September: 1 year in the Philippines!

So this is a special blog as yesterday September 1st (Philippine time) marked a full year since Ellora and I arrived in Tabuk city.  Two weeks before we had spent 10 days in Davao city for orientation but the arrival into Tabuk city truly marked the beginning to a new chapter of our lives. 

 Since my arrival!

Since my arrival I have learned much and experienced plenty.  There have been tears and there has been joy.  There have been babies, mothers, new friends and new food.  And I am becoming half decent at washing my clothes by hand.

I now have a year and half left until the end of the program and I am in no rush for it to end.  I am reminded of this as our second years Alex and Bina prepare to depart from the Philippines and head back to Canada.  I can see how hard it is for them to leave and i cannot imagine how difficult it will be to say goodbye to the people here when my time comes,  but that is still a little ways away I must not dwell on that now.  It is not that I do not miss home and my family and friends because of course I do but I have also grown to feel at home here and of course it will be hard to leave, but as I  say I shell not dwell on that I am still not even half way through yet and despite my full knowledge of how fast time flies I am determined to say the phrase "I have lots of time".

About this month

So on to what happened this month.  It was a very good month with lots of wonderful moments. I got to be involved with some wonderful births.  There was one birth where I was in of which I was so grateful that the skill of the midwives, It was their skill and experience saved a particular baby's life.  The baby and mother are now safe and sound.  

During the second week of August you may have heard about the meteor shower that was expected, some of you may have even been able to witness it.  On of those nights Alex and three of my Filipina friends here at the clinic laid out on top of the clinic roof with blankets and pillows and watched the stars fly by.  The first shooting star we saw was huge, red, and lasted for a good 10 seconds.  As it shot across the sky we all pointed and screeched with delight.  It was such a beautiful night and it filled me with so much joy.  

IV's were another lovely experience this month! After Ellora came back from her break in the U.S. we practiced giving each other IV's. Ellora's first IV was inserted into my hand, and she did a very good job!  I have to admit it took me a few tries to successfully get an IV in my fellow missionary.  And it took three willing and very obliging volunteers for it to be a success but as you can see I did manage to do it with the careful guidance of our head midwife.  

My last blog I know expressed the difficulty that I was feeling with my first few weeks back.  Through prayer and the encouragement of family and friends I have been able to not only see God's hand in Him bringing me here but also that I am meant to be here.  I still have so much to learn and that is a definite prayer request that I will become more and more skilled in the practical aspect of clinic life. 

 I admit that volunteering overseas in a midwifery clinic involves many things that do not come naturally to me.  But then I have found that when I am learning new things; often they do not come naturally to me. I do not really know why, I think it has to do with how my brain works and processes things, maybe its Dyslexia, or Irlen or maybe it is some un-discovered learning difference.  I do not know for sure.  I do know that often God seems to call people to things that they are not always natural at.  Gideon, was an unlikely candidate for his calling as he came from a small family and he was absolutely terrified at the notion of doing what God asked him.  Scripture seems to indicate that Moses was not a fan of crowds but he did become a great a leader and God gave him the resources to do it.  Louis Pasteur was never good at academics and his greatest skill when he was younger was tanning yet he became the greatest Chemist in History.  

The very fact that things do not come naturally to me he here just shows how much I need to lean on Jesus and trust Him that he will carry me through, and that when I get through it will not be my own doing but my heavenly Fathers.  The one thing that does come naturally I will tell you, is how much I love the women.  I was not expecting such an overwhelming feeling when I arrived concerning the love for love each woman that I have the privilege of helping during their pregnancy and labour.  

1 year anniversary

As mentioned before, September 1st marks one year since our arrival to Tabuk so Ellora and I celebrated the occasion by baking a cake and serving it to everyone here at the clinic.  It has been a great year, not always easy but then I understand that most great things are not always easy to achieve.   I want to thank all of you who are praying and supporting me through this journey, it is an honor to work with these fine midwives and women and to help where and when I can with these woman and babies that pass through these clinic doors! Also thank you again for your prayers concerning the patient and her baby whom both had dengue and are now better.  Until next month, over and out, the sheepishmidwife!