Longest “Day” of My Life – June 8-10
Friday morning. 4am. The parents and I leave for Atlanta’s
new international airport. It looked like a club… too bad I didn’t feel like
raging at 5 in the morning. Of course, the employees were just as inefficient
as always. Even with a mere 5 people in the entire building, they still managed
to take well over 10 minutes to get our boarding passes ready. Then, we went
through security and found out the chandelier in the lobby of the airport was
$400,000. Totally worth Georgia's tax dollars. Mom and I had a blast people
watching in the wee hours of the morning… we saw everything from sister wives
to the hairy belly of a 500-pound man.
Upon arrival to Toronto, we hit up Starbucks immediately and
then got omelettes. Delicious. Canada really wasn’t so bad. I don’t know why I
was expecting Canadians to be weird, but they were all super friendly. We met
up with some of the members of the mission team and the boarded the plane.
Little did we know that these would be our last steps of freedom for over 24
hours.
I had big ambitions to read Mountains Beyond Mountains on
the flight. I was confident I could knock it out in 12 hours. However, I kept
watching movie after mindless movie and pretty soon my brain turned to mush and
I had no desire to read anything. I just wanted to sit there. Well sit there I
did… our plane flew to another airport due to Beijing’s airport closing due to
a “still mysterious and we’re not sure if it even happened” storm… we sat on
that runway for 12 more hours (yes that makes 24 so far)… and then after much
uprising, almost starving, and a near mutiny, we took off and arrived in
Beijing just in time to make our connecting flight that next day!
After we arrive to Lanzhou, we hop on a bus to drive 4 more
hours to Huining. We unload, organize, and pack all the medical supplies at the
orphanage while the doctors looked at some of the orphans. I watched my mom
with a young girl who had severe facial dysplasia and a large growth on her
ear. The medical diagnosis was that her mandible did not fully develop and thus
her jaw didn’t connect correctly on one side. However, the next step would be
to send her to an ENT, get her surgery, and have her meet with a speech
therapist for a long time. All of that costs money. Money that her foster
parents don’t possess. So many of the children have syndromes and problems that
we as a medical team cannot resolve. It is discouraging, yet we have to focus
on the people who we can help.
The hotel makes me laugh. The entrance is in an alley in
town. There are American toilets. Thank goodness we don’t have to use
squatties! The beds are nice. No bed bugs… the mattress is actually still
covered in plastic. Super comfortable. The shower and the toilet are on top of
each other. Very efficient if I do say so myself. Can’t drink the water… so we
brush our teeth in the bedroom just so we don’t forget We’re not supposed to
put paper down the toilet. Struggle.
My feet have been super swollen ever since the last airplane
ride. It’s kinda a problem. Sweet Safina gave me a leg massage that helped take
down some of the swelling. It was glorious. When I finally put my feet up and
laid down I was out. Never fallen asleep that fast before in my life.
Monday. June 11. Asians eat weird things.
7am breakfast. Thank you Starbucks Via for saving my life.
Dale led us in devotion out of Joshua 6 this morning. He compared how God’s
people defeating Jericho is like our mission in Huining this week. We sang
songs in both English and Mandarin and I praised God for his greatness and
authority over all languages and all nations on earth.
We arrived at the clinic, prayed, and got to work. Jessie,
Amelia, and I worked registration together. Jessie took down names. Amelia took
temperature. I took blood pressure. Once we got in the grove, we had to slow
ourselves down because we were overwhelming the nurses with patients. I laughed
every time Amelia tried to explain how to put their tongue over the thermometer
and they had no clue what she meant. Some would curl them or stick them out as
long as they possibly could. My favorite was when one woman took the
thermometer stick and laid it horizontal on top of her bottom teeth.
The people are so sweet. I learned to smile with my eyes
because they could not see my mouth under the mask. Some of the older people
would just stare at me like I was an alien, while the kids would try to talk
with me and get my attention. We saw 285 patients today. We were expected to
see more, but we needed double translators, which takes sufficient time. Native
language to Mandarin. Mandarin to English. English back to Mandarin. Mandarin
back to their native language. Super time consuming. My mom said she didn’t
feel like she was doing much sometimes, especially when it took about 5 minutes
to understand where the patient hurt.
Registration is the first station to close, so we were able
to play with the kids for a while. I learned how to play rock, paper, scissors
the Chinese way. That was fun. A sweet little girl and I made up a game with
two pencils and a matchbox car. The children are so fun and are probably some
of the cutest I’ve ever seen. Goodness, I love baby Asians.
I’ve already become good friends with a few girls from
Korea, Scotland, and Singapore. They make me laugh and already make fun of me…
proof that we really are friends. They have taught me about new foods and
showed me the correct way to handle chopsticks. Juehn, my Korean friend,
brought a Korean dish from home called Kimchi… It’d be more appropriate to call
it super spicy and slimy cabbage. Boy, do Asians love their slimy foods. There
were noodles that literally had the texture of gummy bears yet they were eaten
with meat and a spicy sauce… It made me uncomfortable. They tried to convince
me that if I ate the head of the chicken then I would be smarter. Apparently,
many Chinese believe that… but I didn’t fall for it. Crazy girls were trying to
make me eat a chicken brain! I was also introduced to Chinese beer tonight and
it was actually good… better than a lot of beer I’ve tried back home.
My prayer for tomorrow is for mom to feel like God is using
her in big ways. For Nikki’s heart to be softened. I would love to experience a miracle this week that can only be explained by
God. I pray for Jessica, Jueun, Jessie and Amelia. Guide me and give me patience with everyone. Lord, help me to see
every single person the way you see them. Help me to love the way you love.
Tuesday. June 12. I can say vagina in Chinese.
Yep. I shadowed the gynecologist today. That was an
experience. I’ve never been to one in the states, so let’s just say it was eye
opening. So many of the people in the village want to see the gynecologist.
Many of them are shy when he asks to do a pelvic exam, so it makes me wonder if
a lot of them have never had their special parts checked out. Might not be a
big deal if you’re a 25 year old rockin’ and rollin’, but when you’re 60 with 7
crazy kids and have never been looked at… that’s a problem. We had quite a few
of those today.
In the morning, Amelia, Jessie, and I worked registration
again. Blood pressures are surprisingly high. It probably has something to do
with all the salt in their diets and a particular predisposition. Many of them
are already on blood pressure medications and have doctors. I expected most of
the people to be doctorless, but sadly, many people come to the clinic because
they want free drugs and think Americans have miracle pills. It’s a little
discouraging when healthy people come in complaining of back pain and nothing
else is wrong, but when we try to send them away without meds they make up
another symptom. My mom’s favorite is when a patient says she has as constant
cough, but doesn’t cough the entire time that she is at the clinic.
I enjoyed learning all about Singapore today from Amelia. My
mom and I learned that Hong Kong used to be a country, but is now a city/province
in China. I learned about gastritis and trich. I learned how to say, “What is
your name?” in Chinese, and finally children are starting to talk to me. I
learned about acupuncture. Even though that needle is small it still
hurts something fierce.
This is the second day in a row that I went the entire day at the clinic without using the crapper. Let me explain the crapper... two holes in the ground where crap piles up until someone decides to burn it. I went with my mom after lunch and
even put peppermint oil under my nose and still couldn’t do it. I walked in,
almost vomited, and walked back out. My mom
is scared that I’ll get a UTI. I’ll take a UTI over the crapper any day.
Wednesday. June 13. So many children.
Yesterday and this morning I prayed for my mom to see some
children. I doubted that she’d see more than a couple, so every time I saw one
I’d have them jump the line to see my mom right away. I could tell she enjoyed seeing
them and was in her element. By lunchtime, she had seen around 5 or so and I
thought that was great, but she wouldn’t see many more. So, instead of
corralling children to her I just stayed with her in her room while she
examined people. Somehow, without my help, children kept appearing. Who knew
that God could do things without Merry Teague? My mom found one undescended
testis and scheduled him for surgery tomorrow. She also discovered a hernia in
another kid, which will also be fixed tomorrow in surgery. She was superwoman
today. I keep praising God and praying for him to do something else big like
that.
Rewind to last night. I woke up from a late nap around 9 and could not open my eyes. My eyelids literally refused to open. Apparently, they were angry at all this dry weather and dust. My
tears burned and it took a while for the eye drops to work. Finally, I fell
asleep.
This morning I ate a banana, Luna bar, and coffee. Trying to
stick with American foods. For lunch, I had a noodle bowl with mom… full of
sodium, but oh so delicious. Then for dinner I had all kinds of Chinese food soooo
I’ll probably be in some pain tonight. Can’t wait.
After dinner, mom and I walked the streets outside of the
hotel and shopped. Everyone wanted to talk to us, practice their very limited
English, or take pictures with us. They were less interested in selling their
goods than just looking at us. Mom got a fun pair of shoes. I got a tank top. We both got some candy. Successful trip.
Thursday. June 14. Best Day Ever.
This morning we woke up earlier than usual to walk to the
town square. We arrive there a little after 6 and it’s packed with people
exercising. Some were dancing, playing on adult jungle gyms, walking the track
backwards, hula hooping, jump roping, and even practicing with swords. The
community comes together every morning to see one another and exercise. That would
NEVER happen in the States! Amelia and I hopped in and danced with a group of
women. It was difficult to learn all of the dance moves, but it was funny to
try. After dancing, Dr. Heaton bought us all rolls on the street that were
delicious.
After returning to the hotel, Er Mauw inspired us with his heart for the Lord and the lost people of this world. I left breakfast encouraged and ready for the long day ahead. I figured it'd be a pretty challenging day considering I'd be performing surgery... why no I am not a certified surgeon. So glad you asked.
So picture a hospital in a horror movie and you'll be seeing the hospital I went to today. Dirty walls. Old equipment. Inadequate hospital personnel. It didn't even seem like a hospital. We were given one OR room to work in and were allowed to schedule our own appointments. Thus, I was able to help with the surgeries of two little boys that my mom saw yesterday.
Dr. Tony is by far one of the coolest surgeons I've ever met. We saw children with everything from hernias to clef lip palates. He taught me how to suture and how to remove a hydrocele. He let me do a lot and I am so grateful for the experience. My first time suturing was hilarious. I was all scrunched up and hunched over the table. Embarrassing. I should have worked on my surgeon stance beforehand.
While I was removing a boy's hydrocele, Tony told me to pop it. I fervently said no and he laughed at me. I don't think people tell him no very often. He then told me again to pop it. So I did. Boy, did I pop it. Fluid started shooting out immediately. It looked like he was peeing all over the table. I freaked out. All Tony and Ces could do was laugh hysterically at me and my ridiculous reaction to the whole thing.
I'll admit it was hilarious and my face is indeed captured in a photo. Thank you Ces. However, what isn't so funny is what happened after the surgery. Like every other surgery, I took off my surgical gown and gloves and threw them in the garbage. Not ten seconds later, a woman on staff at the hospital goes into the trash can, picks up the soiled gown, folds it, and places it neatly on a shelf in the OR. I was speechless. Did she not see that the entire gown is covered in that boy's hydrocele fluid? She knows. She just doesn't care. This is what I learned of the hospital. They let us use their OR, but they want our resources. They want our gowns and masks and gauze. No matter how dirty or contaminated they are. Our gowns are better than their gowns, so they want ours. Period. Even when our gowns have a boy's hydrocele fluid all over them. I also found out that they don't even bother to wash blood off surgical utensils before disinfecting them. All I can think about is the lives undoubtedly lost due to simple mistakes made by staff who know better.
I bet Tony that he couldn't remove a hernia in less than 10 minutes. 9 minutes 11 seconds. From start to finish it took him 9 minutes and 11 seconds. Bravo. I owe him so many lunches it's kind of ridiculous. Our last patient was an older woman who needed two lumps removed. One in her abdomen and one in her hip. Tony left most of the surgery up to Hilda and me. Which was crazy. After we closed her up, we were laughing and excited about ending the day early and then the woman wakes up and starts laughing with us. She definitely can't understand us, but she hears laughter and even in her pain laughs too. It touched my heart. Proof that happiness is contagious no matter what the circumstance.
After leaving the hospital and checking on a couple patients who had surgeries yesterday, we took a journey downtown to the market. Walking the streets was unreal. Bicycles everywhere. Fruits and vegetables galore. I found some colorful rings made out of glass that I bought. I shared one with Jueun when I got back to the hotel. Amelia tells me that glass rings are what the Chinese elderly wear. I think that's awesome. I have the same fashion sense as old Chinese women. Winning.
Dinner was memorable because I was introduced to a numbing spice. Like you can't feel your tongue after you eat it. Peter says it's illegal in the States. So naturally, he got me some to take home. That's right. Don't get on my bad side or you might not feel your tongue for days.
Friday-Saturday. June 15-16. New Village. New Shoes. New Friends.
I no longer have the energy to write full paragraphs. My apologies. We lifted up some beautiful worship to the Lord this morning. Singing praises to God in many languages makes me feel so incredibly small. Because God is so incredibly big. Big enough to be the God of countless languages and people groups.
The trip to this new village was full of rocky roads, many turns, and mountains full of farmers. Everyday, mom had lines outside her door. Children were eager to see a pediatrician. That's where I met her. I still can't pronounce her name. Even my friends who speak Chinese say it's a difficult name. Ten years old, but she looks about 5 due to her disease. The disease we are not sure of, but it seems to be leprosy. She was weak, shy, and embarrassed of the wounds all over her body.
The trip to this new village was full of rocky roads, many turns, and mountains full of farmers. Everyday, mom had lines outside her door. Children were eager to see a pediatrician. That's where I met her. I still can't pronounce her name. Even my friends who speak Chinese say it's a difficult name. Ten years old, but she looks about 5 due to her disease. The disease we are not sure of, but it seems to be leprosy. She was weak, shy, and embarrassed of the wounds all over her body.
It wasn't until the last day at her village that our spirits met. I don't know how else to describe it. The pain she has suffered is tremendous. But her spirit is so much stronger than her suffering. We walked around hand in hand for almost an hour. For some reason I was compelled to tell her she was beautiful. I kept repeating that in her native language while holding her hands and looking into her eyes. Over and over again as we walked I told her how beautiful she was until I finally think she believed it. She clearly is considered an outsider and the village does not associate with her due to her disease. People kept stopping me and pointing at her skin. Clearly questioning why I was holding her hand. I just smiled and told them that she was beautiful. Then we kept right on walking. What's worse than her physical pain is her emotional pain. How often do I take for granted my dad telling me I'm beautiful. How often do I take for granted that the Lord is enthralled by my beauty. How would it feel if I was never told I was beautiful? If I thought nobody believed me to be beautiful? My heart aches for her. But I trust that the Lord is loving on her in His own way. I have to trust that. I talked with Peter and he says that Dale has received some medicines for her, but now the problem is getting them to her remote village. God can do it.
There was a young girl who couldn’t walk. She had extremely tight muscles. Carol worked with
her and taught her how to play hopscotch with her sister. Mom decided to buy her new pink shoes because she had grown out of the boots she was wearing years ago. My mom also gave her the socks she was wearing. Standing in the shoe store, seeing the smile on her face as she modeled her pink shoes, it was too cool.
I watched my mom touching these dirty children without gloves and I
found myself worrying and wanting her to put on gloves. If I want to
become a doctor I have to be comfortable with touching dirty and sick patients. I
know this is obvious, but it really hit me today that medicine is messy. I need to learn to deal with messy. Jesus walks with me in my messiness everyday. I'm just trying to walk with these people for a couple days.
As we were leaving on the last day, I had a moment with a sweet older woman with bound feet. She liked to talk. Regardless of the fact that I had no idea what she was saying. We sat on a bench outside for a while as she talked to me and held my hands. I like to think she was telling me about her long life and the many years she spent farming with bound feet. I pretended that she was sharing all her wisdom with me. In my mind, she was remarkable.
Sunday-Wednesday. June 17-20. Xi'an & Beijing. On the 7th day He rested.
Xi'an and Beijing were fun. Besides the fact that both my mom and I got sick. My mom in Xi'an and me in Beijing. We saw the Terracotta Warriors in all their glory. Got an epic work out walking the Great Wall. Bought some fabulous jade and pearl earrings. Ate a lot of Starbucks and Subway. American food rules. Became great friends and pen pals with Amelia and Jessica. Finally got to relax and spend some sweet time with my mama.
Now I don't even want to talk about the journey back home. It involves spending the night in the Ottawa airport and getting more angry than I've been in a very long time. Praise the Lord for His grace and patience with me. So thankful for the opportunity to serve His people and experience extreme personal growth simultaneously. Praise the Lord for what He has planned for China.
God our Savior,
the hope of all the ends of the earth
and of the farthest seas,
having armed yourself with strength,
the roaring of their waves,
and the turmoil of the nations.
where morning dawns, where evening fades,
you call forth songs of joy.
Psalm 65:5-8
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