Date night!

Monday, James Johnson, our field strategy coordinator, had the MK's over for movie night.
So what does a couple do that has been married for almost 14 years do?
Date night!

The ladies on the MVNU team had offered to baby sit for us one night, so when I went to town last time, I planned for a nice meal.
We had Brie cheese, shrimp, Mars bars, capers...o-my it was so great.

Since there is no where to go and really nothing to do...we stayed home and talked and finished the evening with a couple episodes of NCIS.
There you have it...a date night in PNG. The girls were walked home at 8:30pm and hopped right into bed!
God is Good.

Bone cave hike!

With our MVNU friends and some of the newer missionaries here on station, 21 of headed out at 11am, Sunday for a hike. This is us in the back of the flat bed truck, ready for our journey.
It was a slow start. When we got to the drop off the car point, a church, they were just starting the sermon. Quickly, someone went to go get our guides and they arrived about 45 minutes later. Then we were waiting for a guy who went back into the church service because he said he would watch the car. After about 1 1/2 hours, we got started.

What a fun hike! There was a narrow, shaded trail and a few river crossings, amazing trees and flowers, and beautiful mountains. About 40 nationals decided to go with us, so we were around 60 people traversing the terrain. Needless to say, it was a leisurely walk, because every little bridge and hard crossing, we all had to stop and wait.

After about 1 1/2 hours of hiking, we got off of the nice trail and into a trail that was about 2 inches of mud. The above picture is a very steep hill where we were all stopped for a bit while we took part in a very cultural experience.

I had convinced Scott to go along with us to the trip. I had a great time and Scott said he enjoyed being with me. We all got back to the station about 5:30 pm.

Perspective

Tuesday, at surgery, I was chatting with a lady who was going to have surgery.

So, this lady said she had 3 kids. I asked her the ages of the kids...she paused...
"Well, my first child died. My second child is grade 3. And my last child died."

I asked if she knew Jesus and prayed that he would continue to help her carry this burden of her children dying. She responded with...

"My suffering is nothing compared to what Jesus suffered!"

Monday morning....

I know it is still Sunday night in the states, but in PNG, it is 10am, and it has already been a crazy morning.
6:30 AWAKE
7-7:30 BREAKFAST, EMAIL, INTERNET, COFFEE
7:30 SCOTT TO HOSP
7:45 GIRLS TO SCHOOL
8:00 LIVY AND MAMA DRESSED
8AM NEIGHBORS AND FRIENDS START COMING BY
8-8:30 START LAUNDRY
MAKE BEDS
START BISCUITS
FEED COCKY
PICK UP LIVING ROOM
SET OUT CHICKEN TO THAW
PLAN SUPPER FOR TOMORROW (COMPANY COMING)
SWEEP PORCH
FEED NEIGHBOR'S CAT
IMAGINARY PLAY WITH OLIVIA INVOLVING FLOWERS AND A MUD PUDDLE
PICK BERRIES
CHARGE A CELL PHONE FOR A FRIEND
(many PNGers have a cell phone but no electricity at their house)
LET COCKY OUT FOR AWHILE
HELP OLIVIA IN BATHROOM
GO OUTSIDE
FREEZE WITH DREAD!

This cute, harmless looking bird just cut through my friend's cell phone charger cord with his beak!
My heart dropped, I just stood there!
Scott will be home at lunch and will help me know if there is anything to be done about the cord. Of course it is different than most cell phones cords, so we can't just give the friend ours.

I now have a cockatoo for sale! Any buyers? He's going cheap!

MVNU

There are 12 students and their professor here from Mt Vernon Nazarene University. They are here in PNG during their J-term and getting a class credit for reading books and journals (and more that I am not aware of).
They are an amazing group of people and I pray that they will hear His voice and leading while they are in a different country.
They don't get any ipods, Internet, movies, tv and no contact from home. The Prof's goal for the students is that "they fall in love with the people of PNG".
The team is right next door to us, so we get to be around them a lot! They have blessed us already, and still have 2 more weeks of being here!

OR patients

Isn't this lady the cutest thing? She has bright, white hair and is just beautiful!
A couple weeks ago, she came in and we took off a softball sized tumor from her head/ear.
Thursday, we did a skin graft to that area.

She only speaks tok ples and I don't know that local language, so we just smiled a lot at each other and used the OR staff to translate.

This is an 11 year old boy's leg. Yes, that is bone that is showing. Dr Jim took out the dead bone and we are praying that the leg will heal with God's touch, lots of antibiotics and the skills that are at the hospital.

Just another day.

Thursday was an ordinary day, doing cases in the OR, when Dr Bill comes in to let us know the hospital is closed. Jan 1st, we hired a new security company for our hospital and station security. The previous security were local people with no training or experience.

It seems that the previous security were upset by some issues where they thought they were being cheated by the hospital, so they took over control of the main gate. Which means they displaced the new company and were in charge of the lock and key on the gate.

The hospital was closed until the matter resolved a couple hours later and then was reopened. Pray for our leaders of the hospital to keep making hard decisions that God is leading them to make.

The birthday party

We cast sail at 9:30 for Ye Ol Highlander (a hotel/restaurant in Mt Hagen-45 minutes away)

The day was filled with swimming, games like "Find Tick Tock, the Crock", "Walk the Plank", "Swab the Poop Deck", and a great treasure hunt!

Pizza, Red velvet cake, presents were all great treasures. But at the end of the day, friends were the best treasure of all.

Eleven

Can you believe that it has been 11 years? WOW! Al is such a great gal. She is a great 11 year old. She is kind and very sensitive. She is very perceptive of other's feelings and likes to make sure people are happy.

At 11, she is happy to still climb up in the chair by dad, climb trees, play fairy games with her sisters, play on the computer, reads everything she can get her hands on. Allie is our early riser, usually at 6 or 6:30 am. She likes her room to be organized, but doesn't have to have it perfect to enjoy it. She likes school and likes being home as well.

I asked Al if she wanted breakfast in bed, and she said " I can't wait that long to get up". Thankfully, I did decorations the night before! She was up at 6:15, but I think awake long before that. We had blueberry muffins and grape juice for breakfast and peppermint tea.

Do you remember being 11? 5th grade? I remember getting sent to the principal's office, having 2 best friends, encyclopedia reports, loving to read, and loving my cats. Go ahead and post your memories from when you were 11.

Swimming time!

Jan 8th, if you are living in the mid-west, I bet this activity wasn't on your agenda. But it was a warm afternoon, and we had visitors, so we filled up the pool.

Some of us thought the water was cold and enjoyed the lawn chairs more.

I am always encouraged by how much fun can be had in less than a foot of water!

And of course, warming up in a cozy towel tops off the party!

Personality vs Culture

My thoughts have been traveling lately. To a land where I am not sure what the terrain is, what the weather will be like, or when I will arrive. But I am going along for this journey of my mind.

Here it is...how much of my personality (who I am) is wrapped up in my culture and my roles?

When we came to PNG, I was a total American girl. I was independent. The girls and I would go wherever I wanted, run errands, spend an hour at the park, grab a fast food lunch and not report to anyone. A lot of my personality was wrapped up in that independence.

Then I go to a land where I am a foreigner. Because of safety, I only drive when I have a man to go with me in the car. Only if a car is available. Only if I find child care for the girls because it is better for them to stay home. THEN, there is no place to go! Is this a joke?

So, it was a big adjustment. Independence being only one example of the issues I faced. Now, after 5 1/2 years, I am mostly adjusted to most issues of living cross culturally. I guess I am thinking of Job from the Bible. What if for some reason, I was stripped of my "roles" how does my personality change?

I guess what I am grasping for on this journey is...who is Gail that will never change?
1. If I am not a nurse, I am still caring.
2. If I am not a missionary, I will still seek to share Christ's love with people around me.
3. If I am not a mom, I would have a hole in my heart! But would be mothering to the motherless.
4. If I am not a wife, I am still a bride of Christ.
5. If I couldn't quilt/scrapbook/blog, I would still create.
6. If I am not healthy, I will still enjoy each moment.
7. If I am in pain, I will cling to God who will get me through.
8. If I lived in a hut with a dirt floor, I would know that God loves me just as much.
9. If my computer died, and I lost touch with "the rest of the world", I would maybe focus more on where I am at.
10. If I am not a Christian....no, that is a role that will never change.

Thanks for being around for this travel and wandering of my thoughts.
Who would you be if stripped of your roles along this journey of life?

At the Market

Mt Hagen market is a sight to see. If you come to visit, we will definitely take you there. Hundreds and hundreds of produce vendors selling their freshly picked, organic fruits and vegetables all at great prices. I always run out of strength to carry my bags before I run out of money.

Saturday, the Dooley 5 headed to Hagen, had lots of errands and the market was right before lunch. Scott, Allison and Emma got the honor of going in the market, while Livy and I were dripping sweat in the cruiser.

Upon returning to the car, Scott had about 20 cucumbers! I thought, "wow, he must be hungry for cucumbers!" As he got in, he told me what happened. An older lady ran-literally-(and it is hard to run in the market) up to him, hugging him, thanking him, crying "Doctor! Doctor! Thank you so much! I brought my daughter, (let's call her Sarah) to the hospital and she had suddenly became paralyzed. Sarah could not look after her new baby, I was doing everything for Sarah and my grandchild. You gave her medicine and now she is absolutely fine" The lady pointed down the aisle and there was Sarah, tears streaming down her face, holding a baby, selling cucumbers. Scott was very humble and gave all of the glory to God as he accepted the cucumbers.

As we eat them for lunch today, we will remember Sarah's miracle and God's hand on our lives every day. My New Year's resolution is to minister to the people that God puts in front of me.

New Year's Eve, PNG style