Thursday.
As I awaken, it sounds like the 30,000 thoughtless boys of my speech therapy youth are busy making a thunderous noise, complete with lightning and torrential rains. It is a symphony, or is it a cacophony, of God’s splendour.
I feel diminished this morning. My voice is strained, my throat is sore and its swollen punching bag is resting on the back of my tongue. It seems I may need to take a non speaking role in clinic until God intervenes and sends me tiny dots of brown out on the lawn. The longer I look, the better I see. There are frogs of all sizes spread out across the grass. They hop and stop remaining completely still, until repeating this morning routine countless times. A long ago VBS catch phrase comes to my mind:
Be a Frog= Fully Rely On God. And so I shall.
Clinic Day 4
Barangay Zone 3
The rain has relented leaving an ambient dimness to the overcast day despite the scattered pockets of blue sky. Our clinic is a mostly covered but open air pavilion in the center of another busy part of town. The narrow uneven street out front is barely two way. Our conscientious driver tries to delicately maneuver to avoid puddles and holes to best serve us. Upon crossing I am pleasantly surprised to sense that it does not seem to be as oppressively hot today. I still welcome the fans, both human and electric.
Our patients are already in line when we arrive. I wave and they wave back. The rain may have delayed some but I feel confident we will not have a shortage.
Risa is back as my interpreter. She has an innate ability to appear right when I need her. When I praise her for this she stares blankly back at me. It is clearly a lost in translation situation. I will have to find a more relatable opportunity to encourage her servant heart.
I float between exams and pharmacy. Pharmacy, a non-speaking role btw, is short staffed today so I try to be aware of their need of support.
I just love when I greet my patients with a Filipino greeting, Mabuhuy! They receive it but almost always look to my interpreter for confirmation and laugh. I’m not sure if my attempt is hilarious or if they simply can’t believe their ears. This delights us both.
Kent is a popular name I am discovering and I have a few patients named so. Though none are paired with Clark, one stands out as a superhero perseverer who smiles despite his challenges. He is a severely malnourished 13 year old who also has asthma, diabetes and an allergy to our deworming pill, Mebenezole. While I’m assessing him, the drug Ivermectin randomly pops into my head. I am not so familiar with it but upon further investigation, it turns out to be exactly the drug I need to substitute for his allergy. I love it when God meets me at the point of my need, especially when I don’t even know I have a need.
Next, I have a set of 13 year old identical twins with identical concerns. Their dad is kind and gracious and clearly cares well for them. Asthma seems to be the soup de jour this afternoon as I have multiple patients, both old and young with histories of such. My twins are wheeze-free right now but still need hydration, inhalers and education. I wonder what it is like to have an identical twin right down even to disease.
Speaking of Wheezing. I am treated to a 1 year old beauty named Louise. They call her Ouisy. She is bright and playful and a delight, much like my 2 year old Louise back home.
I often have neck pain in clinic because I am hunched over and intently focused on my patient without regard for my posture. The beauty of a radiant child straightens me up and renews my strength as I raise my eyes to see the glory of the Lord displayed before me.
There are stories galore among the team. Tales of bamboo houses on stilts with the rapidly rising disease carrying waters of the sea and rain. There are children reveling in the unleashed thunder and rain splashing joyfully in the deluge of muddy puddles. Other children gather at the clinic barrier fence to hear about Jesus and receive a Gospel color bracelet. It is clinic at its best.
💥PhilipiAnne💥
A Filipino Thursday
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