned by her mother and other caretakers that were put in charge because she was “too much of a hassle”. As an adolescent Francesca thought it was better for her to die than to live because she had been told that by numerous people in her life and she had continuously been abandoned for long periods of time. She tried to take poison twice in attempts to take her own life but God had way bigger plans for her than to die as an adolescent. Soon after the failed suicide attempts Francesca was taken to Bethany Kids at Kijabe Hospital by a distant relative. There she was told for the first time about her spina bifida. Also, there she was informed for the first time that she was loved by God. Throughout her time there her infections were treated, she was taught how to self cath so she could control her bladder for the first time ever and she received splints that helped her ambulate better. On top of all of that the best part is that her and the rest of her family, including her Dad and some of her siblings, came to know the Lord. The miracle of Francesca’s story has continued as she is now married and has a child. Her husband and her work full time at Joy Town. Francesca feels that her main purpose there is to share with the kids that they are loved and very special in God’s eyes and just because they have a disability doesn’t mean that God doesn’t have great plans for their lives. I am so thankful that I was able to meet Francesca and see the amazing emotional, physical, and spiritual influence that she plays in those precious kids’ lives. 

The thing that is crazy at Joy Town is that the kids have so much JOY. The joy emanates from every child and in seen in every worker that interacts with the children. The classrooms aren’t big enough for the students to bring in their wheelchairs so they all park their wheelchairs outside and get on the ground in order to crawl inside to their desks. When it is break/lunch time they crawl back to their chairs outside and the ones that are able to walk (some even with walkers) push the ones who need help wheeling up and down the hills. (Remember that these kids are between the ages of 7-15 so they’re not crawling as infants might.) Their teamwork and companionship is amazing. There’s no way that you can see them create a long train filing outside the classroom, helping one another, and not be brought to tears. The amount of challenges that those kids face every day is unfathomable for all of us. I cannot even begin to imagine the difficulties that they have to undergo. But there they are just smiling, laughing, hugging, talking, playing, and helping one another. That’s JOY that very few of us know anything about. I feel so blessed that I got to see a glimpse of it.

The need at Joy Town is overwhelming. They need prayers. They need funds and financial resources. They need people to come educate communities and villages that disability does not equal shame and there are treatments they can give to save these beautiful children of God. They need people to come love on the kids. They need teachers. (They have government teachers working there and they are extremely understaffed and underpaid for the amount of work they do.) They need special education teachers because they do not have specialized training for this. They need PTs and OTs. (For 300 kids who all undergo physio at least 2x/week they have 3 physios! Can you imagine how busy that would be?!? They specifically need someone who is educated in aquatherapy because they actually got the funds donated for a therapy pool so they have one but none of their physios are educated on how to use the pool for therapy with kids. If I could have stayed there longer or if I get to go back then I would love to help them in this area because aquatherapy can be very effective for kids since they usually hate regular land based therapy but they love the water and don’t realize that they are undergoing therapy when they’re in it.) They need orthotists and prosthetists since those professions don’t exist in Kenya. They need speech therapists. (The whole country of Kenya only has 2 SLPs- one of them does only academic research and the other lives across the country.) They need audiologists. (For ~40 million people in Kenya they have 2 audiologists- one of them is a new friend of mine who just moved to Kijabe this year from Texas to start the first ever audiology program at Kijabe hospital. She’s a courageous pioneer in the field of audiology in Kenya and her job is so rewarding because kids from all over the country come to hear for the first time in their life!) They need groups to come paint and build at the school. (Right now they only have 3 of the 11 bathrooms that are handicap accessible. All of them need to be handicap accessible since all of the kids at the school are handicapped). They need nurses to come train and work with the kids. (Over 60 of the kids have spinal cord injuries or spina bifida and don’t have bladder control so they need to be taught in self cath methods).

I could go on and on about the needs at Joy Town. If you want to help in any way or if you are interested in finding out more info I encourage you to go to the website and have a look for yourself. And of course feel free to talk to me if you have any questions about it! I’ll be posting the rest of the pictures from my day there soon ; )

What a life changing experience that I’m beyond thankful for. May I never forget those precious smiles and may I continue to pray for the Joy Town community. And someday I hope and pray that I can live with just 1/10^th as much joy as those kids do.

If you’re interested in watching Francesca’s story on youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8pKrOYXJ1KY

Count your blessings

I feel like I experience a glimpse of heaven every time that I go to the church in Kijabe. They always have lots of singing, dancing, and clapping. It is so fun to see all the school and church choirs perform during the service because they get so into the music. They aren’t afraid of what people in the crowd think about them so they let themselves really get into the music.  It is evident while surveying the church crowd that the Kenyans really love to praise the Lord with their whole hearts, souls, and minds.  Often I have found myself asking the question, “How can these people sing and talk about gratitude for hours when they have so little?” There’s a lot I think that we can and should learn from them in this.

A really neat thing about working with the physio department here is that every morning before we start treating patients we take ~30 mins to sing a hymn or two and then read some scripture. Someone different leads the hymn and devotion every day and it is really interesting to hear what scripture they share and what they have to say about it. Some get really into the “sermon” and they start talking so fast that I don’t even know what they’re saying even though they’re speaking English! The hymns can be pretty humorous to sing together because they sing very loud and they pronounce words very different then we do so a lot of times my voice is very easy to pick out!

I’ve gotten to lead the hymns and scripture sharing often since being here and it’s been neat to get to share that time together and start our days in that way. One day I got to choose the hymn and we sang “Count your blessings” and I shared with them how it is a very special song because my wonderful extended family sings it every Thanksgiving. I shared with the physio staff how I admire how they count their blessings and thank the Lord for all of their earthly and eternal blessings. For example, my  friend in the physio dept, Rose, has been working at the hospital for 30 years and she had planned on retiring by this time in her life. Unfortunately, 5 years ago her house (along with many other hospital employees’ houses) burned down and she lost everything that she had ever owned. Of course there is no insurance here or anything so she now lives in a tin house about the size of my ½ of my bedroom back home. Despite the situation she is very thankful for her house and she is very proud of it. To my surprise the other day she was able to fit all 7 of us physios in there to serve us cake and porridge for a social gathering after work! (it was a veryyy tight squeeze ; ) )

In addition to our morning physio staff devotions, on Wednesdays the whole hospital staff has chapel where there are several songs and a message shared by one of the hospital’s chaplains. This has been neat to be a part of and to see that the hospitals main focus is “compassionate based healthcare for God.” Even though the hospital has such limited funding and see’s so much illness, disease, and death it is incredibly powerful to see the entire hospital staff continue to come before the Lord, praising him with thankful hearts.

Daily here I am humbly reminded of how I want to live like them in this way.  I have been trying to put the “thankful heart” into action since arriving but it is tested on a minute by minute basis. It is tested in little ways like when the electricity, water and internet don’t work. It has been tested over the past week with being really sick. But it has also been tested in big ways. It has been very difficult to be thankful when I am extremely overwhelmed with the patients that come in and how little we can do for them because their injuries/diseases are at such a late stage and the resources are so limited. One of them is a 2 year old who had meningitis and now has cystic fibrosis. She has spasticity in all four limbs and she was abandoned by her mother so now her grandmother cares for her but is in poor health and has no funds to provide medical care. Another example is a ~30 year old man who had a hip fracture over one year ago and he has walked with crutches since then and he is not able to complete a straight leg raise, a clamshell, or prone leg extension because he has never regained any strength in that leg. He was either never told to do his exercises or he never came back to physiotherapy to get instructions for them…either way it’s really sad to think about how preventable this man’s last year hobbling around on crutches, not able to work or provide for his family, could have been if he would have been properly educated and treated. There is story after story like this and it can become very discouraging. And last one, a 25 year old who had a traumatic brain injury a year ago in a motor vehicle accident. He was “treated” by lying in bed for the whole past year and his family has not had any instruction on how to prevent contractures or bed wounds. I could seriously go on and on with these stories. But I need to constantly remind myself that these Kenyans I work and live with have millions of things that they could complain about but they don’t. Instead they are thankful.

Today, I am thankful to be here even though it was honestly a really bad day at the hospital. I also am thankful that I am learning how to have a thankful heart here even though it has not been easy and I fail at it all the time. Even today after I write this blog I have to be truthful and admit that I spent almost the entire day in the hospital being frustrated and wanting to complain about so many different things. I definitely failed to have a thankful heart the majority of my day. But I’m going to keep trying. Please keep me accountable in this mission and also I encourage you to try it yourself ; )

Let’s go count our blessings and live with thankful hearts!

1 Thessalonians 5:18 “Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.”

Meet Nancy!!!

A lot of people told me that they were predicting I would come back from my trip with a Kenyan baby. As much as I would LOVE to physically bring an adorable Kenyan little one back to the States, the government unfortunately won't let me do that. So instead I have chosen the alternative option...I'm coming back with a precious Kenyan toddler in my heart.

Meet Nancy.

(Nancy on the swing at Naomi's Village)

 

Nancy was born in 2010 to a father that was never around and a mother who was an alcoholic. When Nancy was an infant her mom would disappear everynight and leave Nancy's 3 year old sister, Rosemary, to care for herself and her baby sister. On one of those nights the steaming hot pot of chai tea that Rosemary was trying to pour for herself (because her mother had left) tipped and the scalding tea fell on top of Nancy at the age of 9 months old. All of Nancy's right side, trunk and arm, were burned deeply. No one came to rescue the girls even though they cried all the way through the night. The next morning their mother staggered in still drunk and found Nancy with third degree burns over 1/4th of her body and very near death. The skin peeled off of Nancy’s side and arm when her mother picked her up and they ran for the nearest road to find a ride to the hospital. Nancy was in the hospital for a week and once she returned home, her burn wounds got worse because her mom did not have the understanding, supplies, or maturity to care for them.  Her mom started drinking more and more after feeling the guilt of the accident. Infection started to set in on the burns and if a visiting relative would not have come by then Nancy would have died. Nancy was thankfully given proper treatment for the infection at the hospital, and her mother was sentenced to 2 years prison.

 

(Above picture shows the burns on Nancy's arm and hand)

Both daughters went to prison with their mother to continue to be raised there by her. They spent 2 years of their childhoods locked inside the prison walls. In April 2013, their mother was released from prison. She unfortunately started drinking right after being released and she knew relatives would catch on so she left the girls in half-built houses and abandoned buildings all night, ignoring their pleas and cries as she left to drink until sunrise.  This went on for 7 months before a friend found out about her secret and threatened to turn her in to the police. Faced with the choice of keeping her kids or continuing drinking, she abandoned the two little girls at a friend’s house and took flight for good and has not been found since.  The girls were sent to live with an uncle in a 7×7 ft shack but their uncle could not provide for them there and child services soon contacted Naomi's Village and the girls both moved there in mid-January 2014.

(Nancy the first time she got to try on the dress-up clothes)

 

Exactly one month after Nancy had arrived at Naomi's village I had the opportunity to go visit the orphanage with my mom. My heart was broken hearing the children's stories but at the same time I fell in love with all of the precious kids. One of the first questions I asked the family that runs the orphanage was "Do any of your kids have disabilities and need PT?" And they immediately responded by describing how one of their newest family members, Nancy, had bad burn contractures and would be needing lots of medical procedures and PT to get movement back in her trunk and arm. After my visit to the orphanage I started praying about sponsoring a child from Naomi's village because I believe in their mission and vision of raising up godly Kenyan leaders and I want to play whatever small role I can in that.

This week I decided to sponsor Nancy and she knows me as "Auntie Anna." I had the opportunity to go visit the orphanage again today and I got to play with precious 3 year old Nancy. She has a beautiful smile and a fantastic laugh! She loves playing with my long blonde hair and putting it on top of her head and pretending like its hers and laughing hysterically. She wanted to be held and carried or have me hold her hand the majority of the day. She needed some help with eating because it is very hard for her to use her contractured right hand. (I'm actually impressed with how well she has learned to use it despite the severity of the burn contracture.)  We got to do a lot of swinging outside and play a lot of games with the other adorable kiddos. She loves high fives and she also liked to "pound". My heart is overflowing with love for Nancy and all of the other kids at Naomi's Village. I feel so blessed for the time I have been able to spend there at the village and with my precious Nancy!

(Nancy playing with the toys today at Naomi's Village)

 

I plan on playing a role in Nancy's life in several ways: 1) I want to pray for her often. The surgeries and treatment she will have to undergo will be excruciatingly painful and I want to pray that it will go well and that she will feel God's peace and love through the whole process. 2) I want to skype and facetime with her. They let the sponsors do that and I seriously can't wait to see her precious face on my screen ; ) 3) I think that my family will be coming back to this hospital and village again and I look forward to seeing her again someday and having my family meet her as well!

-Everyday 700 kids become orphans in Kenya. Naomi's Village is trying to help these orphans and they now provide a home to 50 orphans all under the age of 13 from all over Kenya. They need sponsorship for all of their children so if you are interested at all in becoming part of this process then please check out the website/facebook page or email me if you have any questions about it! http://naomisvillage.org/. https://www.facebook.com/NaomisVillage#!/NaomisVillage

 

PS- if you recognize the name Naomi's village it's because I wrote about it in my "Story of Elisha" blog! It's so neat to see how all of our stories have been weaved together!

Happy Birthday Mom!

Some days like today I wonder what I’m doing here in Kenya. The last five days I have been really sick and I’ve been trying to push through at work in order to teach the physios, give my in-services, help patients, and teach the exercise classes but my body is just hating me and I feel like crap. In addition, there have been so many patients that have come into the hospital and clinic recently that have broken my heart. I could go on and on describing their illnesses and diseases but it just makes me too sad to even talk about right now. On days like this I need encouragement and who do I get it from? My mom. Yes, I am almost 25 years old but I still love my mom more than anything and I still need her in my life more than ever before. She more than anyone else knows how to speak right to my heart so I dedicate this blog to her for her birthday ; )

My mom is my hero for a lot of reasons. First of all, she's one of the most selfless and loving women I have ever met. She has given up so much of her time and energy to help me throughout my life. I know there were countless sacrifices she made for my brothers and I growing up but I can't help focusing on all of the ones she's had to make most recently.  I think she thought it would get easier to raise me with time but I've actually become more difficult since I've moved to 5 new places since May (going on 6 here in 10 days) and with each move comes uncertainty and difficulty with transition and who do I call and vent to? My mom. It was so wonderful to have her in Kenya with my dad. She worked at the Rift Valley Academy near the hospital and the kids there absolutely LOVED her and they get so excited when they find out that I’m Mrs. Greenwald’s daughter! But she also played full-time role of encourager and cheerleader for my dad and I when we would come home from the hospital complaining and grumbling about our tough days working in a 3^rd world country hospital. Not only that but of course she’d have all of our water filtered/boiled so we could drink it and she would have the fruits/vegetables soaking in bleach so we could prepare dinner together. I’ve been struggling to survive on my own without my parents here!

My mom not only loves me well but there are so many ladies and families in the community that she loves as well. Her schedule is always full of such good things and all of the activities involve using her gifts to help others. She's a wonderful listener. A wonderful encourager. A wonderful supporter. A wonderful mentor. My mom is a mentor to a lot of young women and moms and she is excellent at it. Sometimes I can’t help but think what my life would be like if I would have listened to my mom’s advice all the time? I probably would have been sick way less time, stressed way less about school grades and shed fewer tears from broken relationships.

That leads me to my second point, my mom is so wise. She is such a talented writer and she is full of so much wisdom from so many books! I love it when she shares quotes and/or themes from books with me and speaks truth into my life through them. I’m reading a book that my mom recommended to me called “It’s Your Call” and in it there’s a quote that states “Jesus came with a mission and a purpose --  to bring life to others.” Then the author, Gary Barkalow, goes on to describe how we are supposed to do the same thing. My mom does an excellent job of this. She is “life giving” to me and the rest of my family as well as the other people in her life.

Third of all, my mom values the most important relationship in her life more than anything else. She loves and serves the Lord with her whole heart and she spends quality time with the Lord every day. She listens to the Lord on a regular basis and because of that she is able to give such wise counsel.  My mom is continually seeking out her calling from the Lord and is constantly spending time with God in order to find out His will for her.

I really hope and pray that one day I can be as humble, wise, gracious, and loving as my mother!