Long plane rides ahead...OR...

My description of the past two weeks: tired! Things are just crazy busy. Getting things wrapped up at work to leave for 2 1/2 weeks has been exhausting, same for Jason, plus campaign related activities after work and on weekends, and I flew to San Antonio and back today for a board meeting. Whew! And the busiest part comes on Wednesday when we leave for Zambia! That's right folks, our trip is THIS WEEK! The 2 1/2 weeks in Zambia will be lots of work...but sooo worth it. 

Everyone I talk to that has traveled internationally says the long plane rides are just terrible. Well guess what...we have multiple 8+ hour segments of plane travel to get to Zambia and back. Rather than dreading the cramped seats, minimal leg room, sitting forever, turbulence, potential loud children, (the list could just keep going)....I'm going to think of this in a more optimistic light. I have the opportunity on Wednesday-Thursday to take two "micro vacations" in our 8 hour flight to Amsterdam and the 12 hour flight to Zambia. These "micro vacations" will be filled with blissful hours of reading and napping and snacks where I'm not expected to be somewhere or do something. I'm sorry...I can't talk on the phone or read an email or leave the plane...you'll just have to wait. Perhaps being stuck on a plane for that long won't be so bad after all. :)

Fundraiser at Ocker Brethren Church

Last Sunday (March 30th), Jason and I went to John's church in Westphalia, Ocker Brethren Church, for Sunday service and a fundraiser for Prosthetic Promises. Their pastor was out of town so John gave the message, which was awesome to hear him preach! After service, they had a hamburger lunch fundraiser for Prosthetic Promises. Over $3,000 was raised!!...at a hamburger lunch at a small little country church. The members of Ocker Brethren Church are SO generous and supportive. Jason and I absolutely loved that we were able to go to church service and the fundraiser lunch. It worked out so nicely that we had planned to go see my parents last weekend in Clifton, so we were in the area and could attend. 

I want to share with you part of John's message that I found very impacting. (I'm summarizing here, John's version was much better.) He talked about how water is so precious in Africa, how some people have to walk long distances just to get water to carry back for use, and it's not always the cleanest water. In America, water is so plentiful. You turn on the faucet and clean water is there. We never question whether our water is safe to drink from bacteria and parasites. We take this for granted sometimes...actually a lot of times. John used an analogy about choosing clean water versus dirty water comparing clean water to godly things, thoughts and actions and dirty water to hang-ups, addictions and sinful things. If someone had access to clean water and a dirty pond for water, and they chose the dirty water it wouldn't make any sense. The same goes for our choices, thoughts and actions everyday. I can choose positive words and thoughts each day rather than negative...a godly life rather than a sinful life. It just makes sense to choose clean water. 

On a different note, our trip is getting so close! Just 10 days left and it's going to go by fast. We have been so busy between work for both of us, Jason's campaign, our volunteer commitments, and all the community events that go along with the campaigning that it seems like this year has flown by so far. BAM! It's April, and we basically have this week to wrap things up before leaving next Wednesday. On my end, I'm going to try my hardest to have all my patients taken care of and all the paperwork finished up before I leave, so this week will be super busy. I've also started what I call our "packing station" on the guest bed. :) 

Do not be afraid

So you know how you seem to always have dreams about something that is coming up that's making you nervous? Dreams where you aren't prepared..ridiculous ones like you forget to wear pants or something similar. I think I'm really nervous about the trip, because last night I had the strangest dream. In my dream we were at New Day Orphanage, but it was set up like a really large hospital. I woke up and was running late to meet Chris and John to cast patients for the prosthetic legs but I couldn't find my clothes. In my search for clothes, strange things kept happening that prevented me from being where I was supposed to be. When I finally got to the right area in this huge building, I was too late. Chris and John had already finished everything, and I had wasted my whole time looking for clothes and where I was supposed to be. It was just terrible. 

So many people keep asking if I'm getting excited about our trip. I really am excited, but I think I'm may be more nervous. I have a bad habit of letting anxiety get the best of me rather than just letting go and trusting God. A friend posted a song on Facebook the other day and it really hit home. I downloaded it and kept listening to it throughout today. Just need to keep telling myself that God is with me, Do not be afraid. 

Tanner Clark-Do Not Be Afraid

The supplies made it there!

Earlier this week, John sent me a text that our supplies shipped on the crate have made it to New Day Orphanage! The supplies made it...without the crate. Apparently they were having trouble transporting the crate, so they unpacked everything and delivered it that way. The crate will follow later but at least the supplies are there waiting for us. Hopefully all of the supplies made it. 

With just 24 days left, Jason and I are starting to make a to-pack list. Anything we need to take and aren't using now is getting stacked on the guest bed to make sure we don't forget anything. Even when I'm staying somewhere else for one night, I'm always afraid I'm forgetting something. So, two and half weeks away from home...I'm going to be double and triple checking I get everything. 

Tonight is our last dose of the typhoid vaccine medication and we are so glad! We opted to do the oral vaccine versus injection because A) it was cheaper and B) it lasts 5 years instead of only 2 with the injection. It's really specific on how to take the medication. It consists of four pills that you take every other day, with a full glass of water, an hour before a meal, and must be completed at least one week before leaving. Jason has been having nausea the mornings after taking the pill, so he's super glad today is the last day. Next, we have to start taking the malaria medication two days before we leave, during our time gone, and for a few weeks when we get back. 

Radio announcement

Robin (John's wife) is doing a prayer team for the mission. She emailed an update out yesterday. The crate should arrive by April 1st to New Day...yay! Also, a radio announcement has gone out to tell the surrounding areas that we are coming and when we will be there. The local radio station is a major form of communication in Zambia, so the best way to let people in the area close to New Day Orphanage know about the opportunity for amputees to get a prosthesis is to make a radio announcement. Here is what Robin sent out about the radio announcement:

Other news, New Day Orphanage has put an announcement out through the Macha radio station about the arrival of the Prosthetic Promises team. They have been receiving calls every day about leg and eye patients from the radio station.  The team will meet everyone on April 19th at the radio station and assess who can be helped.  Again, many people have high hopes for this service to make their lives easier.  Please pray for the hand of God to make the decisions.  The team wants to help everyone but only so much can be done in their allotted time, so they take the ones that can benefit the most from their work.  The hearts of the rejected people are broken and so are the hearts of the team.

My first thought on reading this: Whoa! Then I re-read it and thought it over more. So...yay! people are getting the announcement and responding, which is wonderful. We will be meeting everyone at the radio station to assess and choose who we can help. When John and Chris went in 2012, Blu (co-founder and co-director of New Day) had met with the people who responded to the radio announcement before they arrived and had already selected who could be seen. I'm sure this was incredibly difficult for Blu, though John and Chris had given him information and guidelines of sorts to help him in choosing who they could help. But now we're going to meet with everyone and decide. Oh the heartbreak! To meet all of these people and hear their stories, and then we may not be able to make a prosthesis for everyone. I pray there will be exactly the number of people who come that we can make a prosthesis for so we don't have to turn anyone away. 

Other news from mine and Jason's end: we finally have all our vaccinations and medications in order. This took WAY longer and was FAR more complicated than necessary. The confusion was mostly my fault for not doing my research more thoroughly, but thank goodness it's done. 

Good news!

There's so many things to tell, I'm not sure where to start. :) First of all, I'd like to point out that today is 40 days until we leave. I love the significance of 40 days here....several points of good news and preparations happened this week (patience...I'll get to that) and it's 40 days until we leave. I'm looking at this 40 days as more of the "major change/transformation at the end" significance we see in the Bible rather than the "trial" 40 days. 

First..an update on the crate. It has moved and is on its way to New Day, just slowly. It's rainy season in Zambia right now, so apparently this makes for slow travel for something large like our crate. We pray for timely travel and its arrival before us to New Day.

Next is great news that we have more equipment purchased and several things donated. Suzanne O'Connor, who is a prosthetist/orthotist in Dallas, bought us a nice heat gun and air hammer. A big THANK YOU to Suzanne for your donation! 

Also, I talked with Chris yesterday, and she has bought a Trautman (carver/sander machine) and vacuum pump for the trip. These will not fit in our suitcases, so we will be paying extra for those to go on the flight. 

Prosthetic Promises also received a VERY generous donation this week from a couple from my home church in Clifton, which will go to covering these last purchases, extra baggage fees and other expenses. Praise God for this donation! We are so very blessed with all of the donations we have received and the prayers from everyone. 

Crate Update

Apparently our crate that had arrived in South Africa has been stuck in Johannesburg. There was the additional charge once it got to South Africa that was paid, but we are unsure why the crate has not been moved towards its final destination at New Day. John will let me know as soon as he hears something. The company that shipped the crate is checking into the issue. Please pray the crate transportation doesn't get held up much longer. It'd be nice to know all of our supplies are awaiting us to get to New Day rather than a "down to the wire" situation. 

In other news, it's just 46 days until we leave! I'm excited but getting nervous. For some reason, I'm beginning to feel like I'm preparing for a major exam. Do I know enough and am I prepared enough to pass the 2 week exam on prosthetics? *Insert flash backs to preparing for my board exams here.* Prosthetic Promises' new website design is finished and up. Visit www.prostheticpromises.org. Go to the About Us page and read about John and Chris. I think my nervousness stems a lot from the fact that I have NEVER been on a mission trip; they have been doing mission work for a while. I'm continuing to mentally prepare and pray for knowledge and strength when on this trip.