Pics of Sierra Leone

Freetown, Sierra Leone from the ship at sunset. Absolutely beautiful.

Our Dock and home for nine months

:)

So, the reason why I uploaded these photos instead of writing about my adventures is, I haven't had any lately. I've been working night shift, but as I was posting these pictures a group of patients came in. Each one of them had various expressions on their faces: hope, fear, awe, and even blank looks. They have tried to get this healing for so long they don't know what to think and are saving the happiness of health for when it actually happens. Still, it is such a good reminder of why I am here. It makes me happy that the patients pass by me as they come in.

Thank you all for reading and praying for me,
Heather

A Good Day then a Bad Day

After ten days of working at reception, I finally got a day off on Saturday, and went to the beach with my good friend, Becca. This was also a bittersweet day since Leah, another good friend, had gone home. Nearing the end of our time at the beach on Saturday, we went for a walk then met up with one of the people Becca had met before when she was scouting beaches (she was making up the intertainment book for the Africa Mercy). In both Togo and Benin, the people I interacted with, especially potential patients, did not speak good English. It is so much harder to click with someone you do not speak the same language as, then with those you can understand. I did not understand this fully until I met this man. He spoke fluent English. My brain instantly clicked him as being my equal. I hate to say it, but sometimes I find that hard to do. Now, he did not want to become a patient, but his father was going blind. The hope on his face was absolutely beautiful when we told him his father might get treatment and see again. It instantly brought to life the hope people gain when they even hear the name of "Africa Mercy". See, they aren't just thinking rich people, white people, westerners, a nice facility. We are their only hope of ever walking, seeing, or being normal again. Most African countries have minimal health services and even smaller surgery ability. When they do, there is no insurance affordable enough for more than half the people. Sometimes it is easier to remember them as a statistic, but the hope I saw in that young man's eyes, when he heard there was a possibility that his father, a man he loved, could see again, then that statistic fell away, and I saw a human being clinging onto something. That is so powerful. Hope can be dangerous.
Today Mercy Ships had screening day. It is when thousands of people come to a large stadium or building to be looked at and get the yay and nay on getting a life changing opperation. This is a lot like getting in line for that Peter and John miracle in the Bible with the lame guy. Same desperation.
I'm not sure what, so I am not going to speculate, but something went wrong. Quite a bunch of people got into the gaits before they were supposed to and a lot of other things escalated to created panic, panic born of desperation made worse by hope. Something I almost feel bad about, is I am thankful no Mercy Shipers got hurt.
Amongst the Africans who were in the midst of the chaos there were injuries and one death - an African man who only wished to be looked at and maybe cured. Hope had spured him. I have no idea who this man was. I do not know his family. I have never see his face, but I pray that his family will be ok and that the comfort of God will flow over them.
This makes what we are doing so much more real. This is why I'm here. To help those doctors and nurses who are essentually being Peter and John. Peter and John did not give money. They did not tell the begger he needed to follow Jesus first. They just layed their hands on the man and he was healed.
Who are we? We are just tools God uses, and Satan hates that. Satan hates healing, joy, and hope. Hope is a powerful thing.
So please pray for us on board the Africa Mercy as we process everything that has gone on today. It is a tragedy that Satan used what we ment for good. Still, God is powerful and will use this tragedy for good. Thank you God.

God bless you all.
Heather

Sierra Leone

Well, I'm here!
My camera is full, and believe me I have found no time to take download those pictures so I can take more, so you'll have to live without for a bit.

Anyways, it is absolutely beautiful here. The city of Freetown is basically crowned by mountains and water. People have built their houses all the way up the mountain, and the two are so close together, that we can see the individual lights of the houses up the mountains. I haven't been here long to gain a general outlook on what the people are like, and what the atmosphere is like here. I took one walk from the port to one of our houses, which took five minutes. Still the walk was somewhat adventurous, considering how friendly people are here. Everybody stopped to say hello and ask how we were. There are little shanty shops all the way up the road but people aren't grabby about getting customers just a friendly hopefulness.
I think I'm glad we are here.

Work itself has been a tiring, long process. I can't complain. Most of the time we have little work in comparison with everybody else. Still, work has been non stop busy. On monday I must have worked for twelve hours all together and stayed up till one am embarking thirty new crew members. The next day was quite the challenge. Its been good though. I feel useful, and like I know something. Just tired. God is good though, and he has provided the strength I've needed.

Well, I hope all is well. Don't forget about us here in Sierra Leone.
Thanks,
Heather

@ Sea

Once again we are sailing. This will be my... let's see... my fourth and last time sailing. That is a somewhat depressing thought. In August I am planning on leaving (unless God says differently) for home, making a few detours to Swaziland and Europe along the way. Yes, it's six months from now and I'm already starting to think about it. Humph. That's probably not a good thing

Ok, so sailing. Its been fairly relaxing. Sailing is the period of time that I have more days off reception than on. I also don't feel as obligated, as its my fourth time, to do all those things one does while sailing (going to the bow, looking at the stars from deck eight, sleeping on deck eight), which is also nice. That is not to say that I am not keeping busy in my own way. As those who know me, already know (bad sentence structure there but oh well), I want to be a writer, so I've been studying on that. I've been reading a book called Self editing for fiction writers and taking notes. Its a good book. I've also started a blog up on my life as a newbie writer (as a sort of advertisement: http://insignificantwriter.blogspot.com).

Yesterday was busy in the fun department. One of my good friends on board just had a big birthday, so I attended her potluck lunch (had really good chocolate cake). Happy Birthday to Kathy!! One of the families on board had an open cabin (there are no houses so its kind of like an open house) and I hung out with them (popcorn). For dinner we had cake once again, as one of the babies on board turned one. Happy Birthday Lily! Yes I know this is getting listy (no, that is not a word). We then had worship on the bow (the bow is the most forward part of the ship and in this case is outside with the waves - think Titanic), which is always amazing. I love having worship in the middle of nature with the sun setting and the water splashing - purely magnificent. The last mass crew event was sock golf. Now, I'm a nerd when it comes to any type of sporty event, which means I'm terrible, even at sock golf (sad, very sad). Ok, so explanation: think Frisbee golf except with socks rolled up and on a tipsy ship. Hah! Oh well it was fun anyways... that is until I got annoyed with myself.
Ah well it all rolled up and got sleepy when my normal group of friends (they call themselves the nerd herd for some strange reason) and I watched Eureka in one of the family on board's cabin. Its something we do almost every day, and is a good way to take a breather before the end of the day - watch a few television episodes than go to bed. After this horrendously long day (started at twelve pm but don't tell anybody), I curled up in my bed, finished my book, read a bit of my Bible, and fell asleep. All in all, it was a good day.

Ok so yesterday was busy in the fun department, but that isn't to say I haven't been working, wasting my father's valuable money (he's supporting me). When I have been working, works been a lot. We have badges to do, packets for the forty some odd arrivals boarding when we get to Sierra Leone to make up, emails to answer, questions to direct, phone calls to answer, notice board stuff, and a host of other piddly but time consuming and much needed stuff to do.

In all, after my bout of not bearing the seas to well (not quite sickness but discomfort for sure) I have had a nice sail. Hope your having a nice week too.

God bless
Heather Out.

Cape Town

There are some days where I feel extremely blessed. After a three day journey, the Africa Mercy docked in Cape Town for twenty-four hours. Cape Town is a beautiful city, being enfolded by large, oddly shaped mountains, and the crystal sea, but that is not why I felt so blessed. A good friend of mine is from Cape Town, and is at the moment going to school there. She picked me up from the ship, and we went to her house where her family was having a get together. The family immediately incorporated me into the group, and made me feel at home. Even though my friend had to go to band practice at church, they chatted with me, and hung out, though I was a completely new entity in their environment. I went to church with them, talked with them, and later after church, had junk food with them. Its strange how nice junk food can taste after being on a ship where the meals are made from scratch most of the time. I went to bed at their house, comfortable and welcome.
The next day, I was dropped off at the ship at around nine am, and I got to do more the touristy thing. We road a bus where we put on earplugs to hear the automated tour guide, and heard about the history of the city. Cape Town, for being so young, has a lot of history. A lot of it is racial problems, but it does seem that they are repenting from that scar. It is a beautiful city and faintly reminds one of California. The rest of the day, we went up the mountain in a cable car (I'm not a hiker), ate schwarma, and went to a bookstore. So, maybe I didn't get to wander the streets, but still it was memorable. Its always the little blessings that seem to stay the longest.

Pool and Other Important Matters

Guess what! We now have a pool. Yes that's right, they filled it up with clorinated water and I have swam in it three times! So my griping about it is over.
In other news, we are hoping, praying, and crossing our fingers, that we will leave tomorrow, and get to Cape Town in a few days time. That is even more exciting than the pool as I have friends down there who I hope to see again.
The plan is to only be in Cape Town for one day then to set sail for Sierra Leonne. The next part of our sea voyage will be the interesting part, as I'm sure you can imagine. We are to cross through the cape of storms. That's what the sailers named it. Hah! Well last time God protected us, and I trust he will do so again. Still, pray for us and our journey. Still, I'm excited. The crew happen to be very good at keeping themselves entertained during a voyage. There are numerous games, movies, and other various entertainment to keep oneself busy, not to mention the marine life that occasionally pops up to say hi as we sail the Atlantic.
Yep, I'm excited.

The Sound of Children

Once again, there is the sound of children's laughter. I didn't really know I missed it until I heard it again. Two things are back on the ship: the crew who went to Appelsbosch and air conditioning. The air conditioning I had realized I'd missed. It's hard not to when one wakes up to the puddle of one's own sweat in the morning. The thing about ships is that they are metal, and being so they tend to radiate heat. I tended to go outside just to cool off. But now we have both the crew and the air conditioning and I don't really know which I'm more happy about.
It's nice having my little friends come up to me just to say hi, or be pounced by one of the teenagers on board. The ship has about fifty kids on board, ranging from six months to eighteen. During shipyard faze we did have little Lily, who was too young to trip over wiring, or go where she'd get hurt, so stayed and became our mascot. Still, there were no other children. Yep I'm glad they are back.
Actually things are beginning to regulate once more. The academy is back on board, the ship shop is starting, if not now, than soon, the reception is at full steam ahead, and the hospital is slowly becoming spotless once again. I just ran into a few people hard at work getting black marks off the hospital floor. Home is becoming normal again.
I like that.