Oh Sweet Caroline

I am here. And in many ways it seems that life is carrying on as usual. And in so many ways, I feel the weight of all that these people have dealt with in the last 2.5 weeks.

The flight went very well and we had no problems at the airport. It was incredible to see everything that I have been looking at on the other side of a tv screen. So many different people have come together to help here. I saw the University of Miami hospital, tons of US military and many of the media tents. Driving through town was hard, as so many familiar places don't look the same anymore. One of the oddest things is seeing so many white people. (Is it weird that that is weird? That I could not be used to white people? Ok back on track...) But at the same time, the Haitians are back on the street selling goods and looking for work. Sweet children wave to you as you drive by. And the water, oh the blue water looks so tranquil.

Things in Cazale seem relatively normal, aside from the tents set up everywhere. No one is sleeping in their homes out of fear they might collapse. There are around 55 children still in the Rescue Center, but only a couple are in really bad shape. They are staying outside in the yard and will hopefully be moving to another house in the village soon. The normal clinic days are still happening but numbers are down to about 200-250 patients per day.

Currently, we are receiving patients who have been treated on the U.S. Comfort ship and need some follow-up care and/or Hospice/Comfort care. When I got here this afternoon we had two patients. One is a young girl in her 20's with a open book fractured pelvis (picture a pelvis and cut it down the middle vertically). She also had a dislocated ankle and is a Type 1 diabetic. Any movement is excrutiatingly painful and she already has a bad decubitus ulcer from laying in the bed. She is on a morphine drip and will not survive. Her mother and a couple other family members are here keeping vigil, holding fast to their bibles and praying for God's mercy. Oh, and we only have 30 mg of morphine left so you can pray about that.

The other is an elderly man who was found wandering around town and severely dehydrated. Nothing else is known about him. He went into acture renal failure and also tested positive for TB. He came here in a coma and died tonight around 6 pm.

Lori is leaving tomorrow morning to go into Port and help out at the clinic at Heartline (the fantastic people whose plane I caught a ride on today!) until Monday. We will receive two more patients, a 3 year old burn patient with a father, and a woman diagnosed with a terminal ovarian cancer. I will take care of the patients with Licia and Anna's help.

Oh and Anna and I have the sweetest tent to sleep in. Photos coming soon...

Love y'all and ask that you continue to pray for us!!!!!