No water? No worries!!!

 

“The Lord shows his true love every day. At night I have a song, and I pray to my living God.” Psalm 42:8

filling up the "toilet buckets" in preparation for the water being shut off

So we had an unusually experience to start off our day.  Apparently the city we are staying in was built in the middle of a desert and currently we are in the middle of the dry season.  So, once in a while, the whole city’s water supply is shut off.  Jodee got a call this morning telling us that our water would be shut off for up to 2 days.  Getting a phone call was actually a surprise because normally when water is shut off, there is no warning.  We frantically hurried around to fill up bottles of water before it was no longer running.  Once our water bottles were filled, we hopped on the bus and went to the clinic.  Once here, we found as many commode buckets we could to fill up so we could flush our toilets.  Having 30+ people using toilets that wouldn’t flush all day long would not be a good thing.  We filled up our “toilet buckets” and were prepared for the water to stop.  Luckily, it was never turned off at the clinic, but it was quite the experience having to prepare for a day without water.  

Now, on to a more physical therapy related note, it’s awesome how everyday patients are still able to amaze me.  My first patient of the day was a 28 year old who was blind.  He was born with vision but throughout life, he slowly lost it.  By age 9, he needed to use a blind cane to get around.  This patient had extreme nervous issues as well as anxiety, poor balance, and problems with fine motor skills in his hand.  Chris and I worked together today so we combined our thoughts and came up with an exercise plan for him that incorporated all his problems.  I felt so bad for this man because he was so hesitant to even walk.  He needed his mother there to help guide him and without her by his side, he was very anxious.  However, the whole time we treated him, he had a smile on his face.  I can’t even imagine the feeling of slowly losing vision and growing up in an area where you can’t see a doctor because you don’t have enough money and the doctors aren’t around to treat you.

There were a few other children we saw throughout the day including a boy who had cerebral palsy (CP) due to the doctor dropping him at birth.  Another child had CP as well as autism who had the sweetest laugh.  He was so ticklish that every time we tried to stretch his chest muscles, he would laugh and laugh and laugh. 

Our translators creating their masterpieces with splinting material

Of all my patients that I helped treat today, there was one 5 year old little boy who touched my heart.  He was born with clubbed feet and the doctors had casted him for a year to help fix the problem (at least this is what we understood from what the translator could get from the parents).  When he walked, he walked with bent knees and he walked on the inside of his feet.  It looked so painful to walk.  He never really walked and his parents would have to carry him places.  When we first tried fitting him for braces to correct his feet, he SCREAMED and cried.  It has to be difficult for a little child to come into a clinic where people treating him don’t speak his language and are trying to shove braces on his feet and he doesn’t understand what is going on.  We were finally able to calm him down by playing catch with him and began fitting him with donated braces.  We found a pair that fit him and, of course, with a

Axel... the little boy who left laughing and walking :)

few modifications, we had braces that worked!  Once he got use how they fit, we had him standing up to check his feet.  They looked significantly better so we decided to have him go for a walk.  We found a walker that fit him and miracles happened!  This little boy went from a scared child to the happiest boy in the world.  At first, he was a little unsure of walking and needed his dad in front of him to help motivate him to take his first steps.  But soon, the little boy was laughing so hard, he would lose control and fall down.  You could see the light in his eyes when he was able to walk around outside without needing someone to hold him up.  He would walk so fast at times that we would have to slow him down so he wouldn’t fall.   These are moments when I can look back at the last two years of my life and realize that all the studying, stress, late nights, cheap meals, and terrible tests were all worth it.  When you can see a child come into the clinic so dependent on his parents to get around you watch him fight with his parents because he doesn’t want to leave, you realize that God has done amazing things. 

creating a splint!

Our God is an amazing God and what he does each day is unbelievable.   He puts each and every one of us on earth for a purpose and it’s up to us to listen Him and obey.   This trip has been such an eye opener and there’s only going to be more amazing moments this week.   It’s incredible to think that the God we serve in America, is the same God people serve in Peru, Africa, and the underground churches in China.

Once we finished with our patients, we went through the slowly shrinking “wheel chair lot” to pick out chairs that will be going to Cusco and Lima for mission trips this fall (spring for Peru).  After we found the chairs, we headed to the city to do some more shopping before our week was over.  At the city center, we found time for a group picture and of course, a jumping picture before the sun fell.   Lots of us “shopped til we dropped” bargaining and searching for the best prices before we came back to our home for some rest and relaxation.  

group picture at the city center

With only 4 days left at the clinic, our time is quickly leaving us.  We are all so excited for the patients that we are still yet to meet and treat and the relationships that we will continue to form with the PT’s, translators, other students, and our patients. 

God bless,

Courtney

 

  

Nate Blakeley, Nora, and myself got to travel to a nearby clinic today to treat several patients there.  We saw a few children who brought smiles to our faces and many adults who were very grateful for anything we could do for them.  We gave out a few wheelchairs, including one to a gentleman with Parkinson’s Disease who was having a great deal of difficulty with walking. 

On a funnier note, we saw a lady who told us she had neck pain, shoulder pain, and knee pain, but they were all fine and she didn’t need us to do anything for her.  We were quite unsure of where to go with the evaluation after she told us that, but we used it as an opportunity to practice our examination skills.  Also, a gentleman came to our clinic and mistook us for optometrists who could help him with his vision. We did our best to explain to him that this is not our specialty, and had to apologize as much as we could as he was on his way out.

Our team appreciates everyone’s thoughts and prayers as we continue our work in the clinic. We will continue to keep you updated!

Missy