More than just a filling

Although I'm not an endodontist it seems like completing root canals is becoming my own dental speciality at Kijabe. My patients who are often members of the community here at Kijabe (pastors, nursing students, doctors, landscapers, shopkeepers) come when just a filling won't quite do. Regardless, were happy to help them out with needed endodontic treatment to get them out of pain. Some of you may know toothache pain (in particular a necrotic, irreversable pulpitis, or slowly dying nerve) is a terribly annoying discomfort. No one want to come for root canal or hear they need a root canal, but I make a few friends after the fact when they are out of pain. Furthermore, as the radiographs show from two patients from yesterday, I think we provide pretty good care.

We have closed...

Thanks for the many prayers for the sale of our house in Akron. 16 months after listing, many negotiations, and the hassle of trying to get many documents sent/e-mailed from Africa, it is official, our house has sold and belongs to someone else.

Mtn. Biking in Kenya

Cows are just one of the many obstacles when riding in Kenya. Others domesticated animals grazing the trails include sheep & goats (which easily move out of your way) and donkeys (stay clear of the back of these). More traditional African animals seen around Kijabe on the trails are dik dik, baboons, monkeys, and across the highway elephant (but I have yet to see these).

In my shoe

As my foot entered my shoe I felt something cold and hard... maybe a rock I thought. But then it began to wiggle. "Ahhhh" I pulled out my foot and turned my shoe upside down. Out I shook this not so little (nearly 4 inches long and thicker than my thumb) black and orange centipede? I now know (as I have previously been told by Africans) you must shake out your shoes before you put them on. At least I did not find a snake in my shoe.

"Word of our God Stands Forever"

The screams were heard at about 10:00 PM on a Friday night from outside our house. We soon found out a gas cooker had exploded in a timber built house just below Kijabe Hospital. It was a structure that housed 9 families; most of them hospital staff including one pregnant mother, a 2 week old baby, and many children. There is no fire department here, so the the hospital was immediately notified. A tractor hauling water from the hospital arrived much to late as all the homes were in flames. Thankfully everyone got out safely and there were no injuries or fatalities.

The following day the staff and I at the dental clinic walked down to survey the remains. We saw family members still sifting through the ashes and smoke for personal items (In Kenya almost all important documents including birth certificates, land titles, money, marriage papers, diplomas are stored at home). They were all lost in the flames. I talked to a father who had lived there, "The tried to come with water, but it was too late. It all happened so fast. We lost everything. But God will provide." We prayed together as a staff for these families who had lost everything they owened.

The Kijabe Hospital Chaplain has reminded us that we all need to help out these 9 families in need. It is easy to say, "He will help, or she will help, and if pass on the responsibility to others, no one will be helped." The dental staff has began filling a large action packer full of blankets, flour, soap, clothing, rice, utensils, plates, chai cups.

Thanks to many of your donations directly to our project account through Samaritan's Purse we have made a monetary donation to the fire tragedy fund to help rebuild their houses.

Lastly, I found this beautiful young Kenyan girl. She had found her Bible amongst the ashes. You can see in the picture above the pages of her Bible were crinkled, covered with ash, and burned around the edges; but the text is still readable. The fire took away her house and her belongings, but it could not take away her faith in Him.

The grass withers and the flowers fall,
but the word of our God stands forever."
Isaiah 40:8

Our prayers and support are with these families as they recover.

Addendum- Some have asked how can we help these families in need? Financial support can be directed to our Samaritan's Purse account #003548 and designate Friess/Fire Tragedy Fund and 100% of the donation will go directly to the families affected by the Fire.

Post-Resident Doctors from Africa Converge in Kenya

We enjoyed meeting our fellow post-residents from all over Africa. One couple has to purchase all the food they need for a year. Another family works as the only family on the mission compound. And while we shared our different experiences, it was clear that we also shared similar struggles. Struggles of isolation from family and friends, working in a different culture, and trying to manage the overwhelming work loads. Together we were able to talk about how we each coped with these things. We also just enjoyed the fellowship of playing together! We're grateful Samaritan's Purse provided this time for renewal and are back at Kijabe almost ready to return to work.




Pictured from left to right include (Dr. Hawk, Pediatrics Kijabe Hospital, Kenya - Drs. Gary & Leanne Finke, Pediatrics & Internal Medicine, Kijabe Hospital, Kenya - Dr. Tompkins & Family, Family Practice, Mukinge Hospital, Zambia - Dr Hoffman & Eric Hoffman, Ophthamology, Gabon - Dr. McGill & Family, Internal Medicine, Galmi Hospital, Niger - Dr. Morad (kneeling), OB/GYN, Kijabe Hospital, Kenya - Dr. Christina Francis, OB/GYN, Kapsowar Hospital, Kenya - Dr. Malin Friess (Dentistry) and Dr. Sara Cichowski (Ob/GYN) & family, Kijabe Hospital, Kenya- Scott Reichenbach- Boone, NC, Director of World Medical Mission's Post-Residency Program.

"Demolition for God's Glory"

For the past two months we have been in negotiation with a buyer for our house in Akron, Ohio. It has been on the market for 16 months. We thought we were nearing a final agreement when surprise hit. We knew our old two-story wooden garage had always been a weak point in our house. The garage door never worked, the structure was listing to the left, and had mold growing throughout the panelling.
According to the buyer's loan requirements the house simply could not be sold without the garage being demolished and cleared. As we began to receive quotes via e-mail for the cost of a demolition of a two story garage the prices were so expensive. What were we to do and how could we try to manage this situation on the other side of the planet?
We contacted our church in Akron Westminster Presbyterian Church and said,"We need help." Within just a few days a work team had been established, notice went out to request volunteers at the church, a dumpster had been rented at a discounted price, a min-excavator was available for hauling of debris and concrete.
Saturday morning several volunteers from WPC arrived early in the morning with sledgehammers and able hands to "Demolish for God's Glory." We were told the garage was demolished and cleared in less than 3 hours.
We are grateful and thankful to all the members of WPC who donated their time, muscles, and equipment to bring down our old garage. It seems to exemplify perhaps one aspect of the purpose of the church: to love and care for members of its congregation. Thank-you WPC.

Amelia Friess (1st Grade Class Picture)

Returning and update

It's always strange trying to change sleeping, eating and awake habits by 10 hours. But I'm thankful our family gets to spend next week together at a retreat with our mission organization Samaritan's Purse. Hopefully by the end of the week we'll all be sleeping through the night again.

I went briefly into the hospital today and received many warm greetings. Many also thanked God for a safe return and wonderful time with my family. I also received an e-mail from a patient when I returned. Many will remember me asking for specific prayers for Linda as she had a rare vaginal anomaly that we repaired. Below is the e-mail from her mother:

habari Daktari
linda is doing fine i just want to inform you that LINDA RESIVED HER PERIODS on saterday the flow is well no pains she is just okey and no complain it abit heavy but i think its just normal will come on 30 end month
have good time while saving other peoples life

God bless you
Beatreice and LINDA


I recognize that probably only a gynecologist could get excited reading that a young adolescent is getting periods, but it was encouraging to know that the surgery was successful. I attribute a lot of that to the wisdom God provided through the power of prayer.

Back in Kenya

Sara and Meredith arrived safely in Nairobi last night. We are thrilled to have them back in Kenya. Meredith has been telling me all about her fishing adventure in America, "Daddy, I go on Papa's boat and got the Ling Cod."

Ready to have our family back together

Sara and Meredith are currently in the air on their way back to Kenya and we can't wait to see them! We have missed them greatly and are ready to have them home.
Amelia's teacher told me the other day that she had asked Amelia what we have been having for dinner since Mom has been gone. Amelia told her teacher, "Well sometime me and Daddy have cereal for dinner, and some time we don't have dinner at all!"
I did take some exception to that remark as our standby meal has been hotdogs in the toaster oven, ketchup, carrot sticks, gatorade to drink, and boreos for desert.
Sara and Amelia are expected to arrive this evening. We pray they arrive Hakuna Shieda (no problems).

Herpetologist available?

After living in Kenya for nearly 11 months it is easy to forget you live in Africa. Amelia goes to a Western style missionary school. We have Wasungu neighbors. We often eat traditional American foods like pizza, hamburgers, and peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. And finally, most people around speak english Yesterday I remembered, "Oh yes we are still in Africa."

As I came home from lunch I heard Nancy our helper scream as she exited our front door. She was holding Mocha's sleeping blanket in the air and had a broom in the other hand. As she pulled out his blanket out crawled this snake. Before I could do anything the gardener next door smashed the snake's head with a shovel. It continued to squirm for several minutes and of course Amelia and her friends were quite amused as they continued to aggravate the dying snake by poking it with a snick until it would twist.

Oh, I thought no big deal must just be some ordinary snake. Why did the gardener destroy it so quickly? But wait, we are in Africa home to some of the most dangerous snakes alive including the puff adder (strikes incredibly fast and holds it victim), black mamba (its venom is a potent cardio and neurotoxin and can kill in as little as 30 minutes), gaboon viper (has the longest fangs and highest venom yield (1000 mm) of any snake), and the eqyptian cobra (preys on rats and chickens).

I imagine this was most likely a non-venomous snake. But if anyone out there can identify the name of this snake it would calm all our nerves, including our poor dog Mocha.

Words shared this morning at church

I had the privledge of sharing with 1st Reformed Church of Oak Harbor this morning. And thought perhaps others might like to read what I shared, so below is the meditation.

He leadeth me: O blessed thought!
O words with heavenly comfort fraught!
Whate'er I do, where'er I be,
still 'tis God's hand that leadeth me.

For some reason the words to this old hymn written during the civil war keeps coming into my mind as I work at Kijabe Hospital, Kenya as an OB/GYN. I usually only remember the first verse and find great comfort knowing God is leading me as I see each patient and treat many problems I have only read about, but as I reflected on what to say this morning I felt an urgency to read the rest of the hymn and so this is a meditation based on He Leadth Me.

Sometimes mid scenes of deepest gloom,
sometimes where Eden's bowers bloom,
by waters still, o'er troubled sea,
still 'tis his hand that leadeth me.

Scenes of deepest gloom… generally finds me daily. I entered the field of OB/GYN because generally it’s a happy field, babies, young moms, patients that live; this is not true though in Kenya. The week before we delivered 3 dead babies in 24 hours. I’ve had to perform C/S on dying mothers. I’ve diagnosed more cancers than I saw my previous 4 years in residency. At least 12% of my patients are HIV positive. Still

Lord, I would place my hand in thine,
nor ever murmur nor repine;
content, whatever lot I see,
since 'tis my God that leadeth me.

Because the fact is that this God that leads our family loves us all dearly. God has called us and brought us to Kenya. Sometimes that means living without running water or electricity. Other days it means staying awake many hours to care for patients. It means being away from family and friends that we love. But also it means that God is leading Muslim, Somalian patients to Kijabe hospital. Imagine, we get to work in one of the most developed mission hospitals, there’s a school on premises for our children, and God is bringing 25% of our patients from a completely un-reached people group from a place I would never want to live.

And when my task on earth is done,
when by thy grace the victory's won,
e'en death's cold wave I will not flee,
since God through Jordan leadeth me.

Can you exclaim with the hymnist what a blessed thought…God leads us. Or sing with David in Psalm 23: He leads me beside quiet waters, even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil for You are with me?

It’s profound: God leads us. So the question really is, “Are you willing to be led?” I don’t know if God is leading you to or away from, into, through, beyond, around or near. As a family we are also not sure where God is leading us in 1 year… maybe into career missions, maybe back to the States, maybe to another country or further education, but we are confident God will lead and that IS a comforting thought.

"Worstest Day Ever"

A moment in the eyes of a 6 year-old girl.

"Daddy I went to check on my bunnies and Flower is moving but Lucy is just laying there but I'm not sure if she is alive because her eyes are open." I followed Amelia to the bunny cage and indeed Lucy was dead and stiff and lying on her back. Of course the tears began to flow from Amelia when I told her.

"Daddy I don't know how this happened. I fed him every day. Maybe he needed to see a veterinarian. Daddy, this is the worstest day ever!" We buried Lucy in the garden so Amelia will see the grave every day on the way to school. She lined the grave with rocks and made the letter "L" in the middle.

I said whatever words I could for the bunny rabbit. "Lucy you were a good bunny. You lived about 6 weeks here with us at Kijabe. You always ate the carrots we fed you. You never scratched. We will miss you."


But just minutes after we buried the bunny. Amelia's tears all stopped. She was ready to play at a friend's house and has quickly moved on. Amelia wants to get another bunny, maybe a bigger stronger one this time. I think we can manage as Lucy cost 100 Ksh (about 120 cents).

Jane

Jane was fearful and in denial about her condition several months ago when she came to Kijabe. The swelling was present for 3 years and was hard to touch (intrabony swelling of the mandible). After clinically examining the size and extent of her swelling in her lower jaw and radiographic examination she seemed to have a dentigerous cyst. Dentigerous cysts are odontogenic cysts associated with the crown of an impacted tooth. From the radiograph you can see how the radiopacity it closely associate with the right third molar displaced to the inferior border of the mandible. Treatment requires surgery to enucliate the cyst wall, drainage of the cyst cavity, and eventual decompression of the mandible. Prognosis for this surgery is very good with full recovery of function and aesthetics.

We didn't see Jane for several months and it was unknown whether she was understandably fearful of the surgery or had not yet raised sufficient funds. She finally reemerged and we treated her in theatre with a general surgeon. After reflecting the gingival tissue and opening up the mandible into the lesion we were quite surprised. The lesion was full of blood and fibrous tissue instead of straw color cyst fluid as we had expected. The wall of lesion did not dissect smoothly off the margins of the mandible like a cyst lining but came apart in pieces. Furthermore the inside of her jaw continued to bleed forcing us to pack the inside of her mandible with 5 4x4 gauzes and leave the wound exposed.

Jane recovered quickly. Unfortunately her biopsy came back positive for Ameloblastoma (a more aggressive pathology). In retrospect examining the x-ray more carefully shows resorption of the 1st and 2nd molar root tips (perhaps indicating a more aggressive pathology) which might have led us to approach this differently. Her surgery although perhaps arresting lesion is non-definitive and she has high probability or reoccurence. Jane will require further more aggressive resection of her mandible. We have seen her once since, and hope she will agree to further treatment.

(Radiograph is inverted)

Giving Soccer A Second Chance

When time for soccer sign-up at school was announced to Amelia she told her 1st grade teacher Mrs. Kinzer, "Absolutely not!" But at the time of the first game Amelia quickly realized that on the Kijabe compound essentially all of the kids were playing soccer and nobody was around to play with.

"Would you like to go see what Soccer is all about and go up to school and watch the game?" I asked. Reluctantly Amelia agreed and we walked up to the field. Before long being a spectator was not nearly sufficient and Amelia put on a Green Penny and entered the field. (It was a proud moment for Dad as I have always enjoyed soccer tremendously.) There she went pony tails bouncing, running up and down the field, finding her way into the swarm of players. She even contacted the ball once inadvertently as it richocheted off her shin. Meredith and Sara and I cheered,"Go Amelia!" She stopped, found our glance, smiled and took after the swarm of players surrounding the ball again.

It was fun for Amelia until she was accidentally bumped by a third grade boy (soccer is mixed gender and mixed grade to account for the small number of kids) to the ground. Her arm was scraped and she began to cry. The rest of the game was spent in Mom's lap and to make matters worse they lost 6-0 and the other coach brought cookies for their team and Amelia's coach didn't bring any treats.

Playing organized semi-contact sports does not come natural for Amelia and I believe really takes a lot of courage for her. I expected that she would be done for the rest of season. But the next week to my surprise, Amelia said, "Dad I think I'll try soccer again."

She has continued to play..always keeping a comfortably safe distance from the ball.

Orthodontics

One of the joys of transitioning to Kijabe Dental Clinic has been the facilities and added staff available. At Kijabe Dental Clinic we have 6 dental assistants, 4 community oral health officers, 3 laboratory technicians along with 6 functional dental chairs. The oral health officers are able to triage the majority of our urgent need patients and complete simple extractions. The assistants are excellent with taking x-rays, sterilizing instruments, providing cleanings, and scaling teeth. These were all duties that previously I was trying to preform all on my own often not successfully. This available room and auxiliary staff has been a tremendous help and opens many opportunities to provide the higher level care for which I was trained. Some of the opportunities include teaching and creating a restorative curriculum for our oral health officers, daily morning devotions with the dental staff, and myself catching up on literature reading.

We also have the time to go beyond treating emergent needs but also elective and aesthetic needs as well. As many of you know or may even experienced themselves as a child having crooked, bucked, or twisted teeth can affect self esteem and normal social development. Nancy is my first orthodontic patients. She will be a challenging case as she is bilaterally class III, severe open bite, blocked out canines, over crowded anteriors, prognathic mandible, and 22 years of age. We will learn as we go and let this heat activated nickel-titanium wire go to work.

I'm so grateful that Meredith and I were able to come for the wedding of Daniel and Laura. Meredith was also able to meet her new cousin Josiah who's similar in age. Meredith has been calling my Dad ,"Prince papa, the king" today and wanted to wake-up Nana this morning to cuddle with her. She's enjoyed the attention from all the family and we're having a great time (although missing Malin and Amelia).

Special Treat

For the past 3 months Amelia has been talking about wanting to go horseback riding (some special bond exists with little girls and horses that I have never understood). We talked about a donkey ride (much cheaper) here at Kijabe, but Amelia was not to keen on that idea. I did not even know if horses existed in Kenya. Due to Kenya's English Colonization we found a nearby stable with reasonable prices for English style riding lessons.
We planned for the ride as a special treat when Mom & Meredith were back home for the wedding. After a couple wrong turns (directions are very difficult to follow here as most roads have no name) we found the stable. Amelia picked out her white stallion named Hedgehog. Her lesson included around the world, trotting, up down, and balance techniques.

A God Who Transforms

It is said that if you asked people at church if they became a Christian through a sermon a few would raise their hands. If they became a Christian by a book a few would raise their hands. If you became a Christian by a message on the radio or TV even fewer would raise their hands. But if you asked them did you become a Christian when you heard someone tell their story of how God transforms and then how this person took a personal interest in your life, almost all would raise their hands.

She's not more than 5 feet tall and 100 lbs. With glasses and a large grin she never misses work or devotions in the morning. She has worked in the dental lab for the past 12 years. It was her day to tell her story. She reluctantly began with her mouth behind her Bible.

"My childhood is full of memories. Some good some bad. I am the seventh of ten kids. My Mom loved us so much. My Dad...." tears begin, "I don't know if I can continue...My Dad was a drunkard. And I believe you do pay for your sins. He now only has months to live as the Spirit (Alcohol) has destroyed his liver. He use to beat the kids and my Mom when he would come home at night. He was a politician in our area. The other men did the same thing to their families. They had a lot of power and no one tried to stop them.

I was a bad little girl. I had no joy, no ambitions. I said I would never marry. I never would let a man do that to me again. But after coming to Kijabe and having devotions, I met people who cared, people who prayed. I met God and he transformed me. He is everything to me. He is my joy, my comfort, my security. I began to sing again like I have always loved to do. I met a man that truly loves me. We pray together. We are best friends and we can share anything. We married and have two children that we love so much. I am blessed to work at Kijabe Hospital because here people have a genuine heart. They care about each other.

I admire Esther in the Bible. She helped so many people despite her circumstances. I have so many favorite parts of the Bible it is hard to pick just one. But, I am lifted up by the end of Psalm 138.

Though I walk in the midst of trouble,
you preserve my life;
you stretch out your hand against the anger of my foes,
with your right hand you save me.

The LORD will fulfill his purpose for me;
your love, O LORD, endures forever..

My Dad is still a drunkard along with three of my brothers But God has given me the strength to forgive him. I believe God can transform his life as well.

Pine Wood Derby

Amelia & I have kept busy in the wood shop here at Kijabe making her first pine wood derby car. She wants to make a unicorn car but in a race car shape. She has enjoyed drawing the shape and helping with the "sanders and cutters." Her car will be more advanced than mine when I was a kid carved with dull pocketknife. Race day is in a couple weeks.

Sara & Meredith safely back in Washington

Sara and Meredith arrived safely in Oak Harbor, Washington at 3 PM yesterday after what we calculated was about 35 hours of traveling from door to door. Sara said Meredith was a good girl although the last four hours of the flight from Amsterdam got a little long.

H1N1

The recent news has suggested that Swine Flu (H1N1) has signs of increased activity in 30 of the 50 United States and is now being called a Pandemic. It was thought being in Kenya in an isolated area may be a place where Swine Flu would not touch.
Unfortunately just 3 days previous 30 girls from the Kijabe Girls Kenyan School were confirmed positive for Swine Flu. Thankfully the symptoms were caught quickly and H1N1 was expected. The girls were isolated and treated and as far as we know all are recovering normally. We are taking all the precautions we can here at Kijabe; although sinks, soaps, and disinfectants for hand washing are often unavailable. We have no word as of yet if, when, or how much of the vaccine will be available at Kijabe Hospital.
Our prayers are with the elderly, expecting, and the young children all over the world who are most vulnerable.

Getting Packed

Sara and Meredith are packed and ready to depart JKA tomorrow! In the picture you can see some fun Kenyan things she is bringing to be available at a First Reformed Church Bazaar for the Christmas Season.

BucketHead

As Sara begins to pack & Meredith unpack what Sara has packed for Daniel & Laura's wedding next Saturday Meredith and I have started a little conversation we repeat several times a day.
"Meredith what am I going to do when you go to Nanna and Papa's House."
"Daddy, I might miss you."
"What will I do?"
"Daddy I will call you on the phone or the Skype."
"Meredith, Amelia & I will miss you and Mommy."
Meredith then covers my mouth with her hand and says, "Daddy, don't talk about that. It's too sad."
We are excited that Sara and Meredith will be home for Daniel & Laura's wedding. We'll pray for a safe trip for them from Kijabe to Nairobi to Amsterdam to Seattle to Oak Harbor and back again!

Field Day

Awake

Living on hospital grounds means many times I still get called in to help with things even when I'm supposed to be off duty. This morning at 4 am I was called for a patient who's Hg was 3.2 (normal is 14). She had 2 D&C's earlier this week and had already received 3 units of blood at another hospital. On exam she had choriocarcinoma extending near the urethra. We made the decision to try to stabilize her by removing her uterus as that was bleeding most, knowing that this was palliative not curative. Thankfully she survived surgery and is now in the ICU. As I talked with her husband afterwards I learned he pastors a church and that they've been trying to get her help for some time. Earlier this week I was called in for a patient in shock who eventually died, her family also had been trying to get her help.

While we have patients who delay seeking help, there are many others that try to get help and just don't. Sometimes I think this is from the cultural tendency to not tell patients when things are bad and to avoid admission that the medical person doesn't know what's wrong. Sometimes this is from the cost of seeing specialists that prohibits poorer patients from being referred. Sometimes I think the infrastructure makes is difficult for health workers to know whom to refer too: there's no physician directory here. Whatever the cause, it still amazes me that many of these patients who ultimately present in shock still survive. And I have to believe that this happens only by God's grace.

Bunny #2

Daniel brought the special delivery in a small box with a piece of rope around the lid. Out hopped bunny #2 named Lucy by Amelia. Flower (the previous white bunny) we now know is not much of a flower (he is male). We don't know the gender of Lucy yet. Lucy and Flower share the same cage. We will see what happens...

Good Samaritan

Phillip is a construction worker.  By no fault of his own a brick (Kenyan bricks are the size of a mailbox) dropped from the building where he was working at struck his cheek.  He suffered a mandibular fracture.  

Phillip was struggling to raise the necessary funds to pay for his needed surgery.  He returned to his village to speak to all his friends and family but was only able to raise 2000 ksh (25 usd).  

He returned to dental as we sought a way to get his treatment accomplished.  Unfortunately many of the fees (anesthesia, hospitalization, medications) were beyond our control.  We seemed at a loss at how Phillip could get his surgery.  He needed help from someone... somewhere?

In Luke chapter 10 we read the familiar Parable of the Good Samaritan:

  Jesus said: "A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he fell into the hands of robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. ³¹A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. ³²So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. ³³But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. ³⁴He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, took him to an inn and took care of him. ³⁵The next day he took out two silver coins^{e]" style=" line-height: 0.5em; ">[e]} and gave them to the innkeeper. 'Look after him,' he said, 'and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.'

But do Good Samaritans still exist? Does a stranger help another stranger in need in real life in real time? That doesn't happen any more does it?   Budgets are tight with the current economy.  People in Kenya daily struggle to get by.  People out of necessity have to look our after themselves and their families.  

A stranger approached me after over-hearing my conversation with Phillip.  This Kenyan lady (I never caught her name) said, "I want to help him."

"You don't even know him..and you want to help him."

"Will this do?  Will this be enough so he can get his surgery." The lady handed me 8000 Ksh (100 USD).  

"Yes, Yes we can do it. Thank-you, Thank-you so much. You have really inspired me.  We can do Phillip's surgery.  You have really made a difference in his life."

She left and I'm not sure if I will see her again.  Phillip you can see with his receipt in hand and in Theatre received his surgery the following day thanks to a modern day Good Samaritan.

Missing Teeth

Amelia is proudly standing next to the Missing Teeth chart in her 1st grade classroom.  As a dentist I'm am pleased to know her teacher is taking an interest in the kids stages of mixed dentitician.

Amelia seems to be holding her own at 3 with the 4th soon be any day now.  Jeffrey is clearly way out in front at this point at 10 missing teeth.  Jeffrey is a great kid from Turkana land adopted into the Titchey school.  But based on his sporting abilities, height, and amount of primary teeth exfoliated...we are wondering is he really 6?

Things are getting better

About 400 employees, friends, and supporters of Kijabe Hospital participated in a fundraiser yesterday.  Led by police escort and full marching band we walked from the top of the highway 5 km down the windy road to Kijabe Hospital.

This was all accomplished to raise funds for the upcoming addition to Kijabe Hospital.  They are seeking to increase the number of surgical theatres, and expand the palliative care and maternity wards.

Donated funds to our project account supported the dental staff to buy t-shirts and participate.  We walked as a team and waved at the onlookers. (Can you spot Malin?)

Although this march did not raise a large sum of money, I believe the morale of the hospital was lifted.  I think God was glorified as we marched to the drums and trumpets and the Kenyan song, "Things are getting better, Things are getting better, With the Lord on our side, We can be assured  Things are getting better, Things are getting better."

Ballerinas

The girls started ballet classes this week at Kijabe (thanks to a mom who has found a teacher to come once a week for all station kids interested).

Meredith couldn't completely enjoy the first class as all she could talk about was how she could not find her other ballet shoe.  But she has worn her ballet costume everyday this week.  Meredith says she learned how to "walk on my tippy toes."  Meredith does not like the name pumpkin or snickerdoodle, she says you can call her "chicken and rice?"  

Amelia is singing in church on Sunday with her classmates.  She is learning positions 1-4 in ballet. For classics day in art class, she drew a nice picture of Charlie Brown (I guess he is history now).  She also told me the other day she likes when she pulls a scab off and there is skin underneath. 

Would you like to see Malin dance?

Wednesday morning at 8:00 is hospital wide chapel.  Around half of the 600 person Kijabe manage to attend this weekly service which includes greetings, announcements, time of praise and worship, brief sermon, and prayer.

Annually each department is expected to organize chapel.  This morning it was the dental chapel.  For the past weeks we have not only been working on a song in Swahili (Sifea Bwana) but also a dance. 

Currently I am the only Masungu in Dental and also the only male.  But even more importantly, I'm also the only one who has no rhythm, can't shake his hips, and can't move his right arm and left arms independently.  As the chapel was approaching I was fearing how I could pull off this dancing and singing swahilli at the same time.  And of course where could a guy like me hide up there on stage. 

It was with great wisdom that at the last moment I volunteered to give the sermon and left the dancing and singing to Doreen, Winnie, Grace, Margaret, Caroline, Agnes, Millicent, & Naomi.  

Many were disappointed at dental last minute change of plans.  To see Malin dance is something that is never forgotten.  There is always next year...

Serving Together

Dr. Cichowski MD (Ob/GYN) and Dr. Sharon Morad MD (Ob/Gyn) both Samaritan's Purse Post-Residents serving together in Theatre surgically treating a patient suffering from incontinence due to a vaginal fistula.

All went well!

The surgery today went well. Linda did great and we believe the results will be functional for her and she will be continent again. Her mother started crying and kissing us after surgery. Together we gave thanks to God that all went well. I also give thanks to have a colleague to discuss, share and work with. While neither of us had done a vaginal pull through procedure before, together it was less intimidating and went smoothly. 

A pastor recently pointed out to me that Paul always had someone with him and when he didn't he requested that someone come and help. Going together to the mission field is established in the Bible and the more Sharon and I work together the more I understand the importance of going together.

Linda

This week Sharon and I are operating on a 14 year old with an congenital anomaly I don't think has been reported. She has distal vaginal agenesis with absence of the posterior urethra. She is unable to menstruate and has a large volume of blood "trapped" inside with urinary leakage.   We had planned for the operation on Wednesday, but she came tonight in severe pain and will need surgery tomorrow. Speaking with her mother tonight she asked, "How many surgeries like this have you done?" I had to tell her I couldn't find any other girls with this combination of anomalies, and so we've been studying about what to do. We prayed together for wisdom and I would ask you to pray as well for this child. Pray that we can construct a functional vagina and that we will be able to repair the urethra as well.

Parched

Kijabe has been unusually dry.  It is dusty, the few creek beds are empty, and the hillsides are brown.  

The dryness came to be a reality in our house this morning. We turned on the faucet this morning to find nothing.   Not even a few drips of water. We're not sure if the tank is empty, faulty plumbing, or something else.  Futhermore, we have not been told when to expect water in our house again.   

Fortunately up the hill at the Waring house the spigot produces water.

Tight Squeeze!

Doing My Own Thing.

When Meredith dresses herself.  I can't quite place the style....