lessons

It has been a long time since I have posted anything. Sorry for my silence. My silence was not due to lack of blogging material but a time of personal reflection. This year has been so many things to me and I want to soak them all in. I want to be a better  woman because this year. I have learned lessons from the Lord, lessons from crew members, lessons from girls at the orphanage and lessons from my patients. The Lord has drawn me closer to him by teaching me that I am not alone, He is all I need, to cast my cares upon the Lord, and so many more things. I think about the impact that these lessons have had on me and will continue to have and I am so grateful.

There have been many crew members that that have been true friends  to me and then there were those few that challanged me to grow. I am so thankful for the hugs and encouragement during my ugly cries and moments of “what am  doing here?” I am amazed of the Lord’s provision of friends that have just learned these lessons and are  willing to walk with me on my journey. When I came to the ship the last time I was single and friendships were all I had but this time Tyrone and I came as a team and he is the best teammate ever. He helped me keep everything in perspective, he listened to me talk about my patients and  listented to me as I verbally processed this crazy year on a hopital ship in Africa!

I have always loved to laugh, you know that deep belly laugh that makes your eyes water and your shoulders to shake. I have learned from my girls at Mama Victoria’s orphanage that even in grim circumstance you can still laugh till your side hurts. Those nine girls know how to laugh and have fun. They are incredible women of the Lord and I miss them  so much, already.

The faces that occupied the beds were my patients but so much more than that. They were individually unique. Some drove me crazy and others became good friends. They all had a story.  Most of them include living  in a country that went through a 14 year civil war. All include tragedy and now they contain a new hope of being accepted back into their village after being out casted due to their illness. Being at their bedsides made me laugh, cry, shake my head, raise my eyebrows (the Liberian way of saying yes), sing my heart out, and hope for a better future for Liberia.

Thank you  for sharing this year with me.