Prayers answered

Most of the violence in and around Cape Town have come to an end. Thank you for praying about the events that have taken place in South Africa the past week. There is peace for the most part in most places right now, but many many homeless refugees. It is estimated that 70,000 people are now displaced from their homes. New communities have been formed for these refugees, however, the new land and space that has been sectioned for them is not large enough to contain everyone. Can you imagine being displaced from your home and having to flee, leaving behind all your belongings, your livelihood, and what little you had and having to start all over again with basically no money? Please keep these refugees in prayer, they could certainly use it as they have to start to rebuilding their lives.

On a separate note, I haven't really been blogging what is going on in my life. Right now I feel very spiritually attacked. There have been statements made behind my back and accusations made against me of things I have said but have not said and I'm very upset about it. This past weekend was extremely difficult, nearly unbearable. All I could do was pray. God brought me to Psalm 35...the very first verse reads, "Contend, O Lord, with those who contend with me; fight against those who fight against me." Today I had a picture of the a battle being fought...I feel like I need strength to continue my journey here. Please pray for me.

Violence in South Africa

Chaos has broken out within the townships of South Africa and there is urgent need for steadfast prayer. I am within minutes drive from several informal settlements where there have been rumors of violence and groups assembling in masses together to hunt out foreigners, particularly those who had fled Zimbabwe to come find refuge and possible employment here in South Africa.

Police have been diligently patroling and doing what they can, churches within and nearby informal settlements have become refugee camps for those fleeing the communities. They need prayer for protection as do all foreigners living in the country. At this point it is hard to say how things may be in a couple days. We are all doing what we can to help those who need protection.

It seems history of Rwanda is in a way repeating itself here. Just last week there were individuals within one particular community going around to each persons shack asking where they were from and how many individuals live in the shack. This is what happened prior to the genocide in Rwanda.

There have been difficult decisions people have had to make today...like whether to risk their life going into the settlements to rescue foreigners who have become key community leaders and friends. I sat with colleagues today who were wrestling with this decision, deeply trying to figure out how to to help while yet exercising discernment.

At this point we don't know if things will get better or worse. I wonder about my safety as I am to be spending a majority of my time in these communities. What I do know is that I will exercise my own judgement and listen for when I hear the Holy Spirit directing me not to enter a particular place. I am hopeful I can finish out my time here without myself having to leave.

Please pray for South Africa and the foreigners who are now alienated in a place where they sought refuge from their own countries. Pray for peace. Pray too for Zimbabwe as the oppression of the people there is overwhelming.

The weeks that have passed...

Crazy how quickly the days can pass, how full they can be and how easy it is to become enveloped in the day-to-day. The last couple weeks have been quite busy and although my good intentions were to write at least a weekly update, obviously I have struggled. Here's to getting back to it!

The day after I wrote began my first day serving alongside the NGO I am assisting. I spent that week trying to figure out the goals they had for me while I'm here and it was evident that there were a couple things to sort out. All is now sorted and I will be spending the next two to three months researching the organization and all their programs, doing needs assessments and busying myself in each of the eight communities where they work. Last week (well 2 weeks ago now) I spent the majority of my time in the health care center, no longer a hospice as the patients who come do end up recovering quite well and returning to their homes where they will be cared for by family, most likely. A couple stories and food for thought...

Those who are terminally ill with a chronic condition are those who enter the health care center. On my first day observing, a new patient, Mr. A DeCock was admitted. He looked like a very gentle soul and was brought in on a stretcher. I felt a little awkward doing my observing, but I did need to learn the intake process and understand what each employee's job duties were. So I watched as they took him to a side room where they lifted him off the stretcher into a hospital bed, connected his fluid drip and tried to make him comfortable. The nurse, Vuse, explained to me that they would read through his paperwork, assess his condition and determine his treatment.

What I soon learned about Mr. DeCock was that no one in his family was very interested in providing care for him...maybe it was because it required too much physically to do so. He was pretty much bed-ridden and could no longer use the bathroom as his excretory system was shutting down.

The nurses continued trying to make him comfortable and were struggling to get the bed rail attached to the bed. While they struggled I smiled at Mr. DeCock and he smiled back to me as if he completely understood and was thinking exactly what I was. The nurses couldn't get the bed part attached and they left the room. I stood there for a few minutes longer and then left the room. That is when Vuse let me see Mr. DeCock's patient chart. I picked it up and began reading the letter from the hospital which had admitted him. The letter read that Mr. DeCock had had cerebral injury at some point that they thought was bleeding but he also had liver cancer and had renal bleeding. He had been referred over for palliative care.

My heart sank.

It is a rude awakening to realize that one has only a little while longer to live and that there is nothing that can help alleviate pain and suffering, that the only thing that can be done is to show compassion, try to alleviate as much pain as possible and provide the best few days, weeks, months left that one can. So there I was, awakened by this reality.

The time came when the nursing staff was to evaluate Mr. DeCock and try to get some information from him regarding his family and next of kin. It was just one nurse and myself. She asked Mr. DeCock if he had a wife. He nodded. The nurse asked him what her name was. He tried to say something but none of us could understand because he was deaf and it was difficult for him to speak well. The question was repeated once again. He tried to repeat himself...but we couldn't understand. We hung there in this moment of silent suspense, hoping and waiting for the moment we would realize what it was he was saying to us...we kept hanging there...a moment, a moment longer, another moment...it seemed like a complete failure of communication as though we wouldn't get the sender and receiver messages to connect.

Then Mr. DeCock's eyes sparkled and he began to move his hand and fingers...it took me a moment but I realized that he was signing the name of his wife. The only problem, no one knew how to interpret sign language. I wished immediately that I had learned. My goodness, I was so sad that here he was trying so hard to help us understand him but there would be no way that we could. We tried having him write, draw pictures, anything, but nothing seemed to work. The nurse gave up and left the room. I stayed. This time the question she had asked that he was trying to convey was his address.

He was exasperated from trying to recall it. He looked at me and said what I could make out as "It is going to take a very long time for me to remember." I told him that it was okay. He kept trying and finally looked hopelessly towards me and cried out asking, "Why am I so stupid!?!" I quickly told him that he was not stupid and that it was okay if he couldn't remember and that he had done a good job so far. He took the pen and began writing again.

He kept writing what looked like lower-case Q's. Finally, I got what he was writing...999, his house address. I asked him if that was it and he said yes. I patted him on the shoulder and said good job and went to tell the nurse. I spent a little longer with him later that afternoon and then had to tell him that I was leaving. I knew the next day I wouldn't see him because I would be out in one of the informal settlements.

Thursday I finally did get back to the health care center. I went to visit with Mr. DeCock who had been moved to the men's ward. I wanted to talk with him, but he was asleep. I was gone in the afternoon to another informal settlement. When I arrived Friday morning back to the health clinic I learned that he had passed away on Thursday at 4PM.

I was devastated that I hadn't another chance to sit down with him to talk, or try to talk. I had wanted to provide at least a little bit to brighten the day for him but that opportunity seemed to slip on by. It made me realize how quickly life fades when you get to a certain point. What was so wonderful to hear though was that Mr. DeCock's family had visited him earlier that day. I was grateful to hear that--that in the midst of his suffering they were there no longer distancing themselves. It was hard to lose another patient--to have felt the sadness of Nozipo's death and then another one so short a timeframe later. I can't imagine the work that the nurse and carers do and coping with the terminally ill and those in late stages of life. But they do such an amazing job and I was grateful they were there providing compassion when and where it definitely is needed.

There were other patients in the health care center that week that I chatted with. Many of them were HIV and TB+ and obviously suffering. Many of them will get better and return back to the community where they will continue their treatment regimine which includes ARV's and TB treatment. One such patient I met and got a chance to sit with for a while is Alletta. She has been HIV+ for 13 years and because of ARV's is doing quite well. She shared her story and told me about how her husband had infected her with the virus. Right now she is caring for a neighbor's little girl and has basically adopted this child as the mother is an alcoholic and would otherwise not care for this little one.

So there is Alletta, sick and caring enough to take care of a toddler. She shared about the passing of her brother a year earlier and how her parents do not know she is sick because they are still grieving the loss of their son. Alletta is afraid to tell them. Tears streamed down her face as she talked about her life and how difficult it has been. Then the social worker here asked if there was anything that the organization could do to help her.

Alletta responded, housing. She told us that her shack fills with water when it rains and how if it can't get fixed she doesn't think she will make it through the winter. And, I am finding that winters are harsh here.

Although there is no snow, the rain is heavy and the wind strong. At times it just howls. Imagine being chronically ill and having to live in damp, cold, wet, windy conditions all day long. My heart ached. All this woman stated she needs is housing. But the path to making that happen isn't easy. Yet, I wonder if there is something I can do? It seems that my long-term goals are aligning right alongside this area of need so it's just a matter of time before the two intersect...

I wonder if anyone wants to help???