I Have No Idea What to Write…..

Hello dear blog readers……  I know you are all anxious for some news from this distant land.  I have no idea what to write about……let’s see what random thoughts I can pull together for you.

 

The last 10 days have melted into each other as a parasite demanded my attention and energy.  At last the medicine seemed worse then the disease.  Flagyl.  Leaving me utterly exhausted after a full night’s rest.  It took me a few days to figure out that this was a side effect of the medicine.  It is not really a good thing, when Mom has to keep spending 3 or 4 hours a day in bed.  For no other reason, then completely wiped out.  Fortunately I had a super book and a good friend, that helped pass some of that down time.

 

Meanwhile, life rushed on.  Aubrey and Andrew are now officially on school soccer teams.  Which means lots of practice time and much energy expended.  They come home….limping around the house.  From sore muscles and depleted caloric resources. No left overs around here.  As they both hover over me, and Andrew (12) has caught up with Aubrey (14) in stature.  Games are on every Friday.  Andrew always gets to play his complete games because it is right after school.  Aubrey, only get to play half of his game, as it runs into our Sabbath observance.  This is very challenging to leave half way through a game……  I know to many of my readers, this would seem crazy to you.  I even thought about not mentioning it…..and yet, it is one of the challenges that Adventist boys have to face in sports.  Most of America (and the world) competes on Saturday, so this is usually an area where boys in our church have to make hard choices. 

 

The chickens left.  We were getting complaints about how loud Mr. Rooster was.  At night, he often crowed every hour.  He would walk around our whole house every morning…cock a doodle dooing.  He and she went back to their original owners.  I kind of miss their little cluck cluck sound.  But I must say, our sleep has been a little more sweet since the chickens moved on.

 

A tractor/mower arrived from China this week in a big sea crate.  They are still working on it, to get it all up and running (assembled).  This is very exciting news.  As the huge airway strip has been mowed with two small standard little push mowers, every week.

We are down to one police man a day/night here on aviation now.  All seems calm and safe…..for now.  Usually demonstrations pick up at this time of year.  As always your prayers are coveted.

The boys would like a dog.  Please pray for this too….. 

The roaches have discovered the Boyd residence.  I rejoiced to not have any sign of them for a month.  But I knew in the blissful tropics that it was just a matter of days.  Imagine my surprise when I opened the cabinet to pull out my new blender to discover a roach with barbed legs inside.  Ugh!  That blender got bleached, before fruit sauce was made.

My burn patients are healing well.  One patient, I have discharged from my care.  The other young guy, with the more severe burn, is almost finished.  Then there was the guy with stiches in his hand.  We were using gauze to keep his wound clean and dry and then I decided to switch him to Band-Aids.  Then I was sick for 4 days and did not go, but just sent the wound stuff to them each day.  When I saw the guy with the stiches 4 days later, the skin was all emaciated from the wetness caused by the Band-Aid.  I felt awful.  I do believe, in looking at wound every day so you can see the positive or negative changes.  At any rate, the wound did dry out, the stiches are out and I think all is going to end well.  Another guy approached me last Monday who had received a soccer ball directly to his jaw.  He could not open his jaw without extreme pain.  I told him he needed to go and get x-rays.  I did not see him again until Wednesday.  He still could not open his jaw very wide but he was chewing gum and said that the Tylenol I gave him was really helping.  Still had not gone for x-ray.  I told Bob about him (he dabbles in dentistry on a missionary need basis and has wired jaws shut before).  Bob came round on the motor bike and off he and I went to re-assess the man.  Bob also feels he has a broken jaw and also insisted that he get x-rays.  It is now Saturday night and we have not heard peep more about the situation.  All in a day in Papua…..

Well to say I had no idea what to write about……I have rambled on.  I must encourage some young men to go to sleep… and I need to head that way myself.   This next week I will be working at the clinic on Monday, need to revise a Malaria recommendation list, do some health lectures at the little blue church, do tutoring in English on Wednesday, and start a drama group on Saturday.  No Flagyl this week.