When You Are Lost For Words, Just Pedal

One of our maxfax patients, also named René.

Okay so I’m a little late with this week’s post…I would like to say it's because I've been so busy, but really I think it's just because I can't find the words right now. Recently I realized that being on the ship long term is far different from being on the ship short term. When you are only here for a few months, every weekend is an adventure, many nights are spent eating out and every spare moment is spent having conversations with others. But that would be entirely unsustainable in the long term, and so those who are here longer have to find a way to have a routine and some sense of normalcy. This is everyday life. How do you do that on a hospital ship in Africa? You engage in more planned activities and less spontaneous ones. You have a workout routine. You spend your lunch reading by yourself. You go to bed at the same time every night. You spend many weekends relaxing and catching up with family and doing chores. You have to find a way to have a somewhat normal life, even amongst all this craziness, because there is always stuff going on and it is easy to get burned out if you do too much. But those are just some of the ways I do it, I’m sure others have a completely different approach. I’ve also noticed that I spend far more time with other crew who are here long term. It’s not because I don’t want to get to know the short term crew, I just cross paths with them less, especially when I’m avoiding the dining room. There are around 200 long term crew onboard, with the other 200 being short termers who come and go. It’s just a different mindset.

The First Lady of Benin came and visited with some of the
patients in the ward.

Now with all that said about routine, somehow every day is still a new adventure. This week I have hosted the Managing Director of a seafood company who donates money to the ship; helped with the hosting of media at our Ponseti clinic as they filmed some training and the ‘graduation’ of students from the program; assisted with a cheque giving presentation where MTN (the local internet/cellphone provider) donated 5 million cifa to us; attended a meeting about the new ship; assisted National Geographic as they interviewed our captain, as well as patients;  and planned 4 vision trips, including a visit by our international board and founder. And that’s just the work side!

This last week or so has also included a HOPE Center dedication service, where we danced and sang to celebrate the opening of our HOPE Center; a Hebrews Bible study with an animated discussion that went on for 2 hours and would have continued if we didn’t have curfew; a visit to a local church, which had the most amazing choir and was in French (meaning I could understand!); listening to Dr.Gary talk about facial tumours, which is mindblowing; babysitting the three cutest Portuguese kids ever; a visit to the local craft and fabric markets with a girl from our small group who is visiting from the IOC; a murder mystery night at the team house, which had a 1960s cold war theme, with a murder in a British college and included double agents (I got to be a male character, complete with a fake 5 o’clock shadow); and lots of other random fun activities.

Alex, the Nat Geo producer, making
friends with some of our plastics patients.

I’ve been realizing lately how powerful words are, and that not everyone has a grasp on this concept. The idea of phrasing things positively instead of negatively (we can’t do this vs. what we can do is…). The way we can encourage, support, strengthen, and build up with words. It can be hard to teach this, but the Bible tries to explain this to us. That the tongue we praise God with should not be the same tongue that we gossip, discourage or diminish with. It also makes me grateful for The Word. For God’s Word – His ultimate truth. To have this, to be able to study it, is so special. I am thankful for all the things He reveals to us through His word, sharing things when He knows we can understand, when we won’t be too overwhelmed. It’s also ironic because I find myself struggling with my words this week. However, I know that it is not through my strengths that God is revealed but rather through my weaknesses that He shines. When I cannot do something, when I wrestle with sin, when I am weak in an area, and submit to Him, He comes in and does it in His strength, His way.

And so, I want to share a poem that Windsor shared with us recently that really touched my heart. I pray that we would all be able to trust Him fully and just pedal.

When I met Christ

it seemed as though life were rather like a bike ride,

but it was a tandem bike,

and I noticed that Christ

was in the back helping me pedal.

I don’t know just when it was

that He suggested we change places,  

but life has not been the same since.

When I had control, I knew the way,

It was rather boring, but predictable…

It was the shortest distance between two points.

But when He took the lead,

He knew delightful long cuts,

up mountains, and through rocky places

at breakneck speeds,

it was all I could do to hang on!

Even though it looked like madness,

He said, “Pedal!”

I worried and was anxious and asked,

“Where are you taking me?”

He laughed and didn’t answer,

and I started to learn to trust.

I forgot my boring life

and entered into the adventure.

And when I’d say, “I’m scared,”

He’d lean back and touch my hand.

He took me to people with gifts that I needed,

gifts of healing, acceptance, and joy.

He said, “Give the gifts away;

they’re extra baggage, too much weight.”

So I did, to the people we met,

and I found that in giving I received,

and still our burden was light.

I did not trust Him, at first,

in control of my life.

I thought He’d wreck it;

but He knows bike secrets,

knows how to make it bend to take sharp corners,

knows how to jump to clear high rocks,

knows how to fly to shorten scary passages.

And I am learning to shut up and pedal

in the strangest places,

and I’m beginning to enjoy the view

and the cool breeze on my face

with my delightful constant companion, Jesus Christ.

And when I’m sure I just can’t do anymore,

He just smiles and says… “Pedal.”

-          Author Unknown

Our surgeons hard at work! On a side note, Timmy, who took many of these pictures, left yesterday, but he will be back in January to continue capturing these beautiful moments. I love that people are so moved by our work here that they choose to keep coming back :)