Uncluttering Clutter

I have this Ribbon Board.  Ribbons criss-cross each other so you can place pictures or notes on the board by slipping them under the ribbons.  For me, I placed bible verses that have encouraged me in different moments of my life, but over time I've also placed invitations, business cards, pictures, and ID cards on this as well.  Today, I started taking down invitations that's passed, cards I no longer need, and noticed the verses I had there before.  I forgot about them because of the cluttered papers I put on top of them.  Reading them again, they've encouraged me again.  It's like drinking a pitcher of water, and still thirsty for more.

Isn't that what happens to us in life?  We read the Word, or hear Godly wisdom from friends and family, but we forget them because of our busy lives.  Everything that's whirling in our minds start to clutter our thoughts, and we forget the Word that motivated and encouraged us earlier.  We might even set the bible aside because we're too busy to read it, but we piled our clutter on that too.

When I cleaned up my board, I also found a picture of an iceberg.  I put that picture up the day I put that board up as a reminder of how my relational time SHOULD be spent.  The visible peak represents the time I spend with friends, ministry, and the mission field, but the larger, deeper portion of the iceberg represents my time spent with God. I am guilty of flipping that iceberg upside down.  No wonder I felt like I was drowning...Now that my board is uncluttered, time to start unclutter my life.  Time to flip that iceberg upright again.

Goodbye 2013, Hello 2014

**yes, this is a late post***
Wow, looking back on my blog posts, I haven't been here all last year.  2013 has not been kind...

2013 has been a tough year…Beginning of the year was difficult, and ended just as painful.  In the beginning of the year I almost lost my father.  He had heart surgery, and I returned home to help my mom get him back on his feet.  At the end of the year, I lost my mom to cancer…parents are precious, but we take them for granted until we lose them, or almost lose them.  It makes you wonder how you can protect them like they protected us when we were kids.  My dad has shown me that no matter how old he gets, he's still looking after his kids, and making sure we make the right choices.  After those 2 events, I don't know if anything else in 2013 was as important…I returned to school for a Masters Degree, but that doesn't seem as important as our loss and near loss.

I pray that 2014 will be filled with blessings, so abundant that 2013 is just a speed bump in life.  2 years ago, I started my blessing list, but I didn't continue it.  I stopped at #87.  Let's see if I can reach to 1000 by the end of this year.  Remind me if you don't see that list growing.

Praise in Suffering

About a year ago, I was heading to Haiti for a week.  I worked along side an amazing crew, Team Haiti, and met some people that devoted their time to the Haitians that they love.  One group we worked with was Real Hope for Haiti.  The men in our team and I worked in their Cholera House, while the other half of our group worked in their Rescue Center.  I got to watch the Haitian Nurses work hard to care for their fellow Haitians, and I was glad to help out the nurses, even if it was just separating their paper towels into small sheets.  They're amazing ladies.

Recently, I read their blog, and came across a story they shared about a little girl that was brought in by her father.  It breaks my heart to see some of her pictures, but she knows what it means to praise God even in pain and suffering.  No one can take that away from her.  Read about Nerline, but have a box of tissues just in case.



Here's an update on Nerline!

Lavender Heaven

What I love about Texas is the many Festivals to experience during the Summers.  This past weekend I went back to Blanco's Lavender Festival.  They had the little Lavender Farmers Market set up around the town's Courthouse to sample different products made with Lavender.  By the end of the day, it can leave any visitor in a state of Lavender Euphoria.


A couple years back, I went to Blanco, TX with my friend Faye for the Blanco Lavender Festival.  We sampled all the homemade product made out of Lavender, drank Lavender Lemonade, ate Lavender Ice Cream, had Lavender Pedicures, and went to one of the lavender Farms and picked a handful of Lavender.  We saturated our senses with Lavender, and had a silent, RELAXED road trip back to Austin.

This year, I went with my roommate and her mom as a recovery Therapy for her (roommate) after her surgery a couple days before.  We only stayed for a couple hours, but that was still enough to enjoy Lavender with all our senses.  They weren't completely saturated as before, but still enough to relax and enjoy the scenery on our way back home.

If you're ever in Texas in the first week of June, stop by Blanco, TX.  Beautiful drive, and relaxing day.

Random thought...

I wonder if you can measure a group's morals by their littlest actions.  For example, I live in an apartment complex that's resurfacing their parking areas.  They've requested we do not drive through these areas for 2 days while the resurfacing areas are drying.  They even placed pylons with a red tape surrounding the area.  This evening a strong wind blew down most of the pylons, but the red tape is still intact and visibly surrounding the areas.

So far, I've watched a few cars driving over the pylons and red tape, instead of driving around them like the other drivers, as the Apartment Office requested.  We were notified a week beforehand, and where these resurfacing areas are located, yet it appears to be easier do drive through these wet areas and damage the newly resurfaced areas than avoiding them by driving around them.

(It frustrates me to see this because I know they will have to resurface that area again, and cause a longer inconvenience for us just because some residence decided to go against authority's requests.)

Can you measure society's moral character by picking a group, oh say an apartment complex, as a percentage of the population, and count how many follow a simple rule or not?  If so, our moral character is dwindling with each car that drives over the pylons.....

Study habits

I remember in college, my friends and I would go to a coffee shop and study with lots of coffee and pastries. Or, I'd be in my apartment with some brownies and Pepsi. It kept me wired and awake to study until late night or early morning (depending on how you looked at the time).

I'm now 41, and not much has changed except that I can't last past 10pm. I'm sitting in a coffee shop studying again with lots of coffee and baked goods, but I'm not sure if it'll keep me awake, or if my brain will comprehend anything at this time of the day.

Getting old sucks....







                             My studying sustenance.

Location:E Riverside Dr,Austin,United States

G.O.S.P.E.L

Can you explain it any better?



LYRICS

It’s the full story of life crushed into 4 minutes. The entirety of humanity in the palm of your hand crushed into one sentence. Listen its intense right. God. Our. Sins. Paying. Everyone. Life. The greatest story ever told that’s hardly ever told. God. Yes. God. The maker and giver of life. And by life I mean any and all manner and substance. Seen and unseen. What can and can't be touched. Thoughts, image, emotions, love, atoms and oceans. God.  All of it his handy work. One of which is masterpiece. Made so uniquely that angels looked curiously. The one thing in creation that was made with his imagery. The concept so cold. It’s the reason I stay bold, how God breathed in the man  and he became a living soul.  Formed with the intent of being infinitely intimately fond. Creator and creation held in eternal bold. And it was placed in perfect paradise til something went wrong.  A species got deceived and started lusting for his job. An odd list of complaints as if the system ain’t working and used that same breath he graciously gave us to curse him.


 And that sin seed spread though our soul’s genome. And by nature of your nature, your species, you participated in the mutiny. Our. Yes. Our sins. Its nature inherited, lack in the human heart, it was over before it started. Deceived from day one and lead away by our own lusts. There’s not a religion in the word that doesn’t agree that something’s wrong with us. The question is what is it? And how do we fix it? Are we eternally  separated from a God that may or not have existed? But that’s another subject. Let’s keep grinding. Besides trying to prove God is like defending a lion homie, it don’t need your help, just unlock the cage. Let’s move on how our debt can be paid.  Short and sweet. 


The problem is Sin. Yes. Sin. It’s a cancer. An asthma. Choking out our life force. Forcing separation from a perfect and holy God and the only way to get back is to get back to perfection but silly us, trying to pass the course of life without referring to a syllabus. This is us. Heap up your good deeds. Chant, pray, meditate but all of that of course is spraying cologne on a corpse.  Or you could choose to ignore it as if something don’t stink.  It’s like stepping it dog poop and refusing to wipe your shoe and all of that ends with how good is good enough. Take your silly list of good deeds and line them up against perfection, good luck. That’s life past your pay grade. The cost of your soul you ain’t gotta big enough piggy bank. But you can give it a shot. But I suggest you throw away the list cause even your good acts are an extension of your selfishness. But here’s where it gets interesting. I hope your closely listening. Please don’t get it twisted. It’s what makes our faith unique. Here’s what God says is Part A of the gospel. You can’t fix yourself. Quit trying it’s impossible.  Sin brings death. Give God his breath back. You owe him. Eternally separated and the only way to fix it is someone die in your place and that someone gotta be perfect. Or the payment ain’t permanent. 


So if and when you find the perfect person, get him or her to willing trade their perfection for your sin and death in. Clearly since the only one that can meet God’s criteria is God. God sent himself as Jesus to pay the cost for us. His righteousness, his death, functions as payment. Yes. Payment. Wrote a check with his life but at the resurrection we all cheered cause that means the check cleared. Pierced feet, pierced hands, blood stained son of man. Fullness forgiveness free passage into the promise land, that same breath God breathed into us God gave it up to redeem us. And anyone and everyone. And by everyone I mean everyone who puts their faith in trust in him and him alone can stand in full confidence of God’s forgiveness. And here’s what the promise is, that you are guaranteed full access to return the perfect unity. By simply believing in Christ in Christ alone. You are receiving life. Yes. Life. This is the Gospel. God. Our. Sins. Paying. Everyone. Life.

#30

Have you ever experienced those moments that once you take a step towards God's plan for you, that you get swept up in this divine whirlwind, and watch everything fall into place?   It was as if God had everything set, but he was PATIENTLY waiting on you.

I remember experiencing that more than once, but it never stops me from being in awe of God every time it happens.  I have been debating, hemming and hawing about going back to school for my Masters.  A lot of reasons came to mind to NOT go back (more like excuses), but I finally I decided.  I want to be a Nursing Instructor.  I love teaching Nursing Students and newly graduated Nurses on our Unit and Hospital.  I love seeing them grow and become awesome nurses in our Hospital family.  But, I need to have my Masters Degree first.  1st step, to prepare for the GRE exam, and then the school.  Then, the whirlwind hit.  A few of my friends came up to me discussing the same thing about studying for the GRE and going back for their Masters.  So, we decided we'd study together.  Thank you, Jesus, for the accountability.  Then, I was just offered a position as a Medication Assistant at a Nursing School.  A Medication Assistant helps the Nursing Clinical Instructor supervise the Nursing Student in passing their meds out to the patients, and assisting them in procedures.  I accepted the position, and the paperwork went through quickly.  I now have a 2nd job to help teach nursing students in the Hospital environment.  Lord, what else are you going to drop in my lap?

This blessing has been a loud confirmation to go for my Masters Degree.  I don't know how long it will take, but so far I definitely love the jobs I'm doing.  

Knitting Stash

I have a box of yarn that's been sitting in my Study waiting for me to knit something, so I decided to knit something from my box, and empty it out.



However, that didn't work as I hoped. I've made hats, scarves, wrist warmers and such, but for some reason I have more yarn than when I first started! Having a yarn stash has been filling every nook and cranny of closets. I feel that having too much yarn is not good, but alas, I've been told that "it's ok to have a yarn stash". I found a book called "Knit Rules!" by Stephanie Pearl-McPhee ( the Yarn Harlot) that talks about tips and tricks of Knitting than patterns and "how to.." instructions, and she brought up a section topic of Yarn Stashes. It's not bad to have one. You just need to share a fraction of it to your friends so they won't freak out when they see the stash (that's spilling out of your closet, boxes, and from under your bed).

So, I share my yarn stash proudly, and hopefully start more project from this stash, and not buy more for a while.....yeah, right.

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A Thousand Blessings

It's a new year. It's 2012, and (almost) everyone is talking about the last day coming on 12/21/2012. If that were the case, WOOHOO! I'm going home to Jesus!! But, Jesus even said that He doesn't even know when He'll return, only God the Father knows. So, how would the Mayans know??

Still this makes you think. Did I do everything I wanted to do? Is there anything I still want to do before I die, or before MY last day? I can make a list of things I want to do still, but why not make a list of blessings that are around me now? I'm reading a book called "One Thousand Gifts". My friend Sandy has been reading this book and told me about it over coffee. The author has gone through emotional pain in her life, and seen loss of family. However, in her hunt for Grace in this distress, she found herself listing blessings/gifts that surround her. She wrote, "...how else do we accept His free gift of salvation if not with thanksgiving? Thanksgiving is evidence of our acceptance of whatever He gives. Thanksgiving is the manifestation of our Yes! to His grace."

We constantly come to God with our wish list. We pray for everyone and everything on our prayer list, but half the time or out of routine we forget to stop and give thanks to God for who He is, and what He's done in our lives. When we're constantly bombarded with hardship, its harder to see the blessings, and perhaps thinks He never blessed you. Even the littlest things that may seem trivial, is probably a blessing. A touch of Peace in your hectic life. If you're focused more on the pain and negative issues in your life you may have missed that gift.

I remember when I went to St Louis.  Because of some series of situations, I was losing faith in prayer and God's promises. I felt like I hit bottom. One day I was waiting to pick up my brother at the train station, and was listening to some worship music while waiting for him. I was eager to seek out God, even though I didn't think I'd find Him. I sat there listening to the praise songs, and decided "God, even if my heart is not in it, I'm going to praise you with these songs." I sang to Him with what little faith I had, and God met me the rest of the way. He was there with me, and I felt renewed. I figured this is the turning point.  Everything is going to get better after this, BUT I was wrong.  My time is St Louis was not getting any better, but worse.  However, he reminded me that His Grace is sufficient for me.  What I experienced earlier was Him strengthening me for the worst. Earlier at the train station, I sat there in God's presence praising His name during the lowest moment, and He loved me, strengthened me, refreshed my spirit, and renewed me. Not to get me out of the pit that easily, but to strengthen me for the worst, and know that I'm not alone.

Daily we're surrounded by pain or negative news, but that's not where God wants us to linger on. What blessings has He given you? Life is not going to be all sunshine and roses. There are thorns among the roses. What are you going to do? Focus on the thorns and hate the roses, or look at the beauty and take in the fragrance?

I'll take the beauty and fragrance. Ann (author) listed 1000 blessings she saw around her, I know I can do the same. Come back to this post every so often to see if the list has grown. If it hasn't, give me a VIRTUAL slap upside the head to continue on to that 1000.

1. Singing Grackles in the trees. (maybe annoying to others, but they seem pleasing to listen to)

2. Waking up to the sun streaming into my bedroom, and no rush to get up.

3. Reading a book that has nothing to do with work or homework.

4. Smell of freshly ground coffee beans

5. Delighted in the Lord's presence in my life (Ps 37:4-5)



6. Knitting with friends.



7. The sound of rain outside.



8. Smell of my apt after baking.  Inviting.



9. Texas sunrises and sunsets (not the same anywhere else)



10. Flock of birds flying in unison, like an ocean wave in the sky.



11. Rain lulling me to sleep (the thunder, not so much)



12. lines of lightning crackling across the sky. (from a safe distance)



13. A smog-less sky after a rain storm



14. God's Faithfulness (especially when I don't deserve it)



15. breathing in Crisp Morning air.



16. placed "on-call" at work, and spend extra time to get ready for the day.



17. A surprise dinner from a friend, waiting for me at home.



18. Clouds in different shapes, lazily moving across the sky



19. Milk swirling in my coffee.



20. reading a book full of God's promises and knowing they are true.



21. Down Comforters.



22. unexpected snow falling in Austin



23. holding a fragile snowflake in my hand (before it melts)



24. the cashier smiling at my child-like fascination with snowflakes



25. Jesus is enough for me.



26. Dipping strawberries into melted chocolate



27. creamy ribbons of melted chocolate



28.  No matter how many times I let go of God, He's never let go of me.



29. Hearing men (including the patient) singing praise songs in Spanish around the patient's bed



30. Divine Whirlwind (organized chaos??)



31. arriving to my destination before the downpour.



32.  2 boys racing each other down the sidewalk on their way to school. (innocence)



33. Joy in patient's (and family's) face after moving his foot for the first time in "months"



34. First signs of Bluebonnets on a hillside (welcome back, Texas Spring)



35. Being disciplined. (tough love/ Heb 12:7-11)



36. My nose bombarded by different aromas of food (my smell senses work!)



37. Spontaneous road trip with friends.



38. Texas Wildflowers coloring the freeway median. Makes rush hour traffic peaceful.



39. driving across the green, rolling hills of the Hill Country of Texas



40. Package waiting for me in the mail.



41. Seeing the well known "Amazon" smile on my package.



42. "MawMaw" patient's big gummy smile.



43. GOD: My Comforter, Healer, Defender, Lover of my soul, Worthy to be Praised. My Rock, My Refuge. My Friend.  He is MORE than enough for me.



44. Prayer hiking with a good friend



45. sound of steady rushing water over rocks at Pedernales Falls.



46. a lone Bluebonnet blooming from a crack of a boulder.



47. starting the day with "last minute" brunch with new friends and laughter



48. ending the same day with "Impromptu dinner" with close friends and laughter



49. Early low morning mist blanketing a wildflower field



50. The sunrise shining across the surface of Town Lake.



51. A father playing with his kids outside.



52. Friends having a "picnic" on the patio.



53. Neighbors enjoying the warm sunny weather outside.



54. God's Peace in my mind and heart. (Psalm 29:11, Col 3:15)



55. the warm breeze rustling the trees.



56. Hot Air Balloon in the middle of Zilker Park



57. bright moon in the clear night sky



58. Surprise East Breakfast with a friend



59. "counting blessings and discovering Who can be counted on." (pg 151)



60. Remembering the Bridge Builder that has gotten me across "hard terrains" of life



61. His Faithful love endures forever. (Ps 136:3-7)



62. A dad making his toddler son laugh while shopping in the grocery store



63. Smell of the air right before it starts to rain.



64. Trail jogging through a green tunnel of trees.



65. Monarch Butterflies randomly crossing my path.



66. Kids "swimming" in a dry fountain.



67. Texas Vultures lazily gliding low, above the tops of trees.



68. Aroma of Lavender in the Breeze. (Blanco, TX)



69. Sunset beaming through dark clouds (wish I took a picture)



70. Silver lining on the clouds (literally)



71. Able to laugh even through stress and frustration



72. My Chiropractor, and feeling the "pop" when being readjusted. (no more pain)



73. Being a nurse



74. Feeling a cool breeze after a good run.



75. A surprisingly easy day at work. (a rarity)



76. A home filled with overnight guests for the holiday (4th of July)



77. Rain boots!!!



78.  Jumping in rain puddles (hence, the rain boots)



79. Relaxing after work with friends, decadent dessert, and laughter (I think it was more from the sugar buzz)



80. Sugar Rush from the dessert.



81. my Parents: married for 49 years now



82. having an example of what a long lasting marriage looks like.



83. Being Redeemed by God's work, not mine.



84. Crazy peace of mind and heart, even during 2 hectic work days (rare moment).



85. Watching puffy Marshmallow clouds in a blue Texas sky.



86. Having my coffee paid for at Starbucks drive-thru by the driver ahead of me.



87. Buying coffee for the driver behind me (pay it forward).



88. Remembering my mom's laughter and smile.



89. The smell of freshly mowed grass.



90. Sunset shining under a blanket of black clouds.



91. Sun beams shining slits of the dark clouds.



92. 2 days in a row of picturesque sunsets shining through dark skies.



93. Seeing Fireflies for the 1st time.

94. The smell of rain

The Help

(yes, that's my new Kindle)

Have you ever read a book you can't put down? I definitely have and this is one of them. I remember reading a Frank Perretti book that I couldn't put down on a scary part or I'd have bad dreams later. I knew the end was going to be a good one since it was a Christian Horror book, so I'd stay up until I finished it.

Reasons to not put THIS book is much different (thank God). The author tells the stories of 3 characters and basically leaves you hanging on to wait and see what happens as you read on to the next character. I wanted to skip the other stories and continue on with Minnie's story, but I also wanted to find out what happened from the last time we read about Abileen and Skeeter. Their stories just intermingled throughout the whole book that you don't want to miss anything, and want to keep reading.

Definite Must Read!


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Cafe Leona's

I remember my friend Sandy coming over to Cafe Leona's (my place) for coffee, baked goods, and chat away the afternoon. I loved opening my apartment to my friends and my Small Group, and cooking for them. I loved hearing my place nicknamed Cafe Leona's because they knew they can come over for food, coffee, and fellowship. Since Sandy moved down to San Marcos, and I'm no longer leading my Small Group, Cafe Leona has basically shut down. :(

Today, I'm down in San Marcos visiting Sandy and chatting over some coffee and salad, and it hit us. Cafe Leona is still open! I may not be cooking lunch or baked goods for my friends, but the home-y, chilled, and inviting atmosphere is still around no matter where we are or meet. It's a nice revelation to hear from your friends.

However, hopefully soon I'll open Cafe Leona at my apartment again, and invite my friends for dinner, cake, coffee, and fellowship.


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Location:E Hopkins St,San Marcos,United States

Etsy Alert

One of my friends was browsing through Etsy.com, and saw a cowl that she loved, so she bought it. HOWEVER, she received a pattern to MAKE the cowl. The seller said that it's easy to make. This girl does not know how to even hold a crochet hook, or even know what the size hooks let alone know how to crochet! When I visited her and her family for Christmas, she showed me the pattern and asked if I can make it for her. I said yes. And I just finished it.

It's easy to make if you know what you're doing, but not for a novice. Well, what's below a novice??? So, when you browse through Etsy, make sure you're buying the made product or the pattern before buying!!!

My friend Gaby and her cowl

Walk-About in Haiti

7/18/11
Bon Swa! (Good day)

Today, Troy, took us around and oriented us to Heartline Ministries' houses that held their ministries. They have 3: Harbor House, Maternity Center, and the Sewing Center . And, he also took us to their new property they just purchased so they can move all of their ministries to one site, and not have to rent houses anymore.

The first one we went to was the
Sewing Center.
John and Beth used to have an orphanage they ran, and many mothers came to them with their babies because they couldn't afford to feed them or themselves. When they noticed the trend, they decided to find a way to give the women an income so they can keep their kids. They opened a Sewing Class, and taught the women how to sew. They can have 36 people in the class for a year (9 months), but they have 102 applicants right now. One class was created upon another need to make 3 classes available in one sewing center. When they found out that some were illiterate and couldn't take the entry test, they started a Literacy Class to bring their literacy skills up to take the tests. Then, they later saw that some still didn't have the skills to sew, so they started a Beading class. They sell these crafts at the gift shops at the center and in the guesthouse, and online called HaitianCreations.com. A couple in California decided to help Heartline by creating this website for them, and selling the purses there. Check it out!

*sorry if this next one is too gross for you guys*
We later went to the Maternity Center, where they taught Pre-natal classes, and breastfeeding. Breastfeeding has been thought as a bad practice among Haitians, and it would kill their babies than nourishing them. They would feed their babies water at birth, and then rice and beans at 4 months. It took a lot of work to teach the mothers that it was the best thing to give their babies. They have 2 healthy babies right now that are prime examples that breastmilk is best for their babies, and other women are sharing this news with other mothers. Hopefully, they'll see more healthy babies than malnourished. They also taught them how to care for themselves while pregnant so they can have a more healthy, uncomplicated birthing experience. It's been 2 years, and they've been seeing wonderful results. However, they wish they can do more for them.

Next door to the Maternity Center is Harbor House.
It's a house for pregnant teens, and teen moms that were thrown out of their families' homes when they were pregnant, because the family couldn't feed an extra person. So, they came to Harbor House for shelter, learn to be good parents, and learn how to provide for themselves and their child.

Lastly, they took us to their new property. They're hoping to move all of these ministries to one property, and no longer rent the houses. Troy also shared that they're hoping to start another ministry for the Haitian men. They can't touch the lives of every man in Haiti, but they can invest their time, and disciple 12 men and give them a job in their future bakery.

Please pray for their ministries:
* that they are able to do more for their pregnant patients, and can feed than more than once a week, and have a healthier pregnancy.

* for the teenage girls. The ministry can not only raise them to be great parents to their kids and provide for themselves, but also to disciple them and raise them to be Godly women.

* for their men's ministry. Teaching them to be responsible fathers, and godly men that can turn around and disciple other Haitian men.

Haiti can not change because non-profit organizations are coming to Haiti. Change needs to take place in the Haitians. To teach them the skills they never learned, and bring them out of their poverty. But, also to bring them out of their Relational Poverty with others, spiritual poverty with God, and Being Poverty with themselves. That may sound "weird" to you, but we read a book called "When Helping Hurts". It shares how STMs (Short Term Ministries) have done more damage than good by focusing on the material poverty (food, finances, and homes), but neglected on helping them heal their relationship with God, themselves, others, and with creation. How can they bring themselves out of material poverty, if they don't believe in themselves, in others, and especially in God. There's a saying the missionaries say: in Haiti there's 80% Catholics, 20% Protestants, and 100% Voodoo. Their relationship with Christ is distorted, and God wants to bring them back to Him.

And, we ended our day with more Nertz!! Awesome ending.

Nurse Leona in Haiti...

7/21/11

OH MY! Ok, next mission trip I lead, everyone is signing a contract that says they will do their utmost best to not get hurt! No wonder I was starting to get nervous and Mother Hen-y at the end! So far on this trip, my "patients" have had mysterious bug bites, hand laceration, splinter in a finger (didn't have to deal much with that), and a cut while shaving. And now, mod-severe heat exhaustion...had to start an IV, give 4L of IV fluids, lots of meds for nausea and pain, and giving a lot of Gatorade...on one person. He's now sleeping, IV is out, and we're heading to the airport in 6 hours. Best time to get sick, just as we're heading home.

Other than that, we went to Canaan, Haiti. It's one of the Tent Cities where some of the displaced Haitians live outside of PAP. Another ministry called AwakenHaiti is helping out Pastor Nathan that decided to move closer to his congregation that were displaced by the earthquake, and his congregation grew as he continued to minister to his members and the neighbors. Right now, AwakenHaiti's goal is to work along side the Haitians in the building process, not building it for them. Today, they're setting down the foundation for their new church. They've been meeting under a tent, which is already falling apart. The boys on our team came to Canaan to help with the foundation laying. They also asked the nurses (nurse and nursing student) on the team if we can come as well for the Medical Clinic they have there every 2 weeks.

During this trip, I've seen how sheltered I've been in the hospital, with the supplies I need at hand, and doctors that are a phone call away or even on the unit. This Clinic and the Cholera House do not have Doctors that are available. It's just the nurses doing the best they can to care for these patients. Some Doctors have come to visit and given advice and even taught them a few extra skills like suturing wounds and such so they can continue their care for the communities. I came to this Clinic definitely out of my comfort zone, but learned that a lot of the issues can be taken cared for with Health Education, and occasionally meds. They've learned to give meds when absolutely necessary, but its not the primary solution.

I learned a lot here about healthcare with limited resources, and also had to use that nursing judgement and LOTS of prayer when we returned to the Guesthouse. One of the guys worked so hard today that he had heat exhaustion. After I noticed that having him drinking fluids were not enough, and he was getting worse, I had to make a judgement call and start an IV. Thank God for the Maternity Center and their supplies. Now, like I said earlier, he's resting and feeling much better. Now that's cutting it close. In less than 6 hours, we're heading to the airport to go home, and I'd love all of us to get there HEALTHY! At least we're not sick from infections, just have silly self-inflicted injuries...

Thanks for your prayers. Putting the miscellaneous physical injuries aside, God has worked in us in many ways. Please read www.haititrip2011.wordpress.com when you have a chance. A few of us wrote our experiences on that blogsite, and pretty much mirrors everyone's thoughts on what we're returning with. God met us here, and did more in us, than we can ever do in Haiti.

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Day 2 in Haiti

7/17/11

It's Sunday, and the sun rose before 5am! Last night, when they said that we were having breakfast at 6:30, I thought that's pretty early for some of the late risers. Now that I see the sun rising before 5:30, I understand. I remember when I went to N Africa we didn't eat until 1am and went to bed at 3am. Here, they're early to bed, and early to rise.
Our view this morning

We went to Port Au Prince Fellowship this morning. It's the only English Speaking Church in the city, and pretty much all the missionaries and STM (short term missionaries) go there. We met a few of them, and also some Haitians that live close by come to worship with us, and practice their English. John McHoul, who's the Founder of Heartline Ministries (the ministry we're working with), is pastoring the church until their permanent pastor arrives inAugust.We sang a lot of songs we knew, but we also sang or listened to a Haiti Worship Song:

Lu-Waih, Lu-Waih = Praise, Praise.

If my niece, Liz, were with us, she'd be excited that they were playing Praise Songs with a saxaphone as well!

We later went to John and Beth McHoul's place for lunch and Fellowship with Heartline's staff and another Mission Team that's been in Haiti for a week now, but leaving on Tues.

Afterwards we worshipped and prayed together and then celebrated everyone's birthday for this month with some coconut cake and chocolate cake. I had a taste of both. :) Hey, its my birthday(soon).

The comical highlight for us was that Steve, our team leader, found some "Sudden Death" hot sauce, and decided to put it on his turkey to eat it "Texas-style", however the hot sauce was too much for him. He said, "I had to rest for 10 minutes after eating that." One of the guys tried Steve's turkey, and later it turned into a competition on who can withstand the heat. They're great Godly men, but they're still boys...we left for the guesthouse with 4 guys still feeling the burn in their mouths...

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Cholera House

7/20/11

Today, we went to visit Real Hope For Haiti. They've been around in Haiti for 17 years, and is in the mountain region, in the village Cazale, Haiti.

They've been around during multiple hurricanes, the earthquake, and now Cholera. They are open for clinical assistance, dressing treatment, and Rescue Center for Malnourished children, but lately it's been on what one of the

founders call "survival mode" since the Cholera Epidemic. They explained that when they started seeing Cholera patients they needed to separate them from the rest of the patients, and away from the water supply. A Haitian was building a house on top of a hill, and told RHFH that they could use their unfinished home, since they were not ready to move in yet. I don't think they were prepared for it to be this long. Haiti has never had to deal with Cholera before. They later found out that the water supply was already contaminated by...well, let's just use initials for identity protection ...UN. Guess the identity protection didn't work. They'll deny it anyways.

Anyways, half of our team stayed at the RHFH building and helped separate supplies, the other half went to the Cholera House to help out. It was a dirty job, but we did it wholeheartedly and for Christ. I went to the Cholera House with the 2nd half of the team, but no nursing duties for me there. I would've loved to help, but they had a system down to a science! This house has no running water, no electricity, full to more than capacity, and yet they've seen 3000 patients and only 6 deaths since the outbreak. These Haitian Nurses and volunteers are awesome and very resourceful. I've been in my sheltered hospital setting, and complained about not having certain supplies. NEVER AGAIN will I complain!

Before we left the house, we had our soles of our shoes cleaned with bleach, washed our hands with soap and water, and then sprayed from head to toe with a bleach mist.

Of course, after we got back to the Guest House, and I took a REALLY GOOD shower, one of our team members got a splinter in his finger, and then another cut herself (too silly of an accident to explain), and I had to care for the cut while someone else took care of the splinter.

The pictures below are for the RHFH clinic. No pics from the Cholera House.

The girls pulling apart Paper Towels for the Clinics and the Cholera House.

Roberta and Alice mixing Protein Packets to feed the malnourished kids.

Jenn and Tahlie at the Rescue Center

Roberta is holding Dada, 5 years old and 18lbs. Working hard on separating gloves

Just a tranquil site on our way back to the Guesthouse.

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Birthday Cleaning

7/19/11

I've made an executive decision: i'm 39, not 41. Since I already hit 40, and everyone say I never act or look my age, it's time to go back a year from now on. It's not time to go over-the-hill yet.

In celebration, Haiti-Style, our teamworked hard on a couple apartments for the teachers moving down to Haiti. It's a dirty job, but someone had to do it. We left with that apt looking beautiful. I'd be willing to live there myself!We got home hot, sweaty, and exhausted. And, HUNGRY. We have a Haitian dish called, Legume. (a beef and veggie stew). It tasted so good I had to stop, or be completely stuffed! We had our devotional, and at the end the team surprised me with chocolate cake. Thank you, Roberta for baking it in their Haitian oven! I was surprised I still had room for it.

Thanks TeamHaiti for a wonderful birthday, and thank you, and Thank you, Jesus, for blessing me with this amazing team!

TeamHaiti working hard

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Haiti bound!!

*I blogged and saved these posts until I got home to post them. Enjoy*

7/16/11

We are in Haiti! We got to the airport at 4:20a for a 6:10a flight, and it hasn't been bad at all. Even at the Haiti airport. You can still see the earthquake damage to the international terminal, with large cracks on the outside walls and shattered windows.

Haiti is the most impoverished country, and you can really see it. People are lining the streets to either sell something (for a high price), beg for food, or waiting for a Tap-Tap (Haiti's version of a Jeepney). Barry, the man that picked us up from the airport, shared that their Central market just recently re-opened after the earthquake, so there's not as many venders out on the street.

But, not everyone is too impoverished. We're staying at The Village, a gated community, that have doctors, politicians, and other ministries, and such. The dirt roads are a little smoother, but still have potholes in The Village, it's just the gates and large houses that really separate that poverty look.

Last night ended with perfection. We ate, had our quiet time, I had a COLD shower (no hot water), devotional with the team, and then NERTZ! I think we should end every night that way.



This is the ladies quarters.



This is my mosquito "tent".

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Location:Haiti

Lessons Not Just for Easter

I’ve been reading Jesus: 90 days with the One and Only since Aug 2010. I think the 90 days kind of stretched out to 300 days so far, and I just finished Day 73. I could say I’m taking my time absorbing all the lessons I’ve learned from it, but I’d be lying. I’ve not been consistent AT ALL, but still God waited patiently, and also prepared me for what He was going to lead me through beforehand. It just made my sporadic pace look purposeful. Purposeful on God’s end, not so much on mine...

This last lesson, I’ve read before over and over again, especially on Easter, yet He made it more personal through this book so I'll understand just how much He loved me, and understand how purposeful His death was to Him and for me. I just want to share a part of my journal about what I saw and wrote:

Lord, how did I not see this? I’ve read it many times and celebrated this on Easter that you died during Passover, when the Jews celebrate and remember their Salvation from Egypt. The Hebrews took a lamb, killed it, took some of the blood and put it on the doorposts and above the door to protect them from God as He came by killing all the firstborn. (Ex12:3,6-7,12,13) You were OUR lamb to save us from Eternal Death. Our Lamb died, and like the people that wiped blood on their doorpost to protect themselves from Death that breezed through Egypt, You washed us with Your blood to redeem us and protect us from eternal Death.

After going through this book (though slowly), I’ve seen You more personally, and You’ve shown me how much You know me, and love me enough to teach me, comfort me, and even reprimand me when I need it, and especially at the right moment. Thank you. Now, I have to read of your journey to your death, but seeing how purposeful You were, with your eye on me, saying ”this is for you. I’m dying in your place for you.” Oh, Jesus. I didn’t deserve it then, and I don’t deserve it now, but Your eye is still on me, and I can hear you saying, “I did it for you. I died in your place for you.”

Just imagining someone that loved you so much, and shared so much with you, died in your place of a death YOU deserved. He died for you to live. Can you look at your significant other and say they’d be willing to die that kind of death Jesus did for you, and you won’t feel pain yourself knowing that was supposed to be you? I can’t. And, this is something I need to remember not just during Easter, but every day. I am Alive because of Him.