Kendy's first trip to the doctor

the day started out like any other monday:  checking facebook and emails, writing my blog, praying, and talking to bob about all the errands we had to do that day.  monday is the only day that a cruise ship doesn't come so we usually use that day to get the mail, go to the bank, get groceries, buy anything we need for the property for carlos, meet up with people we don't usually see in that week etc etc etc.

carlos arrived at his usual time of 7:00 am and as i was making myself a second cup of coffee i asked if he wanted one too.  we have some bar stools and he sits there and we talk about our 'weekend' (he always plays too much football (soccer) on the weekend and is sore!)   suddenly he got really serious, and told me that kendy is not good.   my heart dropped to the pit of my stomach!  i had mentioned to bob earlier that i was a bit concerned about her since i hadn't seen her in 3 days.  usually she brings down breakfast for carlos around 9:00 so i was concerned after 4 days and no kendy!

as it turns out she cut herself in the foot with a machete.  this is a real problem here!!   those machetes are soooo sharp and i have seen carlos cut off huge limbs from a tree so... imagine what it is like when it hits your flesh.   he told me her foot was very swollen, she was in alot of pain and threw up in the night.

i looked at bob and he looked at me and we both knew we needed to get her to the doctor right away.  so much for errands!!  :-)   i called miss peggy to see if there were any extra doctors who could go up to her house since it would impossible for her to walk down to the road but there was only dr. raymond.  so we knew she'd need to be carried down.   fortunately we had use of larry's truck because our car would never have made it up to where they live.

i want you to think of the worst gravel road you have been on, now take out the gravel and put in 6 inches of wet clay!  now make it about 3 feet more narrow, now place large protruding rocks in the middle of it, as well as deep deep ruts, then add ditches that drop off about 3 feet on either side.  that is what the roads are like in the colonia!   we shouldn't even call them roads.
but i am proud of bob for his good driving!

their house is at the top left, the turquoise blue house.. a long climb down!!!

and i proud of carlos for going up and carrying his sister down to the road!   bob went to help carry her but the path was so narrow and so steep that only one person could carry her down.   i wanted to go up too but bob wouldn't let me as he is watching out for me and my achilles tendon which, isn't completely healed yet.  (thanks bob for knowing what is best for me)

so i stood at the bottom and prayed that carlos wouldn't drop her.  she was in sooo much pain. her face was streaked with tears and her eyes full of fear.  you have to realize this was the first time kendy had ever gone to the doctor.  now you may say: oh what a healthy girl!!  not necessarily.  they just don't have the money to go to a doctor!!  and they also have alot of fear of going to the doctor.

earlier in the week, carlos and i were laughing and kidding about.  it is good because i am understanding more and more spanish so he can communicate on a different level so he was telling about all sorts of injuries he had as a boy.  he showed me a machete wound on his foot and the scar is jagged, large welt across his foot.  i said, 'oh my goodness did you go to the doctor?' he laughed and said, no money.  he told me that for weeks he was in great pain, and couldn't sleep or walk.  i am surprised he didn't lose his foot!!  seriously.

so anyways, poor kendy was an emotional wreck in the truck. i  went in the truck and held her hand and prayed.  i asked her mom to come in the truck too but she and carlos went in the back.

carlos carrying his sister down the hill

as it turns out, she got a tetanus shot, they cleaned her wound and sent her home all bandaged and with antibotics etc.   she had never had a needle before and was literally trembling and crying.  i believe it was at that point, that i almost fainted!!  talk about embarrassing!  they sat me down, gave me some water but i was sooo dizzy that i had to go outside and get some air.

what would make me faint?  LOVE would make me faint. it is a simple as that. i couldn't bear to see her in so much pain.  sigh.  i thank God He has called us to these people!

this wasn't an interruption in our well planned day. it was what He wanted us to do.
as we all piled back into the truck to take her home bob came up with the idea to just let her recuperate at our house so she wouldn't need to be lugged up the hill.

we still had some important meetings to attend to so we left her and her mom watching tv on our couch and headed out.   as we were driving i said to bob, ' i don't worry one bit about them taking something of ours.  i trust them completely.'  why?  because they have become like FAMILY.  truly.    and one thing about hondurans:  they are loyal to family.

an interesting note, i had some left over soup in the fridge that i told their mom to make for lunch.  when i got home i asked carlos if he ate here and he said, no.   there wasn't enough soup so instead of taking our food without asking he went hungry all day working in the yard.  even as i write this my eyes fill up with tears.  he is such a hard working loyal worker!   (needless to say, i made him something to eat at 3:30)

at one point his mom wrapped her arms around me and said, 'we thank God for you and mr. bob.  carlos says that you are the best people in the whole world.  i believe it's true.'   i told her we aren't the best people.. we are serving the BEST GOD and every day He helps us to live the way we should.

we both smiled and said, Gloria a Dios!  which means Glory to God!