Screening

A moment of light relief, playing some music for the waiting crowds. Christi (violinist) has become a good friend.










Some of the thousands who came in search of medical treatment.

Land Ahoy - Newsletter October 2004

Dear All,

I've just come inside after spending a while out on the deck - on the horizon we can see a hazy light which we think is the city of Lome, capital of Togo. This is some concrete evidence that we are very nearly in Benin! If you've looked at the website or spoken to my parents, or if I've been unusually efficient and emailed you separately since the last time I sent out a mass mailing, then you'll have realised that this journey has been somewhat fraught! For a start, when I arrived in Bremerhaven the ship boiler didn't work (amongst other things, this meant no hot water for showers) and as a result we couldn't leave Bremerhaven until 3 days late. Then on the way to Tenerife we had the roughest weather conditions anyone could remember and I got quite seasick. And when we thought we were within striking distance of Tenerife the engine stopped working and we drifted in the Atlantic ocean for 12 hours (fortunately the rough seas had abated by now) whilst there was frantic activity in the engine room, and then we sailed into Tenerife about 4 days late. I have never been happier to arrive anywhere! It is possible to paint a rather grim picture of life aboard the Anastasis - this afternoon the autoclave (the primary bit of kit I use in my work) shed about 10 gallons of water all over the (just sterilised) floor of the room where I work. When I expressed some frustration to my supervisor she (a veteran of 17 years with Mercy Ships) said: "This sort of thing is entirely normal: welcome to the Anastasis".

However telling you about the cockroaches (yes, really) and cabin fever would be to paint a very distorted picture. The truth is that the Anastasis seems to be a vibrant and loving community which has made me feel entirely welcome. There is a certain camaraderie in the face of adversity when you haven't had a hot shower for four days, and I have made friends aplenty and had a wonderful time. After arriving in Tenerife things seemed to go much more smoothly. Much of the crew has been working hard all summer on the fund-raising and procurement tour in Europe, and so the week in Tenerife was a chance for them to catch their breath before diving into the outreach phase in Africa. It also provided a wonderful chance for me to make friends, relax, and get used to ship life before work gets hectic when operating starts in a few days time. In Tenerife we explored the city of Santa Cruz where the ship was docked. The city is not particularly attractive from the sea, but as you walk through the streets it is vibrant and there are lots of wide plazas and pleasant shopping streets with mature trees and places to sit. We frequented in particular two establishments: the most amazing icecream parlour called "Romano's", and "Viva Maria's" a smoothie bar which sold freshly made fruit smoothies in any flavour imaginable and delicious triple-decker sandwiches for lunch. Other activities included leisurely afternoons on the beach, snorkelling in the semi-tropical waters, exploring the coast road around the island, and stocking up on Western creature comforts to see us through 7 months without Dairy Milk or Marmite.

The sail from Tenerife to Benin has been as different to the previous one as I could have imagined. Morning after morning I have sat out on the bow and seen another stunning sunrise, always different but always striking. On Sunday we watched the Passion of the Christ in the afternoon, which was a truly humbling and harrowing experience, but to sit out on the bow for the medical prayer and praise meeting the next morning to see the pastel-blue sea like glass, and the thin cloud forming an orange haze as we sailed due east whilst the sun rose was a potent reminder that our God did not just die and stay dead, but that he was the omnipotent creator of our beautiful universe and death had no hold on him. And if that weren't enough, the dolphins came out to join us and played in the bow wave for a few minutes whilst we sang. There have been regular visits from the dolphins, today I saw a pod of whales, there are hundreds upon hundreds of flying fish (strange, strange creatures) and whilst I haven't seen them apparently there have been large turtles too.

As you can see there has been plenty of time for rest and relaxation - I have now almost completed all the "new crew orientation" activities (it's quite a formidable process), and whilst homesickness does strike from time to time I am very very excited about the next few weeks and months. In the operating theatres we have bleached and bleached to get everything sterile for the first surgeries; the scrub nurses and supervisors are a great team to work with and I think we're all looking forward to seeing a few patients - surgery starts on the 11th of November. We are scheduled to arrive in Benin at 7am tomorrow morning, so I guess by the time most of you read this I'll be there, and then the first day is mostly taken up with the official welcome from the Beninoise government. This weekend everyone is working frantically to get things set up because we are in fact arriving in Benin 3 days late, and then the screenings are on Monday and Tuesday. At the moment it looks like I will be escorting patients from station to station on Tuesday and possibly working for half the day on Monday at the prayer station, but it's likely that I'll have to stay on the ship for at least half a day in order to get all the instruments sterile. From what everyone says, screening is an draining experience and one day or one and a half will be plenty. The need in Benin is vast: we expect to be inundated with people, many of whom will have to be turned away. "The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field". I know that I must focus on extending love and care to as many people as I can, but that ultimately we are only human and cannot help everyone. Please do pray for strength for all the crew in facing the screening days.

In the last few days I've learnt a lot more about the vision of the Anastasis' leadership for our outreach in Benin and then in Liberia and i can honestly say it's very very exciting. There are many godly men and women here and they are not afraid of thinking big. I'm running out of room to describe everything that I've experienced - do email back questions or whatever if I've missed anything you'd like to know and I'll try to explain more: I have absorbed a rather overwhelming amount of information in the last 4 weeks!

I miss all of you very much: I suddenly realised on sailing from Tenerife that I'd just missed the point of no return, and that I really was here until June. Thank you to everyone who's emailed me or signed the guestbook on my website, and thank you for your prayers - it means a vast amount to me to know that people back home remember that I exist! Please thank God for helping me to settle in here - I've learnt many many names, made some good friends already and anticipate getting to know many more people, and there is a great support network in place for the crew. I hope to get involved in the music here - I am already teaching piano to a terrifyingly enthusiastic nine-year-old boy. I also have scheming plans afoot to introduce the charismatics here to the beauties of the anglican liturgy and to the great hymns, but I might put those ambitions aside for a few months in the name of unity in Christ! The style is different to StAG, different to the Benefice, very different to OLEM, but I'm getting used to it and learning to appreciate it. I'm very much looking forward to African church - might try to get along on Sunday but I suspect it might have to wait for the next weekend. Please pray that I would have lots of energy to work hard in the theatres as surgeries start, and that the ship would have a profound impact for Christ in Benin as we show love to the people here.

Final point: I've discovered the ship satellite phone system - I can receive incoming calls from the UK outside working hours (ie evenings and weekends) and it would be wonderful to hear from you if you have a dull moment. It does cost the same as calling Florida, but that is not always extortionate so do consider giving me a ring to tell me your news: the ship phone number is: 00 1 954 5384258.

All my very best wishes, I think of you all often.
Lots of love and God bless,
Rosalind
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