Prayer Requests

-I will be shadowing Danae because she is an OB-GYN. I want to be an OB-GYN, so it makes sense to learn all I can from her. However, as I explained in a previous post Danae is like a dynamite. I pray she doesn't bite my head off when she explodes.

-Appo (one of the Bere boys) has giardia and typhoid, Allah (another Bere boy) has typhoid and malaria, and Tammy has typhoid. The common sickness is typhoid.  How and why did this happen? Tchadians don't use toilet paper. Germs spread via the fecal-oral route and typhoid is contracted. GROSS!! I pray that everyone feels better and that the Bere boys learn to wash their hands after using the bathroom, so no one else gets sick. 

-Project 21 is a great program and can do great things. However, we will run out of funds by December... I'm praying for a miracle. I know money will come in with the Lord's help. 

- One of the babies in the baby formula program came to the hospital with an open clavicle and tibia fracture. His parents waited a full week before taking him to the hospital!! Now he has a massive infection.  I pray that he will heal quickly. 

- Mundon Justin landed on his head when he dove into the river.  Honestly, it made no sense why he dove. Everyone, including him, knew it was shallow. Anyways, currently he is wearing a neck brace because he has no feeling in his neck. His face is a little scratched up too, but his neck is obviously the concern. Bere doesn't have a MRI, so we don't know how damaged his spine is. 

-Pray that I will continue to walk in the way of the Lord. I pray that I don't become callused to all the hardship here.  I want God to use me all He wants. Pray that when He leads I will follow, no matter where he leads.  

- Pray for my health as well. The scalp infection I had at the beginning of the trip is still plaguing me.  I took Amoxy for 17 days, but it never went away. The unceasing itching and oozing toned down and almost stopped on day 9. However, it never completely healed. About a week after I stopped taking Amoxy the bumps returned with a vengeance. The itching was bareable, but the pain was immense. It got to the point were I couldn't put my hair in a pony tail, even if I wrapped the band once.  I would get excruciating pressure headaches from the slightest bump or touch. Sleeping became very difficult.  Next, I tried doxy. It worked wonders. The pain left within 4 days and the itching stopped. My lymph nodes drastically decreases as well. By the end of my prescription all of the symptoms were gone. All I needed to do was wait for the bumps to go away.  They laid dormate for weeks and I didn't think they would be a problem. Maybe they weren't a problem and the infection was hiding elsewhere. Nevertheless, after finishing 15 days of doxy my infection came back within 2 days. Instead of many painful bumps there is only one that is causing me a world of trouble. The headaches are so horrendous it hurts to chew. I don't want to do anything... Currently, I am on doxy again. Pray that this time the doxy will completely wipe out the bacteria.  

- Lastly, continue to pray for everyone else.  I continuously pray for all of you, and I hope you are doing the same too. 

Life and Death - Part 1

Today I was supposed to go to the river, but instead I was called into the hospital.  Danae wanted help in maternity. The hospital doesn't have an oxytocin pump, so I had to monitor the drops. I had my swimsuit under my scrubs ready to burst out of the hospital and jump into the river.  It was over 100 degrees inside, but I managed to stay focused anyway.

For two hours I watched the oxytocin. Second by second, drip by drip, nothing was happening. Although the patient had been on the drip for 6 hours, she only had a few sporadic contractions. We had been trying to induce her for seven days. The patient had already lost many babies due to chronic hypertension. Danae chose to induce labor because she was determined to save this child. Sadly, the baby died last night. 

While I was making sure the solution stayed in cadence, another lady was rushed in with a TBA close behind her. She had contractions 4 minutes apart. I didn't speak enough French to understand what was going on. So, I did what the doctor ordered and counted the drops.  

It was so sad watching the lady.  She was  heartbroken over losing her child. The other lady screaming due to labor pains didn't help the situation. Even the sound of a baby crying set her over the edge.

When the medication was complete, the IV was removed and the lady left the room. (Apparently, the nurses were supposed to give me another drip until she was in active labor. They didn't do what they we supposed to and Danae got really mad at them). I was about to leave as well. However, the head nurse stopped me and told me to put on gloves. She wanted me to assist in delivering the baby. 

It was me and the nurse. I tried not to panic as we prepared the delivery kit.  Let's be real, the previous delivery I watched was already prepared. The nurses worked quickly and efficiently.  It was so fast that I couldn't see every little detail that took place. To top things off, last time I was solely observing. Now, I was actually catching the baby!!

After waiting about half an hour the baby was born. The nurse clamped and cut the the umbilical cord then handed the child to me. It was a health baby girl. Thank God she wasn't in distress. (That means the nurse did all the hard work). By the time I finished cleaning off the baby Danae came back and told the nurse I was a newbie. So the nurse starting teaching me. She tried to explain what to do in simple French for the next delivery. I actually understood most of it, and learned a lot. Next time, I'll be even more ready!

Pictures!!

This is a picture from our family planning demonstration.  We had people demonstrate the proper way of using and disposing of a condom. Many people use the condom and throw it on the floor.  Curious children pick up the condom and are exposed to HIV and other STDs.

This is me on the drunk horse during the Kouroume celebration.

Look how many people are there!! It was so dusty.

The dance floor during the Kouroume celebration.

Project 21 in our african outfits. From left to right it is Daniel, Josh, Me, Charis, and Zach.

Look what we get to pull. Every Wednesday we have people come in with teeth like this.

These Arab boys were so adorable. You often see little boys all the way to grown men holding hand here. It isn't because they are homosexual. It is because they are friends.

I braided Josh's hair!!

We spent the day at Naomi's house and learned to cook like a Tchadian woman. We pounded, grinded, chopped and mix for hours, but the food was great.

This is my thrid grade class. We decorated the classroom after this picture was taken, but I haven't taken another picture yet.

Normalization

Things are becoming more normal now. It may be that I am getting used to everything Tchad has to offer, but it is starting to get hard to find unusual things to write about.  I have a set schedule and distinct tasks that need to be finished. But for now, I've got a few things that I still find unusual/ news-worthy.

Finally, after being here for over two months I swam in the river. The first time was on Sabbath, after we taught branch Sabbath school. I didn't bring my bathing suit (I wasn't told we were going swimming this time...well they didn't tell me in advance), so I planned  to watch the Bere boys enjoy the river.  I guess that wasn't a good enough excuse because Allah (one of the Bere boys) pushed me in. The most surprising moment of that trip was when Tony (another Bere boy) pushed Josh in the river.  Tony is EXTREMELY quiet and shy. I wasn't surprised when Allah pushed me in, but Tony?! That was unexpected for sure.  

The next river trip was a Project 21 trip. The trip was suppose to be a bonding time for Zach, Charis, Josh, Daniel, and I. Charis got sick the day before, so she didn't want to go. Therefore, it was just me and the boys.

The trail leading to the river is very sandy. I was riding the moto with Josh and we almost fell because of the sand. After we regained balance the bike broke down.  We had to push it all the way back to Bere. In the end I decided to stay, while the guys rode to the river.  That meant 3 guys on a small little moto. (We only have two motos). It was a sight to see. 

Four hours later they come back carrying the break from the moto. Apparently, the sand wasn't what got the best of them.  It was a cart being pulled by cows.  The wagon took up the whole path and there was no way around it. Zach, who was the driver, tried to pull to the side of the rode but revved the engine by mistake. The bike took off and they crashed into a tree.  It wasn't until later that they realized the break was missing.

In total they fell four times and crashed once.  They were determined to make it to the river. They rode to the river, swam, and rode back without a break.  Thank God the only injuries acquired on the trip were one wounded toe and a small Tchadian tattoo (a burn from the exhaust pipe).

In other news, I was finally able to get into the hospital. Well, I was always in the hospital, but I was able to watch a delivery. The woman in labor had already had four children and was trying to bring the fifth into the world.  It was pretty cool to watch.  We broke her water, waited, waited some more, and then waited a bit more.  The baby was supposed to be in a little distress because there was poop in the amniotic fluid, but things didn't get hectic.  We waited 45 minutes AFTER she was fully dilated, then she quickly pushed out a baby girl. After aspirating the infant and beating it a bit the baby started crying.  

I also got to play doctor with a TBA (traditional birth attendant) and a CHWs (community health worker) in Project 21. Two different people approached me with different problems.  The CHW was practicing taking blood pressure on his mother and found out that she had extremely high blood pressure. He brought her to me to double check his work.  The TBA had a large mass in her left breast.  Although you can easily spot the mass from a mile away she made me palpate her breast. She wanted to ensure I fully understood what was going on. Honestly, all I could do was check her vitals and send them to the hospital. I'm not a doctor. (The TBA ended up having breast cancer). 

The teaching aspect of my trip has been going well too.  I have been teaching my host family English while they teach me French.  They are learning so fast.  First, we review, then color two pages in the coloring book and name all the animals on the pages.  They love it.  Between that and gymnastics, I do something with them every night.  

The students at school are wonderful too. Every time they see me they shout my name or sing one of the songs I taught them.  They are always bragging to their friends because they have a nasara teaching them English.

Wow. After writing all of this I realize there is still a lot to write about! There is always something new and fun happening. However, these occurrences don't seem as drastic or surprising as they used too. 

Preparing for Battle

"The horse is prepared against the day of battle: but safety is of the Lord." (Proverbs 21:31 KJV)

Durng my nightly devotion I came across the verse above. It didn't strike me as something special or meaningful in my life. Let's be real, I would have missed the relevance of this verse if it wasn't for the Life Application side of my parallel study Bible. This is what it had to say about the verse:

"This proverb refers to preparing for battle. All our preparation for any task is useless without God. But even with God's help we still must do our part and prepare. His control of the outcome does not negate our responsibilities. God may want you to produce a great book, but you must learn to write. God may want you in foreign missions, but you must learn the language. God will accomplish his purposes, and He will be able to use you if you have done your part by being well prepared." 

Wow. I would joke with the other SMs saying, "I learned a little French before coming here, but now I stopped learning." It is a sad, but true statement. When I got here I knew more French then any other SM. Now, we are all on the same level. I have almost moved backwards because I never use my French. 

The reason I don't use French is not due to lack of exposure. I am in and out of the hospital everyday, I play with my host family and the Bere boys, I try to do all that I can with the community. I haven't learned French because I am scared. I may know enough words to get my point across, but they never leave my lips. I make motions as I try to say the words, however, they understand the motions before the words come out. 

I stopped studying and learning although I really want to have conversations with everyone. I would blame this person and that person for the lack. The lack of work, the lack of exposure, the lack of anything and everything. I'm not saying I was complaining the whole time, but I have been really frustrated. I like to stay busy and feel useful, but everything in Tchad relies on someone else. 

This verse threw the blame back into my face. In all reality, I would have more work if I learned the system enough to start something on my own. Nobody is stopping me. I would have more exposure if I knew the language enough to speak with the patients. I would be able to do more and be more for Christ. I know God has brought me here for a reason. However, I am suppressing His blessings and miracles by not preparing myself. Instead of blaming I need to be training. Learn from my mistakes. Be proactive. Take the initiative. Do what it takes to be prepare for God's work and He will bring you to new heights.  

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To all my readers: I love your comments and feedback. I receive the comments as email, but I can't reply to them because of the internet. If you want a reply or conversation you are welcome to email me. (shannicebaker@gmail.com). If you don't care I love the comments too. 

Kouroume

Kouroume is a festival/celebration that happens once a year. It is a traditional holiday that only takes place in Bere to celebrate the November new moon (if my understanding is correct). Apparently, on the first night you light things on fire. You can see both young and old lighting anything and everything on fire and the arson isn't punished. It is all part of the celebration; you can do whatever you want. Luckily, houses and people are only burned when you are lazy. (The lazy part still doesn't make sense to me, but I didn't see any burning houses or people). It isn't a pyromaniac holiday, there are only pyromaniac tendencies.  

The second night of celebrations is the craziest day. Everyone gets drunk. They beat on drums and dance and race around on drunk horses.  The third, and last, night is about the same, but not as wild. By this point everyone has gotten as drunk as possible on the second day and is mellowing out on day three. So all the SMs, including me, decided that is was best to go the festival on day three.  We wanted to experience the culture, but stay safe as well. 

Just as a little side note.  Things were crazy, but not too over the top.  The drunk horses were racing in a circle around the crowd. Their track was marked out and everyone was smart enough to stay out the way.  The most dangerous moments were when a rider would fall off of his horse, or when a horse would run toward the crowd. I guess crossing the track to get to the middle of the circle was pretty dangerous too but as long as you weren't front and center, you were fine.  

We arrived just as the celebration was starting. The guys refused to have good party etiquette. I told them it was best to get there fashionably late, but no one listened to me. It was only 3 o'clock and we had  three hours before it got dark and more sketchy. At first, there were about 300 people there. The horses were racing around the main group of people and there were five people dancing around the drummers in the center of the horse track. We were just standing there awkwardly and staring.  I don't know what we were expecting, but it wasn't what we were seeing.  

As usual, us nasaras drew a crowd. Zach finally had enough and broke away from the group. He said that the big group of nasaras huddled together drew to much attention. The rest of us debated who which of us were the main people drawing attention.  Both Charis and I said it was Josh and Daniel thinking that least Charis and I were black and didn't stick out as much.  We were dead wrong. 

Josh and Daniel left us to prove that it was the nasara girls everyone was looking at.  They were spot on.  As soon as they stepped aside a crowd of children quickly took their place.  They were watching us stare right back at them. We would walk out of the circle that had formed around us, but another circle would quickly form as soon as we stopped walking.  Let's be real, I hated all that attention. 

Besides our circle of children, nothing happened for a long time. Daniel was on quinine again and wanted to leave so Josh walked back with him while Zach, Charis, and I decided to stay and watch the horses a little longer. That is when we saw Naomi across the track. That is when the real fun began.   

**Quick side note: Naomi is the Project 21 translator.  We are very dependent on her for EVERYTHING. She is a hard working single mother with 6 children to feed. Being a Tchadian woman is hard, but to be a single Tchadian woman is amazing! Naomi is persistent, strong willed, and a Godly person. I am so glad she is working with us for Project 21.**

Naomi knows everyone and they all respect her and that is how we were able to ride the horses. She called out to one of the riders she trusted and asked them to give us a ride.  I jumped on the horse first. (I don't know what convicted me to ride the horse because I had just seen a little boy fall off the horse). It was scary and thrilling at the same time. He told me to hold on to him really tight and started very slow. 

I could hear how shocked everyone was because a nasara was riding the horse. Even the other riders slowed down to get a good look at me once they realized that, not only was I a girl, but a nasara was riding the horse. We were riding bare back and bouncing all over the place.  It took me awhile to get into the rhythm of riding. (Bare back is so different when compared to a saddle. I have never ridden with someone else either, so that was weird as well). Once I got the rhythm he started going faster and faster. All the children kept running across the circle to see me go round and round.  

There came a point when we were going so fast that I almost fell off!  The rider had to grab me and push me back on the horse. The horse staggered a bit and the rider started to fall in the opposite direction.  I looked up to see how I could help our situation and realize we were headed straight for a tree. My heart stopped. I just tightened my grip around his waist and prepared for impact. 

We didn't crash. Praise God.  My guess is the rider and I were counterbalanced. The rider must have been secure enough to pull the reins and turn the horse in the right direction.  After we cleared the tree we readjusted our seating. 

After my wild ride, Zach didn't want to ride the horse, but Charis still did.  She rode with a different rider and it was hilarious. Her rider started slow, like mine. However, he quickly started riding really fast (I don't know if it was the same speed I went or faster, but it looked really fast as I watched her).  You could see the fear in Charis' eyes as they whipped by us. She was very tense and had a vise grip on the rider's waist and around the horses back. Naomi freaked out and started yelling for the rider to slow down. He slowed down so much they were barely walking for the rest of the circle. It was cool to see how much they respect Naomi. 

Next, we made our way to the center of the circle and started to dance with everyone. The traditional Nangjere dance is to shrug your shoulders and do some fancy foot work. Apparently, I was really good at it. (Or, everyone was lying to me). I faced off with one of the guys and then went around in a circle for a whole song. (When I say I faced off with a guy I mean both he and I were shrugging our shoulders and facing each other.  He would move further and closer to me as we moved in a small circle.  I didn't do it 100% correct. I kept moving away from him because I didn't want anyone getting too excited. It was already a tight circle, I didn't want to get any closer). 

It's good to point out that Charis is darker then me, making things very confusing for Tchadians. They don't know if she is nasara or Tchadian. So they would give her candy (candy or money is given to make the women happy if you like their dancing) and realize that she's American. On the other hand, all the guys were running to dance with me. I was obviously nasara. However, the guy that I faced off kept pushing the other guys away. He hooked his arm around my waist and batted everyone away. (I felt bad for Charis though. They would push her out of the way to get to me because they didn't realize she was nasara too). I followed the woman in front of me doing what she did as my guardian kept all the invaders away. The women were every encouraging. Everyone was. People were yelling bon danse (good dancing) and giving me thumbs up.  It was so much fun, but very crazy!!

 I laughed the whole time. Dust was stuck in my teeth and all over my body.  I was starting to cough and choke on the dust. It was like I was standing in the desert during a sand storm. Regardless, I had a blast! We left before it got dark so nothing dangerous could take place. I was adventurous, but safe at the same time.  I am so glad that I was able to experience everything at the festival. The locals said it was good that we came. They didn't think nasaras would come to the festival, let alone dance and ride the horses. Once again we were able to have fun and show a few people that nasaras aren't always that bad. 

Visiting Schools in the Bush

Another cool thing about Bendele is the air-hanger. There are two planes in Bendele. I was lucky enough to fly in one of them. I never realized how tiring flying can be.  We had a hour flight. There were sights to see, games to play, and 3 other passengers I could have talked to. The combination of the heat, altitude, and vibration quickly put me to sleep.  I was up for the first twenty minutes of the trip, but could no longer keep my head up. It was a nice little power nap.

I woke up before landing.  It was funny to see everyone in the village below stopping whatever they were doing to look up at the plane.  The children were jumping and waving hoping we were waving in return. The landing zone was the main road in the village.  We flew over the dirt road to make sure it was clear. There were 100+ cows on the road that the herders had to move them out of our way so we could land.  

Approximately 200 people came to greet. People came from the field, with tools in hand, just to get a good look at the plane and its occupants. The purpose of the trip was to see how the adventist school was doing. So, we locked the airplane tight and pushed through the crowd toward the school.  (There was a guard standing watch so no one would touch the plane).

The school was a small pavillion. There were two classes under the pavillion and one other class under the mango trees.  The two lower level classes, which were under the pavillion, had about 50 students per class. The class under the mango tree - the older kids - only had 15 students. There were 4 other teachers sitting idly because they had no room to teach.  The school has morining and evening classes so they can teach every grade. 

Around 50 children were mobbing us during the short tour of the school and the walk to the principle's house for a meeting. They would start following behind us. Everyone was pushing to get a good spot.  Soon the children would run in front and look back at us.  By the end of the cycle there would be a circle of inquisitive eyes around us. Let's be real, it was really annoying. 

Charis had also come on the trip, and Garry's daughter Sharise. (I forgot to mention that Garry is the pilot). On the way back to the airplane Charis and I realized that Garry and Sharise were the main attraction.  Everyone would push past us and run to Sharise in specific. Our theory was that we weren't nasara enough because both Charis and I are black, while Sharise and Garry are white.  Many people didn't realize we were nasara until they heard us speaking English or saw our clothing. I didn't mind at all.  Both Charis and I slowly drifted from Garry and Sharise and the crowd around us lessened.  

To bad the crowd around the plane had grown. There was easily 400 people around the plane. We had to yell at them to get back, slightly pushing people out of the way in order to board the plane. In frustration Garry turned on the engine to scare most people back. It worked.  We got into the plane and prepared for take off.  

Like motos and cars, the children tried to chase the plane and grab onto it.  Thank God the airplane was too fast. It would be a horrendous accident if a child grabbed the plane. There are so many things in addition to a school education that these people need to learn.  Basic safety lectures about not grabbing vehicles is one of the many lessons needed.  

Bendele

Bendele is a village 3 kilometers away from the hospital. It is home to the nutrition center. As of now, the nutrition center has 4 outpatients, but isn't open to inpatients. There is work that needs to be done before it can get up and running again.  Garry and Wendy, the couple in charge of the nutrition center, had just gotten back from an extended vacation. They are still getting back into the swing of things. 

Sidenote: The nutrition center serves more than malnurished children.  The nutrition center is home to two monkeys, and an antelope that were saved from malnutrition. They use to have a baby elephant and gazelle, however, both died within a few weeks of treatment. The poor animals were served foods that were death sentences prior to their admittance to the nutrition center. 

Josh and I decided to go to Bendele and help out during our vast amount of free time. We were assigned to clean a house for the incoming couple, David and Sarah. The house had sat vacant for a year. The previous occupants left Chad on vacation and decided spontaneously not to come back. Because there was so much uncertainty in the situation, Garry and Wendy left the house as is, until now.  

It looked like the family was raptured. Food was still in the fridge and cupboards, the bed was unmade, and toilettrie items were in disarray. There was a thick layer of dust on everything and many critters scurried around. We trashed all the rotten food, cleaned off the counters, and swept the floor forty times. There were a plethora of dead and live gekgos, spiders, and other unwanted insects. I expected to find a snake in the house, but there were none suprisingly. However, Josh played a dirty trick that made me think there was a snake. My body responded quickly to the "threat." Everyone had a good laugh out of my reaction.    

It took us many hours, but now the house is ready for its new owners. 

The Parkers

The Parkers are amazing.  Bere without the Parkers would be like life without chocolate.  They are Mom and Dad of Bere.  The Parkers are fun, loving, down to earth people.

The first week the SMs and I were at Bere was a little rough. Both Tammy and Jamie were going through a rough patch, while the new arrivals had culture shock. Tammy had recently resigned from her position at the school because she refused to work with the corrupt leader. She told the school she understood they needed her help. However, she wouldn't help the school if the leader was still in charge. In addition, Tammy had to put her other projects on hold to deal with the school board.  It was a very stressful fight, which quickly drained her. Jamie had a huge construction project he needed to work on.  Getting malaria during his project wasn't the best thing that could have happened.  

Both Tammy and Jamie invited us over to their house. At first the SMs and I were very timid. We were warned not to step on anyone's toes. 

Basically, Josh, Daniel, and I realize that if the Parkers were to hate us we should leave Chad. It seemed like we weren't needed and not wanted. The Parkers were our last hope.  We had very little contact with them to protect the fragile relationship we had with the Parkers.

Now that everyone is out of their funk, it is great. The other SMs and I have really gotten to know Tammy and Jamie. We help both Tammy and Jamie with their projects, and every Saturday night we have game night at their house. (Of course, we wait to be invited every week just in case). Tammy and Jamie truly have become mom and dad. Whenever one of us gets sick we go to them first, instead of the doctors. They give us food from time to time, and are always asking how we are feeling or how things are going. The Parkers have really made adjusting to the Tchadian lifestyle and Netteburgs easier.