Update on Michaelangelo, onward to baby Elder

Baby Michaelangelo (Miguel Angel) 6 hours after extubating himself

Been a roller coaster week in the hospital. Baby Miguel Angel has kept all the RN visitors busy, and the locals besides. He was intubated twice, both times took a decisive role and yanked out his breathing tube.  The second time, yesterday AM early, we had just spent many hours making an ambulance to transport him to San Pedro where rumor has it there is a ventilator. At the last possible minute, he went bad again, it took awhile to stabilize him- and he yanked his tube. We all prepared to say goodby to our little friend. I have pictures of mom and dad tearfully cuddling him.  But he perked up, and this picture is of him with a full belly of breastmilk, mom and dad just enjoying him. Who can know the mind of the Lord? His folks are totally at peace with just being with him, waiting on God to either take him HOME or for them to carry him back up the mountain 6 hours away.


Baby Elder, hypothyroidism, 4 lbs at 2 months old



As we were backing off from baby Miguel, letting his folks care for him, breathing a sigh of relief and thinking we might begin sleeping normally again, we received a tiny 4 pounder, who hasn't gained any weight since birth, but 2 months old. Every rib showed. Dr. Sharon made what looked like an instant diagnosis, and we began intervention. He looks like a starving baby from Africa...had a blood transfusion during the night. Another baby to pray for.  The second of our 4 visiting RN's leaves today, so that leaves us our 2 visitors, Amber and Lori, to be the extra hands. 

John and our visitors, with his assistant Xiomara, attempted a trip to the Cayos islands offshore to do a Women's health clinic. They had to return within 24 hours as Hurricane Matthew was descending on the north coast of Honduras. They boated in at noon, the rains hit by 3, and John made a quick transport of a laboring patient as darkness hit.  Thats our 4th delivery of the week, 3 transported out to the city. We have had trouble finding time to eat or to visit all together with our company, but we surely have seen God at work protecting patients, protecting long hours on the road.   



Michaelangelo

Magda,RN in government service, with baby Miguel Angel

13 day old Miguel Angel is fighting for his life.  His mom and dad carried him 6 hours down the mountain the end of last week with a bad pneumonia- imagine being a newly delivered mom, hiking that distance! Little Miguel went bad Friday night before we got back from the city with our 3 guests, Amber and Richard Shields, and Lori. Its not been a restful visit for any of them, beginning with all day Saturday doing wound care in the hospital, helping John deliver a baby Saturday midnight, then working all day sunday in the hospital helping John stitch up ER patients.  I went with Richard to church, and returned to help in the hospital til supper time. By then, it was obvious Miguel was not doing well, so Amber and Lori stayed the night to special-duty him. By sunday night, Sandy Hurst, a nurse anesthetist friend, had arrived, so because surgeries were cancelled on Monday, she was free to special-duty Miguel Monday. By afternoon, she had decided to intubate him as he was just wearing out. Since that time, someone has been breathing for him by ambu, as there is no ventilator here nor anywhere close!  "For such a time as this"- we surely see God's hand in the timing.  Never do we have 2 extra RN's and an anesthetist!  So baby Miguel Angel has received the best Honduras can offer.  I just dropped Amber and Lori off at the hospital for the 3rd straight night....Please pray for this little fellow to turn the corner and begin to recover.  Pray for mom and dad, a young, VERY poor couple with 3 other children back up in the mountains. When I began speaking with them yesterday about the possibility of transferring the baby, their main concern was how to pay for all this. I told them that they could pay us in bananas, chickens, mangoes....he said , "You don't understand. We are being given housing where we are. We have none of what you are describing. We have nothing".  I asked him if he was a Believer, and he visible lit up, saying yes, he'd been walking with the Lord for 4 years. I pointed to his wife, a very sweet young lady, and commented that she was quite a treasure too. Then I asked him if he was healthy, and he assured me he was capable of hard work.  I summed up out brief conversation with, "Hm, you said you are SO poor, you have nothing.  I think you are a very rich man!  You have Jesus, your wife, 3 children that are being cared for by your pastor, and say you are strong and healthy. Yes, you are a very rich, blessed man. Lets just deal with today, with Miguel Jesus. We'll find a way for you to be able to pay your bills."
Yes, there are many kinds of poverty. This man is poor in $ only.  I'd rather be that kind of poor.    

Arma blanca y arma del fuego (machetes and guns)

"Voy a machetear su cara..."- "I'm going to machete your face!"-  hm, for the first few sentences I was listening closely for clues as to whom I was speaking yesterday afternoon as the generator roared in the background.  I was preparing Sunday School in advance, and the power was out, so that noise made it hard to hear real well what the speaker on the house phone was saying.  I'd assumed it was a Honduran friend....but realized with the threat that it was NOT a nice man!  He  spoke of his gang and needing money for the coffins of some "homies" that had been killed and told me he was watching me as we spoke!  I pretended I couldn't understand him and stuttered in broken spanish that I needed a translator...and shouted at the neighbors for help!  Diana, the spanish teacher, was providentially giving a lesson and took the phone, wisely stringing him along until Dr. McKenney arrived. By asking some clever questions, she quickly discerned that he was NOT viewing ou rhouse  from half a block away- we don't have blocks here!  Then he said to bring the money to the gas station. Wrong again- we don't have gas stations here. Whew! I just knew he was peeking in my window! Found out later that this scam is prevalent in the country right now, with numbers being dialed randomly. "He keeps in perfect peace those whose minds are fixed on Him."  Still, that phrase, "I'm going to machete your face" kept doing maneuvers in my mind as I went to bed last night.  anael, flagbearer Today was Honduran Independence Day, so we were out in Rio Esteban by 8 AM, ready to take pictures of the parade of school kids. They make special outfits, beat on drums, carry banners. Anael, the 20 yr old that we and friends support to get thru highschool, and who bears the main load at the church, was among the top 5 in his class (Junior) so was one of the elite flagbearers. They each had a plastic drinking cup looped thru their belt to support the pole. Clever.Tho the parade didn't really rev up til 9:30, it was fun visiting with all the familiar faces.  Joni in his finery Joni, the 12 year old we mentor, began in the bilingual school (a misnomer!) in Rio Esteban 3 weeks ago now. He looked so proud in his newly made maroon pants with tie and beret in the parade today! Tho his changing schools means he had to go back a year, we think the guarantee that he will get schooling instead of always being home while the public schools are on strike made it worth the gamble. We are looking for a tutor for him for his winter break from Dec. thru January, 2 months, to really grill him on English and improve his math skills. Anyone want a Carribean vacation over Christmas? Please pray and consider this need!   Last week was the Community Health Promoters workshop for 3 days, so added that extra to the normal full schedule. We were blessed to have Dr. Gabby, the head of World Map for Honduras and the chief teacher for this Promoters course that runs for 3 years, and her coworker Loyda, staying with us. They were delightful company and so full of vigor and ideas! We are beginning to see fruit from this course thats now at the end of its second year for 2 of our hospital employees, and the end of year 1 for the remaining 23.  Dispelling myths that negatively affect health and wellbeing of the people is a priority of this course. Sunday evening we received an emergency call from Anael, saying to meet them at the hospital, that a mutual friend, Jose, had just been shot. His advance notice helped us be a bit better prepared. Jose had been returning home from the village for supper and taken a shortcut up a creekbed in the dark. He came upon some "mountain man", he reports, and decided to turn around and return to the road, but was shot in the back as he turned around. We stabilized Jose and began transport plans. It again pointed out the great need we have for an ambulance out here. In the end, our faithful neighbor,  Dave, who by day works in IT but  moonlights as an EMT, drove our pickup with Jose and his wife in the backseat, to the hospital in the city, with our agricultural missionary Brad, accompanying. (One wears many hats here!) . Jose was finally operated on after noon Monday, and we hear from his wife Doli that he can now walk a bit. She says he's in a lot of pain, and that she has to go out and buy him medicine as they don't have any in the hospital We plan to bring him something enroute to San Pedro tomorrow. We think pain control is a RIGHT- here its only a privilege of those who have money. Pray for Jose and Doli- they were the first couple John baptized and married here.

From KY to WA to OK ----to Honduras!

August 21, 2010

Our dear friends, Bobby and George, with the 60th
 anniversary couple, Mom and Dad

Long silence as we left for the USA on July 3 for our Cornerstone International Summit back in Wilmore, KY, and didn’t return to Honduras til just a week ago.( Believe it or not, we have much more consistent internet access in the jungle than in the US!)  In addition to VERY pertinent input at the Summit and wonderful fellowship, we were able to fly on to the NW and have time with our daughter Sarah, Jaie and baby Ellie, now 17 months old and SO much fun, spend time in our home in Moses lake WA, and attend the 60th wedding anniversary reunion for my folks at the home of a niece. We had just 3 days together, with 4 generations represented, and a special visit to the reunion from a couple who probably have had the most influence on the Webster clan in our walks with the Lord. Thanks, Bobby and George, for making that big effort to celebrate with us, even tho you were dealing with grief in your own family. Also, we salute you for the investment you made years ago in all of us, and how you continue to support the Webster kids that are on the mission field today!

Sarah and Ellie

Sarah made a special trip with baby Ellie to Moses Lake to spend 4 days with us and give Ellie a chance to know her Great Grandparents before bringing us with her back to Portland to fly on to Tulsa. An unplanned blessing there was having dinner with a highschool classmate I’d not seen since our wedding 36 years ago! Thanks, Craig and Valerie, for making that happen.

Loving on Kaitlin Maurie

Before Before returning to Honduras, we briefly visited the 3 kids in Tulsa OK. Bill, a longtime friend of ours, treated us and 3 grandkids and our son to a day sailing on Oologah Lake. Will long remember the day for being our first day alone with our granddaughter Kaitlin Maurie, now almost 3- a fun time to get to know her a bit.

We arrived back in Honduras in time to reacquaint ourselves with our friends , the Greene’s, before driving them to the city to fly back to the US. He and Dr. Joel have held down the hospital and clinic for almost 6 weeks alone, except for brief respites with visiting docs. Now we are expectantly awaiting the reentry of Dr. Shaw today, hopefully followed by Dr.Mark next week. Slowly the whole crew is trickling back in.

As last year when we returned in July, we had 2 Code blue’s this first week back. Seems one gets back in the groove quickly…sink or swim. I am busily orienting a new LPN and SO thankful to have another nurse on board! It will be a bit before she can work independently, but will be a big help. As John looks at the schedule, he is trying to plan 2 mountain trips in the next 2 weeks, to be sure he’s gotten into these 2 health departments at least one more time before the rains start in late October, as the roads become impassable. We had one of the nurses from Las Ballas inpatient this week and from her found out the road is still passable to their clinic, contrary to what we’d been told by rumors.

Had opportunity to participate yesterday in a mass civil wedding of 24 couples here in Balfate- all done free to fulfill a campaign promise of the new mayor. Our longtime friend and John’s assistant, Xiomara, was finally married, and we attended as their witnesses. John has committed to giving them the roof for their intended house when it comes to that point- a practical wedding gift!

Juan Carlos and Xiomara finally wed!

In closing, please pray for Karly, a 17 year old short-term missionary that spent 6 weeks here caring for Orlin, a baby in the children’s center who needs 1:1 care. Today, she is flying back to Seattle, escorted by her Dad, to be admitted for diagnosis of some mysterious ailment that has had her down now for a week. She has puzzled our docs…her desire is to get treated and return….we pray for her healing and for her spirits during this big disappointment.

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Baby Ellie rocking in the porch swing with Great Grandpa

June 28, 2010- Winding Down

Winding down for a trip to the US for our mission board conference July 5, and the celebration of my folks 60th anniversary the end of that month. 1 week left!  We've hosted old friends from our reservations days, Mike and Cathy Breckinridge, these past 3 weeks. He agreed to come and take over the pharmacy so the Honduran who works there could take his vacation. It meant 5 long days each week. His wife was here at a very needy time, as the 2 men who had been doing all the counseling spiritually had just left, so Cathy agreed to cover that as well as sharing several times for the staff morning devotions. Because she speaks such good spanish, she was in demand also to lead Women's studies and sang frequently. Mike is a Ham operator so we also had testing while he was here to offer the opportunity for new missionaries to get their legal licenses, as its still how we best communciate here.We put them on a bus for the city on Friday.  I'm sure they will need to rest up when they arrive back in the US!

John was finally able to make it up to Las Balles (think thats how its spelled!) twice. It is a community way up the mountain that was a 4 hr. plus walk for the last group that attempted it.  Just about a month ago, a road went thru to connect us, so he immediately began planning a trip to do Women's Health Care in the health department there. In the week between trips, the road eroded a lot- I got brave and went on the second trip. My knuckles were blue as I gripped the "grannie" bar- reminded myself that I'd have no scenery to report if I didn't open my eyes!  We brought an exam table in the pickup as well as a nebulizer to gift the clinic. John had a full day of patients, and I played visitor, playing guitar all day with a crowd of kids. Praying the road lasts long enough for l more trip up to see patients before rainy season.

En route home from dropping friends in La Ceiba and picking up 2 more visitors for the hospital yesterday, we passed a big balloon-festooned celebration at a home in Lis Lis we visit frequently in our comings and goings. Remember Keilin, who birthed little Emanuel 2 1/2 years ago and died shortly afterwards?  Well, her sister Delmy has mothered little Emanuel, and her partner, Luis, even came home from the US where he was working to be an active Dad to him and his other 3 children.  The festive celebration was their wedding!  We were SO thrilled for them.  We were late arriving for another wedding out at the hospital, so couldn't stop, so the present will be late! Exciting to see families changing as they take to heart God's Word.

Little Aron lost his big sister to a rare skin cancer last year. It is genetic and he has the same ailment. I think he is 3, maybe 4, a bitty mite with freckles. He has undergone more surgeries than one can keep track of, and all in the hospital know him.  Unlike most kids whose superheros are just cartoon characters or fantasy, he has a real-life superhero. He admires- and wants to be- Dr.McKinney, his surgeon.  I assume thats also why his other passion is motorcycles, as Dr. Jeff drives one. He says he is "McKinney" and "operates" on his parents. I put him on our motorscooter one day when he was bored waiting for his appointment, and got his foto, then gave him a copy. Also found a large pair of surgical green scrubs like his mentor wears and had someone make a wee pair of scrubs for him.  Outfitted with those and a plastic stethoscope, scrub hat and mask, he is a sight. The next thing on his 'Make a Wish" list is the motorcycle ride. Still working on arranging that!

Wedding shower for our RN employee, Ritza, was a beautiful time together to celebrate her LONG wait for the right guy.  She will marry during our US trip, so had to do it early!

Completed all 16 of the necessary recertifications for our staff in CPR these 3 months, and almost done with a big project of making a procedure manual for our purchasing department. Had a picnic and movie night with our 10 from Sunday School to encourage them, and just plain get them out doing something fun.  Often bringing several home on Sundays for lunch and then guitar next door. Hoping to see more on the level of Joni, who has learned enough to be a steady part of the music at church. Finishing up a series of Sunday school lessons on basic foundations of the faith, preparing to lessen our formal involvement there and begin to pursue other things. Will continue our 1:1 discipling, our extra-church involvement with our 10-12 kids, just feel a need to move out of the formal setting, have 2 less Gringos there, and put our efforts behind some other happenenings in the same community!

John continues to invest heavily in the ongoing training of those who will one day replace him in women's health care so that now when we leave there is a local woman well capable of continuing prenatal care and well women's care. Thats a big step!  With his involvement in the 2 mountain clinics and once a week in a health department in Rio Esteban, he is changing the face of women's health here.

Continue to feel the need for an ambulance here of our own, especially since the  late May crazy trip with a 2 yr old iron overdose.  According to Dave who followed the ambulance at dusk in order to drive Joelle and I home once the child was delivered to the city ER, our driver made his own lane down the center of the paved highway and forced a semi off the road! In a torrential downpour, he refused to use his wipers, and fishtailed many times on the muddy dirt road. Thought is we might just save lives by driving ourselves!  The iron overdose made it, despite the fact that the antidote is unavailable in Central America. ( As a result of this incident, we now stock the antidote ourselves!)

Enjoying having a Tulsa-ite next door, interning with our neighbors, the Rumbaughs. Karin Shacklett has been here a month now, going on 2, and is SO nice to have someone from our home church amongst us.

Too long to go without writing. Each week here is its own book!

 

Of Baptisms and Birthdays

A week ago Sunday was the river baptism of Jorge, one of our Sunday School students whom we've known for 6 years. He is the one who weekly reminded me that I shouldn't expect him to behave in class as he wasn't a Christian!  A shy boy with a nonstop grin and sparkly eyes, Jorge is one of 12 and takes big responsibility in his home for the remaining 4 children younger than he.We invited he and another boy to lunch after church Sunday to see pictures of the baptism and other Sunday school activities, and to practice/learn guitar, as Dr. Don was giving a class. So Jorge showed great potential, and was sent home with a list of 35 songs to memorize, and to enlist 9 others to join him, to earn a guitar of his own!

I mentioned that the monkeys seem to be quite brazen right now, ever drawing closer to the house. Enjoyed sitting inside the laundry room with my camera poised on the open window to catch the little rascals as they scanned the house, then jumped to the roof and leaned down to steal the bananas we had hanging from the eaves to ripen.

The 2nd of 12- 3 day long Community Health Promoters workshops that will be held over the next 3 years was held last week at the hospital, put on by World MAP International. There were about 30 participants, 10 of them needing lodging for the 2-3 nights. Takes a lot of planning on the part of John and Dr. Rene to make this work, but fits well with the longterm goals of the hospital and ministry.

Because I had gone down to the hospital about 3 PM thursday to sign something, I got involved in the care of a 2 year old boy, Angel, who had overdosed on his mama's iron tablets and went downhill very quickly as mom had waited 4 hours before bringing him in as he'd shown no initial symptoms. When he began convulsing and vomiting, we got him.  After stabilizing him, and contacting Poison Control in the States, Joelle and I prepared to accompany he and his mom in the bare box of an ambulance for the hour plus ride to La Ceiba to the public hospital. For a much better story than I can tell, having been bent over the child and not daring to look out the front window, see  http://davefields.blogspot.com/2010/05/iron-overdose-poisoning.html.  Dave is a fellow missionary/EMT who often volunteers to either follow the ambulance and bring us back to the hospital, or to drive John over when its a laboring patient. Enjoy!

Friday, I had intended to celebrate my 58th birthday by staying home alone while John went to the city and just catch up with the Lord.  When the Field's invited me to accompany them on an outing, I accepted, thinking it was a place very close. I had confused the name, and ended up going almost to the city with them, had a wonderfully relaxing day by a pool, eating good food, just luxuriating in no radio and good fellowship. Arrived home to greet 3 of the nurses who had climbed the hill to bring me a cake.
The fun continued the next day when Dr. Don asked if I'd drop his kayak off at the end of the road, as his partner in recreating had not brought his pickup.  We were finishing a Saturday guitar/keyboard class, and all 7 or so youth wanted to go too to swim in the icy river. So we followed the guys out to the waterfall with the kayak on board, and all jumped in the river fully dressed!  They all cavorted like so many otters, dumping each other off the kayak and pirating it for themselves. Delightful to watch and participate in! Thus ended a fun birthday week.








http://davefields.blogspot.com/2010/05/iron-overdose-poisoning.html

Back in Honduras

Been back in Honduras 2 very hot weeks now, after 3 weeks in the US, John in the NW and I in Tulsa. John came and went thru Portland, so was able to visit Sarah, Jaie and baby Ellie. He accomplished much on the house we own in WA- with the help of a fellow missionary from here, Terry. The 2 of them played bachelor, cooked for themselves there, supervised the roofing of the house and the installation of the heat/AC unit, and they built the roof on the deck and a fence around it. Can't wait to see it!

I spent the 3 weeks reconnecting to 3 children and 3 grandchildren in Tulsa, as well as numerous friend visits. Spring hit while there, and was able to go to

some old haunts with Eryn and Benton, some we'd visited with them before leaving 6 years ago, one hike in REdbud valley that we'd done with our own 4 kids 20-some years ago! Beautiful foliage everywhere. Always feel so blessed by how we are cared for by our friends there, who find us a car, provide a spacious apartment for us to have our kids and friends visit...and who are available for deep visits and sharing anytime from 6 AM til late. Can't pay for that kind of blessing!

We had 1 week to acclimate again to the hospital work and the church ministry before friends from Tulsa arrived to "vacation" and see firsthand what they have faithfully supported now for 7 years! Bob was supposed to be relaxing in the wake of completing a huge baseball stadium in Tulsa- but was obviously with us "for such a time as this", as he immediately got pulled into 4 days of sweaty work with 2 other engineers who arrived "coincidentally" the same time he did, working on various needs in his field in the hospital. Alexis tackled my disorganized office, and left it in good shape, with all my baskets of baby clothes seperated and folded. She helped me with my weekly afternoon reading time with some of the church kids- they had scheduled a "picnic" at the top of the wooded hill on the church property, so we carried a blanket up and had our brownies and juice and reading practice up there while they climbed the huge trees and took pictures of each other while the others read. We also did some needful newborn visits together, giving her a better picture of those we minister to in their home settings. One night we went out for dinner near here at Rosies, something that had not been available until recently. We had a tasty lobster/shrimp dinner in this rustic place on the beach. En route with them back to San Pedro Sula, we stopped at the Lodge at Pico Bonito, which we'd heard about but rarely take time for "touristy" things. It was a beautiful stop, and we plan to go back one day when its cooler to take a tour of the area with a wildlife- botanist sort to find out about the plants and birds and butterflies in the area.

We had made reservations at an American chain motel so that our guests would sleep well before flying out- only to awaken in the very early AM to find that their AC had not worked and it had taken 3 trips to their room before they finally replaced the whole unit. Then they awoke to find molasses-colored water in their bath, prohibiting bathing! We returned from bringing them to the airport and changed to use the gym, which they had assured me when we checked in had AC. Arrived to find a hole in the wall where the unit had been the night before- said unit was now installed in our friends' room!

We've had several opportunities to use the delivery room since returning- now with AC! Thanks to the man in Tulsa who donated the breakers necessary to complete the installation. Is tempting to sneak in there and pretend its my office! But then one must sooner or later leave- and then one gets hit with the wall of heat. Is better just to stay acclimated to the real world!

The heat is driving even the monkeys crazy- we have not witnessed it yet, but our gardener says several times lately the whitefaced monkeys have come out of the trees onto our back patio, chased the cats, walked on the porch or roof. Can't wait to get a picture of that!