Decisions

A bit rough at sea

A lot has changed since my last post.  It's hard to believe that a month ago we had a vague idea of what will happen this coming year.  As I am writing this, I am currently being rocked, bumped & rolled as the ship sails through 4ish meter swells coming at us slightly off our beam (thats maritime talk for big waves hitting us on our side- not the most pleasant situation as it makes everything slide, crash &/or break).  Even though it is rough sailing, we are at last sailing & not only that, but sailing to our Country Next!

And where might that be?

Well, let me tell you how we got to this point.  So Ebola.  Everyone knows about Ebola.  It's in the news, it's causing panic, it's a real pain in the you-know-what.   And to be really selfish, it has kept me from my home in Africa.  But this entry isn't about Ebola, it's about what's next. 

What happens when you don't secure for sea

We enjoy our views of Table Mountain from the ship

So once the decision was made not to go to any place in West Africa or even back to Congo, we looked around for other options.  One jumped out at us almost immediately.  Soon a plan came together.  Almost a month after we were suppose to leave for our field service in Benin, we finally left Gran Canaria heading south towards Cape Town, South Africa. 

No, South Africa is not our Country Next.  No Cape Town was a stopover after a 16 day sail (a sail that was relatively calm & enjoyable, until the last 3 days when it got really rough, but that's another story)  We spent 3 weeks in Cape Town to take on supplies, fuel, crew & to promote Mercy Ships in South Africa, all the while giving our Advance Team time to prepare for our arrival in our Country Next. 


A big part of our stay in Cape Town was giving tours to people in order to recruit new crew.  We gave 45 minute invite tours, complete with the "hospital experience"  where visitors became "patients", were given before photos of actual patients & were taken to the wards & told a story about one of our patients.  The story was interrupted by the OR nurse because the OR was "ready" & we needed to go.  A short video was shown in the OR to show why we do what we do & then they were returned to the ward to hear the rest of the story.  Another video was played to show the transformation of our patients & the visitors had the opportunity to find their patient's after photo.  It was really moving experience.

The lines outside

Giving tours in the OR

Along with the invite tours, we had 3 days of public tours.  It was a shorter experience, but no less moving.  In 3 days we had close to 5,000 people come on the ship & many people expressed an interest in helping us with our mission.

Of course our time in Cape Town wasn't all work & no play.  I had the opportunity to go on a game park safari (seeing 4 out of the Big 5- the Cape Buffalo was hiding), swam with penguins, went up Table Mountain & drove around the cape.  I also had the chance to swim with Great White Sharks!

Up close & personal with the King of Beasts

Penguins!

On top of Table Mountain

In the cage

I often stop & think, is this really my life?  How did I get so lucky that my home goes to all these cool places?  How many people can say their job took them to a place where we had to have a safety briefing on not making eye contact with the lions that are laying 4 feet from us at eye level?

Here come the Great White!

So that brings us to right now, rocking & a rolling on the high seas.  Ok, ok, I know you are probably frustrated by now not knowing where we are going or our Country Next, so I'll tell you.  Mercy Ships accepted the invitation from of the President of the Republic of Madagascar to bring the Africa Mercy to Madagascar for its next field service until the middle of 2015. 

Yep, Madagascar.  A large island in the Indian Ocean, off the southeast coast of Africa, roughly twice the size of Arizona.  Where hundreds of different animal & plant species are found no where else in the world.  Where more than 43% of its more than 22 million inhabitants are under the age of 20, & the nation is positioned 151 out of 187 nations in the UN Human Development Index151 out of 187 countries in the U.N. Human Development Index. The Mercy Ship is expected to sail with a stopover in Cape Town, South Africa, at the end of the month for refueling and crewing. Anticipated arrival into Tamatave, Madagascar, is by the end of October. 1 out of 187 countries in the U.N. Human Development Index. The Mercy Ship is expected to sail with a stopover in Cape Town, South Africa, at the end of the month for refueling and crewing. Anticipated arrival into Tamatave, Madagascar, is by the end of October 151 out of 187 countries in the U.N. Human Development Index. The Mercy Ship is expected to sail with a stopover in Cape Town, South Africa, at the end of the month for refueling and crewing. Anticipated arrival into Tamatave, Madagascar, is by the end of October..  Ninety percent of the population lives on less than two dollars per day, & official reports indicate that Madagascar has about 16 doctors for every 100,000 citizens.  

 We are planning on arriving in Tamatave, Madagascar on Saturday.  We'll have about 2 weeks to set up & get ready for surgeries that are suppose to start 11 November.  After all this time waiting, wondering & worrying, we finally have a plan, a goal & a purpose.  We are all excited about these next 8 months & what the future holds after that. 


Please pray for calmer seas (I don't think anyone slept last night- good gravy!  Things were flying left & right in my cabin last night!).  Pray for a safe arrival, our Advance Team who have been in Madagascar since beginning of September.  Pray for our patients to be found, good relationships with the government & the people.

Blessings