Joel and I went into this weekend pretty exhausted. The past few weekends have been jam packed with cultural events and new experiences. It is very tiring to be experiencing the unfamiliar and to be corrected constantly on what you say and do. I appreciate the correction because it is how we will learn, but it does take an emotional toll. Feeling the exhaustion, we realized that we needed to have a relaxing weekend and planned nothing.
Saturday Tyler fell. This happened late in the evening on Saturday. We thought he had just popped his arm out of joint, but were not able to get it back in. The hospital here doesn’t come the most highly recommended and especially not in the middle of the night, so we decided to wait it out until the morning. That was a night of little to no sleep. The next morning we ventured off to the hospital (an experience all of it’s own). We were very thankful for an African friend who came with us and ushered us to the right people in the hospital. We discovered that Tyler has two small fractures in his arm, which supposedly should heal in 10 days. We aren’t completely confident that the cast was put on correctly and are learning more from the internet about how to take care of a cast than we were told at the hospital. Pray with us that Tyler’s arm will heal well and that there will be no added complications.
I will be honest that I was more homesick Sunday than I have been in a long time. Partly we were just already so tired, but then on top of that I really missed having…
- A doctor that I knew and trusted
- People we could call for advice in the middle of the night
- The comfort of asking questions in English and knowing I understood the answer completely
- Confidence that I was getting good medical advice
With all that being said, we are praising God that the break was small and that we got it in a cast quickly. Tyler has been an amazing trooper with everything and besides the first night has rarely complained of pain. He hurt his dominate hand, but he has been stubbornly working to learn how to use his other hand and refuses assistance with anything.
So sorry to hear about Tyler and your journey through a foreign countries medical community. It’s sometimes hard enough to wade through our own here in the US but at least we all speak the same language, hopefully. Praying that arm will heal quickly and correctly and you will feel God’s presence in your home.
Oh Andi, I hear my daughter’s concerns for Cordelia whenever she was ill and the medical care team (whether good or not) all spoke in French or Arabic. It was very frightening and confusing for her. She had the same type of problems when Cordelia began school and all the communication with the teachers, the principal, and the entire school staff spoke a different language.
It is so very difficult for you ex-pats. I don’t think we here at home have any idea. You do such a good job sharing your feelings and your experiences. It does help us feel like a part of your life and helps us pray better for you and your family.
Give Tyler a special hug from me and tell him I think he is a very brave and stong boy. Not to say cute as the dickens too.
Be blessed my friend, we are at home supporting you in prayer. You walk where we (I) only wish we(I) could (did).
Carolyn
How many times we wish it was us instead of our child. That little guy still has the most beautiful smile and disposition. Children adapt so much quicker than we do.
I will definately pray for a clean heal without complication. With our prayers and a big hug!!
oh my daughter I am homesick for you to be here too. I do not like not being close to you in these kinds of situations. I am ranting to God and though children are resiliant and Tyler will do fine. I do not like this at all. I cling to God’s goodness and his desire for his children both big and 3yrs old to be given good gifts though at times we do not understand the gift. Praying for accurate healing for my little guys arm and for you to know God’s peace. Love you Mom
Andi, my heart goes out to you and Joel. It is hard to see your children hurting. Praying for a good recovery for Tyler. May even this strengthen your faith and be a witness to others about the Lord you are serving in Africa.
Jeannette
Wow! Glad for your blog. Glad for your friends who have walked through hard things like this who can lift you up with encouragement.
Thank you, again, for serving in this far away place.
Glad God is there. I know He won’t let you down. May He be your help.
Well, Andrea pretty much said it all. I can’t imagine how excruciating it must be to watch your children suffer. I can’t imagine anything worse. But like Andrea said, kids are resilient and I’m praying that Tyler is okay. I am praying for you all, especially that Tyler’s arm heals quickly and properly. Love you all! May God give you his grace to meet the situations that are beyond your strength. May he encourage your spirits and amaze you with his sufficiency in all things. May he support your faith and deliver you from evil. Amen.
Kudos to you, Andi and Joel. I’ve had medical care in other countries and it was stressful and disconcerting. But not overwhelming. Because it was for ME and I was only in my early 20s. What’s to worry about? 🙂 But for my child? THAT would have been much more than disconcerting. Praying God binds your heart to Him more each day.
You just walked through the hardest thing in missions….poor medical care as it relates to your children. I think this is THE BIG hard issue. We’ll put up with poor medical care for ourselves but feeling like we should be taking care of our child and working in a poor or broken medical system…oh man!
When we moved to Czech we had our own little pharmacy – and our doctor would often come over and use my supplies for treating my kids! We also gave her gifts of medical equipment so the pediatrician’s office would have what we considered to be “basic” equipment.
Learn what you can – work the system as best as you can – pray and rant to the Lord about it until it gets out of your system. This is the issue. This is the one where you stand in trust that God’s plans for your children included this situation at this hospital. This is where you miss home and re-commit to being where you are. This is where you feel a million miles from “civilization” and “security”. This is when you bring a smile to our Lord when you stand in faith in the middle of this situation.
By the way, missionary kids seem to survive bad medical situations and are fantastic….so he’s not struggling as much as you are.
My heart it with you. Guard your heart. Stand in faith. Walk through the hard stuff – and this is it! We’re cheering for you and praying for a quick, straight, full recovery
Andrea