Easter Weekend 2010
APRIL 1st
Well April 1st is like a national holiday in Zimbabwe and especially at Chidamoyo, people can’t seem to wait to start “fooling” each other! Of course I enjoy getting into the mood of the day and first thing in the morning I had my guards going to Major’s house saying they were needed there. When the guards went one said “I am not sure if sister said I should see you or she needed to see you” so Major decided since he didn’t need him I must need him and went off to get dressed. Then his wife reminded him it was April 1st!
Then I sent one of my visitors to Major’s house who by this time had over 10 people sent to his house and they figured out he had been fooled!
On my way to the hospital I stopped next store and got Lori out of bed saying “C/Section—get dressed I am waiting.” She got in the car and a drove her about 10 feet and asked her what day it was and she said April 1st and I said “you are a fool!” She was not happy I woke her up for that!!
Then I got to the hospital and people were sending people to me left and right telling them sister needed them! I send word to the doctor that our diabetic patient had a blood sugar of >65 mmol (normal is 6) and what should I do—he came to see patient!
When I told Major that our PMD (provincial medical director) was coming today he started getting ready for them and kept saying “why are they coming the day before the 4 day holiday starts? Then I told him “April 1st!”
I told him to go tell his son he had to go back to school on Monday as I got an email from his school, Major again fell for it and said “why did he come home if he has to go back Sunday!” I said tell him, not that it is real! Oh—April 1st!
This continues all day! Then when we usually have electricity all day Thursday—surprise—ZESA went out at 6 p.m.! Surprise it was back on at 7 p.m. and for rest of night until 7:30 a.m.! I guess that was our April Fools from ZESA!
My visitors this week, Mike and Gilly Withers from UK and their niece Jeannine from Cape Town arrived on Tuesday night. Mike is fixing up our guesthouse and getting it in order. Gilly is teaching some English classes for our staff. Jeannine is helping us at the hospital.
Easter weekend is always a 4 day holiday here and the youth left on Thursday to attend a National Youth conference in Mutare until Monday. We helped to pay their bus fare. We had several church meetings going on here from Friday through Sunday church, so I went out with Major to Mudzimu church and he went out Saturday night to Bashungwe church. We show the Jesus film in Shona and stay for the message and some singing. The skies are so clear and it is so wonderful to sit out under the stars and see the film!
Today it was 84 and Gilly was in the pool. Winter is coming on fast and it is getting down to low 70’s at night—I sleep under the blanket! Mike and Jeannine went to visit Gladys for the weekend up on the eastern part of the country.
Since we have a four day holiday I only have to work until I am finished—so Friday I was up at the hospital from 8:30 until about 1:30 p.m. Our patients don’t realize we close outpatients on holidays so they still manage to come! I stayed to do the discharges and started 2 new people on ART, so it was a good day. Lori went Friday afternoon to Harare to pick up our new visitor, Rachael Sullivan from Ohio who arrived on Saturday afternoon. She only got about 10 miles away and had a flat tire and then the spare was almost flat—so got someone to pump it up with a bicycle pump and came back to have both tires fixed! What an adventure! After getting lost a couple of times she made it to Harare on her own and back!
After I got back on Friday night from Mudzimu church at 11:30 p.m. I went straight to the hospital for a repeat C/Section. This turned out to be the C/Section from hell! We got the baby out but it has a cord tightly wrapped around the next twice, tried to resuscitate the baby without success, and then found the mom had ruptured her uterus behind a bladder that had adhesions everywhere! She went into DIC and we worked for 2 hours—sewed her up but she continued to bleed and got ready to transfer her for blood (we had none) and she died. One funny part of the surgery is that I had to scrub since Lori was gone and since I ran in to find them ready for surgery—I quickly put on scrubs and started the surgery—about 10 minutes into the surgery my scrub pants fell to my ankles as I obviously had not tied them on well—so had to kick them off and keep going! Luckily our sterile gowns go all the way around and cover up everything! Finally got to bed at 5 a.m. and by then another repeat C/Section had walked in, in labor! We said no we had to get some sleep so went home and took a 2 hour nap and then back up to do another C/Section. This one went well and healthy baby. Stayed to do rounds and discharges and see some emergency patients and finally about 4 p.m. laid down for another 2 hour nap! Got up in time to cook dinner and welcomed Lori and Rachael back about 8 p.m. to have dinner with Gilly and me.
Sunday morning went better! We had coffee and muffins at 5:45 a.m. and off to Sunrise service at 6 a.m. at our church—where we met outside and had our service as the sun rose! It finished at 8 a.m. and Major and family came over for another round of coffee and muffins.
Sunday lunch we had 11 people to help celebrate Easter. Dr. Zimudzi, Dr. Murenje and wife, Major and family and Gilly, Lori, Rachel and I. We had a pork roast with all the trimmings. After lunch we all collapsed for a nap. Sunday night we showed the Jesus film at the hospital for our Sunday service.
Today is Monday and Lori went to work so I get to enjoy a day off! I am catching up on email and planning another nap this afternoon-ha! Hope you had a special Easter! Cheers!The pictures show our sunrise service and also our Easter dinner.
Well April 1st is like a national holiday in Zimbabwe and especially at Chidamoyo, people can’t seem to wait to start “fooling” each other! Of course I enjoy getting into the mood of the day and first thing in the morning I had my guards going to Major’s house saying they were needed there. When the guards went one said “I am not sure if sister said I should see you or she needed to see you” so Major decided since he didn’t need him I must need him and went off to get dressed. Then his wife reminded him it was April 1st!
Then I sent one of my visitors to Major’s house who by this time had over 10 people sent to his house and they figured out he had been fooled!
On my way to the hospital I stopped next store and got Lori out of bed saying “C/Section—get dressed I am waiting.” She got in the car and a drove her about 10 feet and asked her what day it was and she said April 1st and I said “you are a fool!” She was not happy I woke her up for that!!
Then I got to the hospital and people were sending people to me left and right telling them sister needed them! I send word to the doctor that our diabetic patient had a blood sugar of >65 mmol (normal is 6) and what should I do—he came to see patient!
When I told Major that our PMD (provincial medical director) was coming today he started getting ready for them and kept saying “why are they coming the day before the 4 day holiday starts? Then I told him “April 1st!”
I told him to go tell his son he had to go back to school on Monday as I got an email from his school, Major again fell for it and said “why did he come home if he has to go back Sunday!” I said tell him, not that it is real! Oh—April 1st!
This continues all day! Then when we usually have electricity all day Thursday—surprise—ZESA went out at 6 p.m.! Surprise it was back on at 7 p.m. and for rest of night until 7:30 a.m.! I guess that was our April Fools from ZESA!
My visitors this week, Mike and Gilly Withers from UK and their niece Jeannine from Cape Town arrived on Tuesday night. Mike is fixing up our guesthouse and getting it in order. Gilly is teaching some English classes for our staff. Jeannine is helping us at the hospital.
Easter weekend is always a 4 day holiday here and the youth left on Thursday to attend a National Youth conference in Mutare until Monday. We helped to pay their bus fare. We had several church meetings going on here from Friday through Sunday church, so I went out with Major to Mudzimu church and he went out Saturday night to Bashungwe church. We show the Jesus film in Shona and stay for the message and some singing. The skies are so clear and it is so wonderful to sit out under the stars and see the film!
Today it was 84 and Gilly was in the pool. Winter is coming on fast and it is getting down to low 70’s at night—I sleep under the blanket! Mike and Jeannine went to visit Gladys for the weekend up on the eastern part of the country.
Since we have a four day holiday I only have to work until I am finished—so Friday I was up at the hospital from 8:30 until about 1:30 p.m. Our patients don’t realize we close outpatients on holidays so they still manage to come! I stayed to do the discharges and started 2 new people on ART, so it was a good day. Lori went Friday afternoon to Harare to pick up our new visitor, Rachael Sullivan from Ohio who arrived on Saturday afternoon. She only got about 10 miles away and had a flat tire and then the spare was almost flat—so got someone to pump it up with a bicycle pump and came back to have both tires fixed! What an adventure! After getting lost a couple of times she made it to Harare on her own and back!
After I got back on Friday night from Mudzimu church at 11:30 p.m. I went straight to the hospital for a repeat C/Section. This turned out to be the C/Section from hell! We got the baby out but it has a cord tightly wrapped around the next twice, tried to resuscitate the baby without success, and then found the mom had ruptured her uterus behind a bladder that had adhesions everywhere! She went into DIC and we worked for 2 hours—sewed her up but she continued to bleed and got ready to transfer her for blood (we had none) and she died. One funny part of the surgery is that I had to scrub since Lori was gone and since I ran in to find them ready for surgery—I quickly put on scrubs and started the surgery—about 10 minutes into the surgery my scrub pants fell to my ankles as I obviously had not tied them on well—so had to kick them off and keep going! Luckily our sterile gowns go all the way around and cover up everything! Finally got to bed at 5 a.m. and by then another repeat C/Section had walked in, in labor! We said no we had to get some sleep so went home and took a 2 hour nap and then back up to do another C/Section. This one went well and healthy baby. Stayed to do rounds and discharges and see some emergency patients and finally about 4 p.m. laid down for another 2 hour nap! Got up in time to cook dinner and welcomed Lori and Rachael back about 8 p.m. to have dinner with Gilly and me.
Sunday morning went better! We had coffee and muffins at 5:45 a.m. and off to Sunrise service at 6 a.m. at our church—where we met outside and had our service as the sun rose! It finished at 8 a.m. and Major and family came over for another round of coffee and muffins.
Sunday lunch we had 11 people to help celebrate Easter. Dr. Zimudzi, Dr. Murenje and wife, Major and family and Gilly, Lori, Rachel and I. We had a pork roast with all the trimmings. After lunch we all collapsed for a nap. Sunday night we showed the Jesus film at the hospital for our Sunday service.
Today is Monday and Lori went to work so I get to enjoy a day off! I am catching up on email and planning another nap this afternoon-ha! Hope you had a special Easter! Cheers!The pictures show our sunrise service and also our Easter dinner.
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