Discarded Treasure

Sometimes I feel I start my blog all too often with tragic stories. I hope you can see the joy in them too- but this is reality here far too often. Today’s blog is really no different.

Today I sat in ward church. Patients came in from the other wards to crowd B Ward. Some from the maxillofacial ward post op with nasogastric feeding tubes, dressings and scars from surgery already performed. Others sneak in faces draped with some form of head covering masking large tumours- awaiting surgery tomorrow. From B Ward the patients are manovoured into position for church- many have had bilateral osteotomies (bowed legs sawn through and repaired). There bare double leg casts of a variety of vibrant colors. Next come a group of mums from A Ward- there babies are in the infant feeding program. Some have cleft lips and need feeding up before surgery. There are tiny twins- apparently 10days old- though suspectedly born at about 32 weeks. All blanket no baby. One twin is fine and just needs feeding. The other had club feet and yes at 10days old and 8wks premature this tiny one has leg casts- caught so young casting should repair the club feet quickly.

The ward is packed- I sit next a little girl. She is 8 though only the size of a 5 year old. She is very non responsive. She has recently had both legs operated on and cast for bowed legs. I met her earlier in the week when a HIV test came back inconclusive- we hope it’s a false result as can be the case with inconclusives. She quietly cries- before conveying she is in pain from her legs. Like an angel she takes the pain medicine. She also has malaria and shivers and sweats throughout the service. She keeps looking at her hand- seemingly amazed by the IV lines going in even though they have been there for days. It is so beautiful to be able to sit and stroke her head to try and comfort her to sleep. So much more beautiful when you know her story. She was found dumped as a baby- the translator says in the trash- whether that literally means in the trash or dumped like trash we are not sure. We can never know her parents story as to why they discarded this little one- was it her deformatity- perhaps. Some nuns found her and she has been living in an orphanage ever since. The sisters brought her to the ship for surgery. She’s had a hard road and probably has a hard road ahead but to be able to have the function in her legs restored will save her much rejection and suffering in life.

The first boy to have surgery, a 14 year old with a large facial tumor which distorted his eye socket and cheek (about the size of a mans fist), left to go home today- excited to show his grandma whom he lives with his new face. All week he has had a small mirror beside his bed and when he thinks no one is looking he sneaks a peak at his new face- like a little child discovering themselves in the mirror for the first time. How much do we take for granted what we see in the mirror every morning- a little less than pretty though it may be before coffee and a shower .He looks great. Before coming to the ship he had dropped out of school- too ashamed to go. He snuck between his Grans house and his fathers house in the early morning or late evening when it was dark. Too ashamed to go into public he lived as a hermit. Today he looked confident as he walked down the gangway with his Dad looking very proud beside him. He can go to school, get a job and likely marry and have a family someday- leaps and bounds ahead of the boy who came to the ship less than a week ago.

The election here has been relatively peaceful. Both parties are declaring victory at this stage and a recount is underway. There are many road blocks and the borders to Benin and Ghana are closed as are most businesses in town. Large gatherings of people and protests are certainly going on in Lome where we are but we are told so far they are peaceful. We have been in lock down on the ship since Wednesday and continue in that phase. Enough patients were admitted on Wednesday to keep the operating rooms in action until next Wednesday when hopefully normality will resume. Prayer for a peaceful resolution would be great.

We had a bush dance (or barn dance or Kaile - many names many countries) on Friday night in our compound on the dock. It was lots of fun. The local dock workers and some Asian seaman from the neighbouring ship watched on in amusement. They probably wonder why on earth a couple of hundred people would want to work up such a sweat in the intense humidity. There wasn’t bush or barn in sight but there were plenty of cockroaches getting squished during our jig.