Interviewing process

I have told you a little of my work in the clinic but today I want to tell you more about what I am doing the rest of the day. I usually finish doing dressings, giving injections, especially for tetanus and checking on those in observation around lunchtime. After some nourishment and a little breather I begin my other work.

I came here specifically to try and understand more about the culture and beliefs as it pertained to health so that I could write lessons that would address needs as I perceived them. It has been extremely helpful and eye opening. It is easier for me to gather information in the afternoons as the clinic has generally died down and translators are more available.  I sometimes just hang out on benches in front of the clinic and ask a lot of questions. I feel like I am turning into a full blown reporter! All the young men that work in the clinic are very eager to help me and seem to enjoy our discussions.

L-R Gabriel, Joseph and Martin

After I gather information I must then process and categorize it so that I can place it in the right lesson that I want to present. Next I have to write out my questions in English ahead of time so that the translator can review them and know what I am looking for. After some practice runs we finally get to record on my computer. This may sound easy but let me tell you for this computer novice, it's quite a feat. My kind and patient son- in law help me set up a the recording program.

That's not the end of the process by any means. After the interview it may be necessary for me to add information that will enhance the lesson. When it is all final I will send it to Houston where it will undergo editing and finally it will be sent via satellite going through Canada back to radio towers in Southern Sudan. Wow, modern technology!

Interviewing some local women

Water! Beautiful, clean water.

On Saturday afternoon I went with one of the compound staff to see a new bore hole that Aid Sudan recently raised money for.  Some generous donors made it possible for a whole community to enjoy what so many of us take completely for granted; that is clean water. There is much need all over South Sudan for wells.  In fact since I have been here I have been approached with written requests for another 16 wells.  My answer is that we have to pray and ask God to send funds so that we can drill more wells. Please join us to that end.

The community we visited is only about 3 kms from the compound but it might as well have been 300 kms. It is very isolated. When we pulled up in the middle of the afternoon a nearby family came over to see us. Please look carefully at the woman in yellow. She has a large growth on the right side of her face. It's been there 6 years now, untreated. Behind are their homes.

They told us how much they like having clean water and that they don't have to go so far to get it. While I was standing there a little boy came over,  cupped his hands and drank deeply. It was over 100 degrees outside and so dry and dusty. Thank you God for the gift of water.

We said out goodbyes and went back toward the town of Tonj. On our return about 2 kms away we stopped at the hand dug well where the people used to go to get their water. These teenage girls were getting water for their families. The girl in blue has a tin can on the end of the rope. She lowers it into the well and then pulls up the rope and dumps it into the purple bucket. She has to do this many times to fill the bucket and then she also had another container to fill and carry back to her family. She told me she does this three times a day. The other girls sitting nearby are waiting their turn. There is no going to the mall, shopping, movies or just hanging out and having fun on a Saturday afternoon for these young women. Life is hard in South Sudan.

Dust and more dust

I am sending this blog out with some difficulty. The amount of dust in the air is unbelievable. I think it began building last evening as that's when the internet connection was somewhat slow. Now during the day we have a very cloudy sky but visibility is extremely low.

There is dust everywhere. Everything I touch is covered with a thin layer and I do mean everything. Most window openings have screens but no actual windows since the weather is always so warm. I feel like I am eating dust. I can't imagine my poor nose, throat and lungs.

Yes, the sky really is this color.  This is just out the back of the compound. Normally I can see way out here, but this is the limit today. Incredible. Hope it clears out tomorrow.

Out and about in Tonj

Well after being in Tonj for 10 days I finally escaped the compound. Just kidding. It's strange the days just roll by with the busyness of the clinic, writing blogs, researching and gathering information for radio programs and of course daily life like eating etc.

Midwife Stephanie asked me to join her for some tea in the town center. We took a leisurely stroll down the main drag so to speak and then onto the road behind. We passed several tea/coffee shops but many already had lots of customers. A young man named Mario who sometimes helps at the clinic showed up and steered us to his friend, Christine. We were the only ones there and Christine was delightful. Before you start imagining some quaint little tea shop let me explain what it was like.

There is water boiling over hot coals on what would be the sidewalk, if there was one. There were 3 plastic chairs inside and one small table. Mario joined us and we ordered 1 coffee, 1 regular tea and a hibiscus tea. I have to say it took me while to be able to pick up the hot glass it was served in.

After walking through the market for a little bit, (sorry no photos there as the people don't like it and many men have semi automatic rifles slung over their shoulders, I decided my camera would keep a low profile) we went down the tree lined street back toward the compound.

Coach Mario in the white shirt

On the way back 16 year old Mario, wanted us to stop by the soccer field and take photos of the team he coaches.

Some new little friends along the way 

Back to In Deed and Truth compound

Faces and places

Remember a while back I said I would try and introduce you to some of the people here on the compound. Today I would like you to meet Esther. She came here year ago from her home in Kenya. She is currently helping IDAT with administrative duties. Esther is soft spoken and exudes kindness and compassion. As I said she doesn't say that much so I was very shocked on Wednesday evening when we all gathered for the weekly prayer time and she prayed. She really knows how to talk to God.

I would also like you to meet a sweet little girl that has been coming to the clinic for an infected finger. She does not have any adult with her and she apparently comes from far away.

Here you can see she's all dressed up in her best dress. Since we don't do dressing changes over the weekend we give patients materials for doing the dressings at home. We gave her the gauze, disinfectant and tape and explained what we wanted her to do. She seems to understand well and went on her way. Such a  brave little girl. There are many like her here. I have never seen such courage and strength.



Yesterday there was a girl I would guess was around 3 years old. Her left thigh had been burned with hot soup. It was a second degree burn. I had to change her dressing. I was extremely gentle. She never once flinched or made the slightest cry as I took off the old dressing, cleaned her leg and put new dressing on.



Well, as the title of today's blog said People and Places
I will now tell you about one of the exciting places on

compound. Right behind the room where I am staying the new radio tower is being built.

Yesterday and today local men have been building rooms to house the generator and transmitter. The bricks have been made here on the compound as well. It's hot , laborious work. The have to load the wheel barrow with heavy bricks and then bring it over to the building site.

This photo was taken yesterday so the walls are about finished today. It will be given time to settle over the weekend and then hopefully the roof will go on next week.

The greatest story

Today was much like any other. I was changing dressings and getting near the end of the line for those who had been waiting. Stephanie, the midwife asked me to come to the room next to where I was working so I could meet her patient.
 I was introduced to Yar. She is in her mid 30s. Today was her first visit to the midwife. She is pregnant for the 8th time.

Yar wanted a photo of the baby in her belly

After hearing a little of her history I was curious to know more. You may remember that I am here to learn more about the physical problems and diseases that people suffer with so that I can write lessons that will be broadcast on the radio to address the needs and hopefully prevent some things ever taking place.

Yar said that four of her babies had died. That got my immediate attention. With the help of Gabriel, my translator, ( I love that his name was Gabriel) I found out that all the babies that died were about 3 years old. She weaned them at age two and then for a year their only diet was cows milk. No solid food. They lived in a cattle camp.

 Apparently none of them were ever sick. About three days before each died they had trouble breathing and she took them to the witch doctor. Suddenly I understood. She in fact went to two witch doctors. She had to pay each one. They didn't do anything but speak at the children. I believe they cursed the children.

We then began an amazing conversation. I asked her if she knew who God was. She said no. I know there are many who don't believe in God but fewer who have never heard of him. How do you tell someone about God who can't read or write, has no concept of a big world beyond a cattle camp with mud huts and no basic serves such as clean water?

I started with some questions such as how did the sun, moon and stars get into the sky? She didn't know but she had seen them.  By the way, stars are brilliant here at night. I went on to tell her the story of creation. We talked about Adam and Eve and how they disobeyed God and He had to send them out of His garden. God still loved all the people He created and He wanted to have a relationship with them so He sent  His son, Jesus,  who died on a cross for the bad things she had done. ( She said she fights with her husband) This is the abridged version I am sharing with you. At the end of the story she wanted to be friends with Jesus so we prayed a prayer together.  She will never go back to the witch doctor. Her life is forever changed.

Pray for Yar. She has a long way to go as she begins her journey with God. Pray also for her family as she shares all that happened with her today in the clinic with the white lady also known as "kawaja".

Wish she had been smiling here, but I think I had enough joy for both us.

A birth, Dinka style

Yesterday I was pleased to attend a birth that had a happy ending. It however had some unusual aspects for this non Sudanese lady who spent a year and a half working with mothers and newborn babies in a sterile hospital setting.
 It all started for me at about 2 pm. I went over to see where we were in the process and found the woman in labor walking around outside. Walking around is not unusual, it just seemed to me that 100 degree weather is not ideal for that. Oh well, what do I know?
 Over the next few hours there was much walking and then the pregnant woman decided she was hot and took off her shirt. She also decided she would walk more outside! I was aghast. She had only a black half slip on. At times when she had a contraction she dropped to her knees.

As I talked with Stephanie, the midwife she told me that birth here is a social event and even strangers are welcome to be part of it. Our laboring mother had an audience outside as she knelt, some were close by and others watched from the fence outside the compound.

When the baby wasn't coming down into position for birth as we needed it to, we resorted to threats of a C-section. The laboring woman's mother who was about 4' 11" and the mother's sister-in law came on the scene. She looked at her and read her the riot act I think. I couldn't understand a word but if finger pointing and facial expressions can be relied upon then I got the picture. Apparently so did the daughter. Thanks, mom!










There was another woman on the scene earlier who I thought was the grandmother to be but she wasn't there at the end. Anyway she was delightful with her big smile. I asked her if she knew God and she said "yes" I asked her to pray for the mom and baby to have a good delivery. I watched with joy as she prayed and raised her hands as is there custom. We were grandmothers together.

A healthy baby girl. Thank you God.

The Dinka people

Today I thought I could tell you a little about the people I am surrounded by. In this part of the country I am among the Dinka tribe. They are one of the largest tribes in Southern Sudan. Some studies say there are over 1,000,000 people.

As I minister here every day I kind of have a front row seat to the local Dinka population. I am captivated by their tall stature, smooth dark, actually black skin and their overall beauty.

I like watching the mothers with their children, especially those who carry their babies in cow hide slings. Sometimes they have them in baskets with lids on them. It was a surprise the first time I saw a woman carrying a basket that I assumed had food or assorted things in it and then low and behold out came a baby.

All the photos you see were taken at the clinic as people waited their turn, except one woman and her child. The child is receiving treatment and they typically lay on a mattress out the back of the clinic getting IV's or cool sponges to decrease temperature.

Most of the younger women like me taking their photos, they especially like it when I show it to them . They giggle and nod to me in thanks. They look so serious here but when its over you should see the smiles :-)

Sunday Rest

Today I woke up to a loud rooster right outside my window. He is going to have to go! Yesterday was a very emotionally draining day so I decided to drink my morning coffee outside the house and just watch the tiny birds that come into the yard. My camera leaves a lot to be desired but I hope you will enjoy seeing God's beautiful creation.                                                                                  

This little guy on the right has 3 shades of blue.












Church on the compound starts at 10:30. I stayed through the singing which was in Arabic and then joined one of the compound staff, Esther, to help with the children's Sunday School class. There were about 60 children ranging in age from 2 years to about 12-14 years. It was challenging. Next week it's my turn to teach the lesson. I came prepared to do it but may have to tweak it a bit to fit in all the ages and stages.

IDAT compound

Today I thought I would show you a little more of the compound that I am staying on. It's actually quite large and will develop even more when the new clinic is finished, possibly later this year. As you enter the main gate the clinic is directly in front of you.

Patients line up on benches, give their personal particulars and have their temperature and weight recorded before they can see the doctor. Now don't start picturing in your mind something like your own doctors office. Here you will see people in various stages of undress. People have no qualms about exposing body parts in view of everyone or the opposite sex. Many times people are vomiting on the ground in front of them, regardless of what they are near. There are tiny babies carried in cow hide slings. Many have no shoes and some are barely clothed.


Once inside the clinic the patients are called into one of the two doctors rooms or the room where dressing changes take place.  If they are being seen by the midwife they will have some pre- natal teaching outside as a group and then will come into her room inside for their monthly check up. Sometimes the cries of a newborn can be heard from this room as it also doubles as a delivery room. 
Other sounds heard here can be screams of young children as they receive injections necessary to treat their illness, sometimes it 's the wailing of a family when a loved one dies. It can be a place of much joy when an illness is treated and medicine is available or a place where there is deep sadness when ignorance prevents treatment.

Now we will move onto the kitchen.Work starts here about 7 am. Jane is in charge of the cooking. She serves yummy foods like Mandazi's that we had for breakfast today. These are similar to beignets. There is even a refrigerator that is powered by solar or a generator depending on the conditions. It's great to have a cold drink on days when it is way over 100 degrees.

Guest Quarters

When I first came to this compound I was housed here. You may notice the red and white structures in the foreground. These will be part of the new radio tower. The water from this tank supplies the bathrooms.

One of the most important buildings on the compound is the bathroom facility. Two flushing toilets and a shower. You may be thinking, so what's the big deal? Believe me when you have seen some of the other bathrooms in Sudan this is a big deal.

The house where I am staying

Well I think that about wraps it up for today. There is more but we'll get to it later.

The staff and other things!

In my last post I mentioned Pritty, the pharmacist. I want to introduce you to the staff here so we'll start with the Pharmacy. Pritty is from Kenya. He has been here almost 3 years. His job is to order supplies, dispense pills and coordinate activity between pharmacy and doctors prescribing in the clinic. When there is a large volume of patients coming through on any given day things are really hopping in the pharmacy. That's where Isaac comes into the picture (literally, he's the one on the right) He counts meds, restocks and explains all the medicines to the patients before they leave. Isaac is Sudanese, from a town about 3 hours away from here.

We'll talk about more staff an

other day but before I finish I want to show you this HUMUNGOUS bug. It was sitting by the window where I was doing dressing changes.

Sadness and Suffering

Yesterday morning after breakfast Kerry, Wayne and Simon departed for Nasir to to work on the radio tower there. That leaves me here on the In Deed and Truth compound. Here's the link if you would like to learn more about the wonderful work they are doing. www.indeedandtruth.org

After the morning prayer time the clinic staff goes to work at 9 am. The patients are always lined up inside the gates and on the benches in front of the clinic. I helped out wi

th dressing wounds until about 11:30 and then went to the pharmacy to see if I could count pills. I don't actually dispense pills as that is the job of the pharmacist, Pritty, or his assistant Isaac.

Thousands of pills have to be counted, put in bags and labeled so that they are ready to hand out as the doctors prescribe.

I was sitting there counting when I heard my name called and I was asked if I could start an IV on a child. All my 35 years of experience has been primarily with adults so I don't like messing with those tender little ones. As I walked to the room I prayed that God would give me the needed skills and guide my hands. He did just that and I was successful on the first attempt. The child, a little girl named Ajoup, was burning hot to touch, she was barley conscious and her breathing was harsh and labored.

Her history per her father at the bedside was that she had had about 4 seizures the day before. They didn't bring her to the clinic as they thought she would get better. She continued to seize and finally they to drove 6 hours to bring her. She had malaria and the seizures are a complication of her high fever.

During her seizures she inhaled secretions that went to her lungs, giving her aspiration pneumonia. I was feeling so burdened by her condition. I visited her several times during the afternoon and prayed over her twice. I took my battery fan and placed it next to her body to try and help cool her. This morning I heard she died at around midnight. My heart breaks for the needless suffering. I don't understand God's ways but I trust Him, even when it hurts.

Streaming in Tonj

Yesterday was a kind of settling in day for me but for the 3 men working outside in the heat with the satellite and radio program set up it was the last chance to get this thing running. It's complicated to explain but once the satellite dish is in the correct position it gets locked into the signal. This happened quickly for which we were most thankful. We wanted to hear the radio being streamed from Canada. It just wasn't happening. Repeated phone calls were made to Canada to our support system there. Receivers and computers were reset, reprogrammed etc and finally victory at 6:35 pm. Yeah we did the happy dance.

Photo shows Wayne listening on earbuds.

Some of the local workers were a tremendous help. They put in a concrete pad to hold the satellite dish in place and then built a temporary fence around it until a more permanent one is built. One of the workers is what you would call a "tall drink of water". He is the one in the hard hat. Unfortunately he lacks shoes. :-(

Health and safety would not approve. He worked with a long, metal rod pounding on the earth to make holes for mahogany fence posts, a commonly used wood here.

Off and running in Tonj

Well I kind of left you with a cliff hanger yesterday but was so tired I didn't feel like more detail. So let me recap. We had been on the In Deed and Truth compound for about 2 hours and I was unpacking in my room when someone was calling to me that help was needed in the clinic. It was wild and crazy. Like a war zone in a way with people and blood everywhere. There were gunshot woulds to the neck, back, arm, leg and other assorted injuries related to a cattle raid. We are in the midst of the Dinka tribe. Their cows are the proud possessions. The cows are their financial wealth. For example to get married you must pay so many cows for your wife. Sometimes I guess people get desperate or greedy and take cows from another tribe. This causes gunfire. Three patients ended up going to Wau by ambulance. It's a horrific ride some 3-4 hours by ambulance for only slightly better care. ( they have X ray, we do not)

We enjoyed a meal of spaghetti and I had brought some chocolate to share with staff here but it had to be refrigerated overnight as temperatures of 110 aren't good for chocolate:-)

Spent a fitful night, getting used to the heat, bed, night sounds etc.

Today, I was a full fledged clinic team member. I was asked to work on wound dressings. I did about 12-15. All kinds of wounds in many different parts of the body. I also checked on patients in observation. One woman was there with one month old twins. One of the twins was dehydrated and sickly. The mother had been giving it cows milk. I spent much time with the translator explaining to her she had to drink water herself to be able to have milk to feed her baby. They don't understand and think it's funny. They only drink when they eat. Sweat was pouring off her and I tried to explain the whole dehydration thing. It's frustrating. I got her to drink a mug full and told her I will be back to check. I will go there soon.

In other news on the compound Kerry, Wayne and Simon have been working all morning getting the satellite system up and ready for when the radio tower construction is completed in a few weeks. Fortunately some shade was provided for them.

Well that's it for here in Tonj today. For those of you who like to see where people are on Google earth here are the coordinates for you 7 degrees, 16 mins or ' 39.80" N and 28 degrees , 40 mins or' and 59.30"E Hoe that's is clear for you. I don't get it myself :-( so hope you can find me.

24 hours in Malualkon

We had a non eventful trip into Southern Sudan. We made one stop to refuel in a place called Wau. ( pronounced wow) I did say wow when I saw the most unusual control tower. It was run by the U.N. and was mounted on a hydraulic lift, very mobile. An odd sight. We were picked up at the airstrip in Malualkon by Daniel who is one of the team members with the ministry called Cush for Christ. We were taken to the radio tower compound. Once inside I saw 2 young girls just sitting. I was told they were lost. Their mother had died and father was no where to be found. They had apparently wandered there. I had a leftover egg sandwich that I had packed for the trip and after getting permission from some of the radio staff people I offered it to the girls. By the looks on their faces it was the first time they had ever had a sandwich, never mind an egg sandwich!

All of the afternoon was spent around the satellite dish and computers. We were taking advantage of Wayne our satellite expert. Simon our M.A.F pilot was with us and pitched in whenever needed. At 6:30 we were taken to the Cush for Christ compound for dinner with their team. There are several families. What is so amazing is that I knew one of the families. We met 9 years ago at a refugee camp in northern Kenya. It really is a small world. They were all very hospitable and we enjoyed our dinner and conversation. Us ladies sat outside talking under the brilliant and numerous stars for a while. The men went to pour a concrete pad for the satellite dish. They did it by a generator powered light. So much cooler to work at night. The temperature today was somewhere between 110-120. I have a small temperature gauge with me and it was almost out of range!

The staff at the radio compound were so helpful and kind. They set up beds for us with mosquito nets, although there aren't many around now during the hot, dry season.

Because of the success we had in setting up the satellite we were able to fly to Tonj, just 50 minutes away. This is where I will be for the next month. It has been an interesting start here. Only 2 hours after arriving I was asked to help in the clinic. 7 people came with gun shot wounds. They were in a cattle raid which is unfortunately common here. More about that later. I'm hot and tired so off to bed with my fan.

Thought you might like to see the send off we had on the airstrip and the packed plane.