in the Hands of the Potter: life in the bush

Tuesday, June 6, 2006

life in the bush

Today was probably the most interesting day I have had yet. Felix drove me down to the clinic and I saw patients with Akson (he's one of the doctor-guys). There are two of them - Mulenga and Akson. I love Akson; he's really sweet - I have to keep asking him "what's wrong" or "what did they say" because he talks to everyone in Lamba. Mulenga is really hard to understand, and when I see patients with him, I have to have Maureen interpret for me. She's a "nurse" or something, and really sweet. But anyway, so Tuesdays and Thursdays all the pregnant women come in - so we saw about 8 pregnant girls. They are so cute! One girl is supposed to deliver June 16. Apparently the girls will want me to deliver their babies, since I'm a girl, so we'll see how that goes. :o)

So about 11:30 Kevin shows up and tells me that he needs me, because Joseph is sick (Joseph is one of the Zambians who works for us- he is awesome. I love him). So Kevin drives me up to this other clinic where Joseph is.
So I go in to see Joseph knowing that they expect me to figure out what's wrong with him. (!) He's lying there on this bed, drenched in sweat but bundled up in blankets. He says he's got a terrible occipital headache and that he tested negative for malaria. He says that the clinic people took his blood pressure and that it was 170/160. So I examine him and ask him a few things and can't find anything wrong. Other than the fact that he's diaphoretic and just looks terrible. Meanwhile Kevin is peering over my shoulder, waiting for my diagnosis.

It was so interesting. I felt actually needed. But it was scary being the ONE with the medical knowledge. Honestly, there is no one else here to turn to. It's just me. These people are looking up to me and respecting my knowledge and trusting me. Literally putting their lives in my hands. It's pretty amazing for someone who is used to having a doc or another PA or someone to say "I dunno, what do you think?"

I went back to the clinic after that whole drama and sat around with Maureen. I asked her to teach me some Bemba (another dialect). It was so much fun! All the Zambians were laughing at me trying to say words, but it was really fun. I really want to learn and be able to talk to them at least a little bit.

So then Jimmie and Felix came to get me and then Amy and I made dinner. After dinner we went to the clinic to get Joseph to bring him back to his house. He's such a sweetheart. He calls us "my Amy" and "my Emily." Anyway, we took him home and got a tour of his house, then Kevin wanted to drive through the bush to talk to another one of the guys who goes to the Bible Institute.

Gee, it's hard to describe the bush. That's basically where we are. You tend to think of Africa as desert, but here it's a ton of huge, tall grass and trees. There are a few main roads, but then there's trails in the midst of all this grass that lead to villages. There are usually about 4-5 huts in each village, and the people that live there are typically all related. So we drove to Anderson's village (he's the guy) through the bush ... made a wrong turn ... and ended up at the right spot. But it was incredible. So amazing. I wish you could've been there.
There were these 3 houses, all dark because there's no electricity and the sun has gone down a few hours ago. There is a hut with a grass roof and inside it are a bunch of Zambians crouching around a fire. I think they were cooking something over it. Listening to the radio. Talking in Lamba. The stars twinkling in the clearest sky you've ever seen, and the moon just bursting with light. It was such a foreign feeling. Like, this is AFRICA. It was awesome. I wish I could've somehow taken a picture or something of it, so you could feel it too.

Here is a picture of Joseph, taken yesterday. They carry things on their heads here; it's actually pretty amazing. You'll see women carrying 5-gallon buckets full of water on their heads.

I hope you enjoyed my day ... let me know if these kinds of stories are too boring to post :o)

posted by emily @ 6:05 PM

8 Comments:

At 9:17 PM, JEN said…

oh so does this mean you can deliver moore #2? LOL

I love your stories, and that you post. and um...OMG you are in africa??!?!?!? :)

Miss you Mung!

Love, Jen Keith, Choofy and the Bean
At 1:05 AM, Anonymous said…

great story! is joseph alright?

when you deliver those babies, maybe you could pop one or two in your suitcase!

you made africa come alive for me tonight....... love you..... be careful.

t rex
At 2:21 AM, emily said…

yeah he's ok. feeling better now and back at home. :)
i'll try to fit the babies in! i might have to leave all my other stuff here. hehe.
At 9:37 AM, bethany said…

I, too, love your stories. Thanks for sharing!! :D

You'll have to let us know how the deliveries go. Heh. :)
At 1:20 PM, Anonymous said…

I really enjoy hearing about your experiences in Africa. It's great that you get to share them as they happen!

I love looking at the pictures you take and seeing what it is like over there. Keep them coming :-).
At 7:54 PM, Anonymous said…

aww...I love your stories :) It is so neat hearing about all of your interesting experiences! Keep posting !!! :)
At 11:16 PM, Anonymous said…

more! more! we need more!
a.r.
At 12:42 PM, Anonymous said…

Hey Em, I'm working my way through all these entries, as I failed to check in for a few weeks. This one is great! :)

I chuckled when I read that Joseph calls you guys "My". I'm not sure, but I have a feeling he might be calling you "Mai Emily" meaning "Mother Emily" (not cuz you're a mother, but as a term of respect)...That's how it was in Malawi, just over the way. You should ask someone.

Sounds like you're having a great experience. Though I still have lots to read...

Julia Cornish

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