Oh Baby Baby.....Please Stop That

NOTICE:  I started this blog on Monday but it took me forever to finish it so I attached a little update from today at the end.  So read this like it was written on Tuesday...... :)  

I'd planned for my next blog to be about the cruise that my sister and I went on a couple weeks ago.  However, since it now seems like old news (and I have something else to write about), I will sum up what would have been my post with this picture (worth a thousand words, right?)

This is basically how my sister and I spent our 4 days.  This picture shows several orders of room service that, since we so rarely left our room had yet to be picked up yet.  We got so sunburned after 3 hours in the sun on our first day that we were still in pain after the cruise was over.  Hence the 3 seasons of Downton Abbey that we watched....in our room.  We left the boat for 1 1/2 hours at one of the ports.  We didn't have a lot of exciting news to report at our group dinners but..... it was wonderful. So THANK YOU to my mom and my hubby for watching Marie and for my special friend that paid my airfare so I could go!! Great memories with my sis!

Yesterday was not quite as relaxing as those days on the cruise.  Over the weekend I'd been noticing some slight tightening in my abdomen.  Yesterday morning some kind of pain woke me up at about six am.  I hung out in bed for the next hour or so and noticed that the "tightening" kept happening.  It wasn't painful, didn't feel crampy.  It just came in a wave, and I noticed I could feel the outline of my uterus really well.  What the heck was going on?  

II didn't want to be that neurotic patient who calls with silly things and overreacts.  Did NOT want to be that patient!!  However, I also didn't want something to happen to the little one and to not have done anything so I bit the bullet and called my doc.  She told me that what I described sounded like contractions and sent me to the hospital to get checked. Well now I had a dilemma.  I'd started doing Marie's hair in extensions the night before but ran out of yarn and still had about 2-3 hours to finish up.  Shoot!!! She literally had the bottom half of her head with hair halfway down her back, and the top half of her head with three little puffs about 3 inches long.  Not cute.  And her friend was on the way to pick her up.  Darnit!!!!  I quickly did some little twists to try and make it presentable.  I don't have a picture for you, but just envision the 7 year old version of "business in the front, party in the back."  Sorry Marie!!

Marie was picked up and headed was out and about with her friend (and Mom).  Peter and I headed to the hospital.  I felt pretty sheepish as I walked in because I'd only felt this "squeezing" a couple times since standing up and moving around.  The nurse was very sweet and got me hooked up the the monitor.  Sure enough, I was contracting regularly every 2 min.  I immediately felt relief that I wasn't crazy and imagining things, but it was quickly followed fear that I really was contracting....and that it wasn't just a couple.  The nurse started an IV to give me some fluids and gave me a shot of medicine to stop the contractions.  As soon as she left the room.....of course I burst into tears.  Poor Peter had thought he'd missed something and was like "What?!!? What did she say??!!"

She hadn't said anything.  I'd just been laying there envisioning several different things.  One of the memories that haunts me a little about delivering babies in Sierra Leone was the time that I delivered a super small one...into a bedpan. I learned my lesson and since that time I have NEVER let a woman in labor try to use the bathroom, no matter how much she insisted.  It was just such an...undignified way for this little one to enter the world that I've always felt badly.  I scooped him out of the bedpan and held him while he took his first few and final breaths.  One time we had to do a c-section on a woman who's baby was too small but who was ecclamptic and wouldn't stop seizing.  We tried what we could with bagging and oxygen....but it didn't end well for the baby.  These faces, along with the babies from my NICU rotation in nursing school were swimming in my head......hence the tears.  Peter just took my hand and reminded me that God is in control.  

They did some tests, looking for possible causes but didn't really find anything.  The only possible cause they could see was a sinus infection that I'd been fighting for the last week and a half and had finally decided I needed to see a doc for some antibiotics.  Since the contractions became less intense and more irregular with the second medication they gave me to stop the contractions, they decided they could send me home.  I went home with some antibiotics, nifedipine (to stop the contractions) and instructions to take it easy for a couple days. 

This morning I woke up and the contractions were still there. I was super frustrated....and anxious!! I had so many things that were going through my mind that as I was having my time with Jesus this morning I just decided to write down everything that I was worried about, starting from the fact that Peter's supposed to go back to Sierra Leone in a few days to the potential of bed rest, the financial implications, etc.  I had a nice little list and was just writing anything coming into my head. I literally stopped and laughed when I wrote down that I was worried about how we're going to travel to Eugene and back every day for months if this little one ends up in the NICU for a long time, how I'd be able to work, how Marie would get to school, etc.  Seriously Emily?  Talk about borrowing trouble from tomorrow!!!!  I kept hearing the verses in Mathew that say " Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.  Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy and my burden is light."  Rest for my soul? Easy yoke and light burden? Yes please!!!!!  I just prayed and told Jesus that I was really tired of carrying this anxiety burden, so I was handing it over!  It's too heavy for me!!  Nothing in my circumstances changed, but being able to focus on that precious verse from Scripture radically changed my outlook and I felt at peace.  Peter's words that "God is in control" which I'll admit sounded a bit hollow in my ears at the time he said it, now hit me like a mack truck.  A mack truck bringing peace. :)  

UPDATE ON TUESDAY:  I was up pretty much all night last night with the same feelings that I had on Monday. This wave of tightness in my abdomen that would come every couple of minutes.  I took my nifedipine early and it did seem to slow things down a bit so I waited until the office opened and called for some advice.  They told me to come back in.  They hooked me up to the monitor to look for contractions but even though they felt the same to me, they didn't register as contractions like they had on Monday....more just like uterine irritations.  She checked my cervix again and it was still closed, although she said the little fella was in a low position, which could be irritating my cervix.  She also said that some women just have "colicky uteruses" which I took to mean....they're just a little testy and easily annoyed.  But you know what they say...."Colicky uterus = non colicky baby" right?  They say that don't they?!?!?!?  So here I am, back at home and feeling rested after a nice long nap. I didn't get put on any restrictions which was a huge blessing! My mind is at ease so I'm hoping my body takes that cue and knocks it off already. :)  Thank you so much for all your prayers and encouragement!!  We appreciate it so much!

Pregnancy Craziness

I started this blog several years ago to document my new, crazy life in Sierra Leone.  I left Sierra Leone six months ago and therefore haven't had a lot of "crazy Africa stories" to tell.  But....the craziness has not left my life.  It now just seems more self-inflicted.  For some reason I am compelled to share this story/conversation that happened in my house yesterday.  Try not to think worse of me!! :)

Yesterday was a long shopping day.  I knew it was going to be long so, call me a coward but I ponied up the $7 to keep Marie in after-school care so I could shop in peace.  I made it home just before dinner and whipped up some Brinner of pancakes and eggs.  I put Marie to bed and went to brush my teeth.  While in the bathroom, I apparently had a psychotic break.  I started crying and eventually wedged myself down on Marie's little step stool between the wall and the sink and just sobbed.  The ugly cry.

Quite a bit of time passed and Peter must have wondered what happened to me because he came looking for me.  This was our conversation.  Please keep in mind that this is all with me continuing to sob, sniff, hiccup, etc.

"Emily!! What happened?"

Silence (well, crying).

"Emily, why are you crying?"

"I don't know. I think I'm crazy."

"Well what happened?????"

"Peter, something is wrong with me.  I teared up/and or cried 11 times today.  E L E V E N Times!!!  That's not normal! Even for me!!!"

(There is a debate between Peter and I about what is an acceptable amount to cry. He would prefer none, I say that once every week or two is acceptable.  He says I am "quick to cry" but after several years has gotten used to it and does't take it personally anymore.)

"Well what happened? Why were you crying?"

"It started in the lotion aisle at Walmart. I was standing in front of all these lotions, trying to decide which one is the best one for my mixed raced, baby, boy (none of those 3 do I know ANYTHING about) and how much I'll need for the next two years when I just started crying.  I have no idea what I'm doing!!"

Sidebar: I was shopping for a container that we are shipping out soon and therefore need to stock up on things that we won't be able to get or will be much more expensive in Sierra Leone.

I continued, "It got worse when I moved on to crib bedding and I spent 15 minutes trying to decide which toddler potty I should get.  I cried when I thought about the "Ebola orphans" in Sierra Leone and then when I remembered how sad the girl was who was sent home from 'The Bachelor.' (Yes, I know.  Not thinking less of me remember?!?!?)  The other million times, I have NO IDEA what made me tear up.

During all of this, Peter is just standing there, patting my head because remember I'm wedged in between the sink and the wall so that's basically all he has access to. He is totally silent because he's a good listener but also..I mean, how do you respond to this.

So I kept going.  "I went to Goodwill and tried on some clothes and Peter, I'm just huge.  And I'm just going to keep getting bigger.  There are all those cute little pregnant ladies but I just look like I had McDonalds for lunch......every day for the last month!!

Peter piped up. "Emily I've told you before! You're ok for me.  You look just ok to me!!"

In our marriage, there are little nuances in language and culture that often need some explanation and/or reinterpretation.  This was one of those cases.  Telling your pregnant wife that she looks "just ok" is not something she wants to hear.....

He continued: "My brother called today and wanted to see a picture of you pregnant and I told him that you just look ok---

"Peter. Please. You have to stop saying that I look "just ok".  That's not helping."

"Bwahahaha (that's him bursting into laughter). Is that wrong? Should I say that you look fine? (Krio for beautiful).  Would that be better?

"Yes that's better."

"Ok, you are very fine!!"

At this point we both started chuckling because the whole thing was just so crazy.

"Today I started tearing up because I was thinking about you and Marie and about how I love you both so much and then 20 minutes after being home you were both driving me crazy.  Marie asked me what "grumpy" meant and I know she knows what it meant because we talk about not being grumpy all the time. After I explained what it meant she asked me if I was being grumpy.  When I asked her what she thought she said 'Yes, I think you're a little grumpy Mama.'  AND PETER I'M ONLY HALFWAY!!!!!

The last bit was said with me laughing which provided a nice little end to my dramatic meltdown.  So thankful for a compassionate and PATIENT husband who unwedged me from the sink and told me it was time to leave the bathroom. :)

I'm excited to get back to Sierra Leone where I expect things to be crazy......not just me. 

We're Having A ......

So yesterday was the day. I mean THE DAY.  The day that we get to start buying gender specific clothes and stop referring to my ever expanding waistline as an "it."  My doctor is awesome and does an ultrasound at every appointment because, "it's more fun for you to get to see a picture of the baby instead of just hear the heartbeat."  So that's fun!  We decided to take Marie with us to our appointment.  Marie wanted a brother.  From the time we told her she was going to be a big sister it as always been "how's the baby brother doing?"  Not "whatever God gives us..." a brother. I tried to combat this by always referring to the baby as a girl, but she would just correct me.  "No, no, no....baby BROTHER, Mama."

To be honest, I was hoping for a boy as well, just because one of my biggest concerns with adding a little one to the family is the comparisons that people will make between this one and Marie (mostly in Sierra Leone).  I thought there would be fewer comparisons with a boy.

The good ole' doc put the ultrasound on my tummy and we waited.  I was preparing myself for Marie's reaction when he said, "Well, that's pretty easy! B.O.Y." I watched Marie as she was trying to figure out what that meant when he said, "That means, little one that you are having a baby brother!"  She was excited. To say the least.  It was really fun to watch her get so excited about the baby. :)  She insisted on taking the ultrasound pictures with her to school.

He kind of looks like an alien

After the big gender reveal the doctor did some more looking around and then said, "Well, basically if you gave birth right now neither you or your baby would make it."  Wait. What? This jolted me out "baby boy revelry" and I was back in the room.  Basically, the ultrasound showed that my placenta is completely covering my cervix so if Baby decided to come now, he'd have nowhere to go because my placenta is covering his exit route.

Now I've seen this before.  Plenty of times, unfortunately.  In Sierra Leone, when our only ultrasound machine broke, part of the reason it was so utterly frustrating was because when a woman came to the hospital and she was bleeding, I had no way of knowing why.

In that moment when he told me, I had zero fear.  My two emotions were thankfulness and grief.  I was so thankful for the incredible medical technology we have that allowed us to see this so clearly, so early, and allow for so much advanced planning if necessary!!  My thankfulness was mixed with grief as I immediately remembered the scores of women in Sierra Leone who give birth with NONE of the things that I have access to.  It's just so unfair!  Praying for my fellow Sierra Leonean mama's who "get belle!"

I decided that the way we'd tell my family is to bake a cake, either blue or pink and have Marie cut the cake and spill the beans.  I was SO careful when putting the food coloring in so that I wouldn't accidentally get any on my face or fingers that would give it away before the big cut!!  Unfortunately when it came time to frost the cake every time I put some frosting on it would just pull part of the top of the cake off and mix with the frosting.  The more I put on, the worse it got.  Also, it looks green.  This is the cake BEFORE we cut into it.  Not a big secret......

Incidentally I hadn't been able to keep it from my mom and sister so.....the reveal cake was mostly because I was so proud of Marie for being able to keep a secret. We pretended that nobody knew.  Oops. 

Count my blessings......

DISCLAIMER: Peter reads and approves all blogs before I post them.  Just so everyone knows. J

Peter and I went to a Portland Timbers game this weekend.  It’s been a dream of mine to surprise him with tickets to a Tottenham Hotspurs game (his favorite English team….don’t worry, I’d never heard of them either).  His birthday was last week and since I couldn’t give him Tottenham tickets, I did the next best thing.  Timbers tickets…..?  Not QUITE the same, but I was excited just the same.

The game was so fun! When I bought the seats I really had no idea where we were sitting but when we arrived and I heard all the chanting behind us I thought “Oh that’s fun! We’re sitting near the ‘crazy fan section.’”  Then I realized we were sitting right in front of the OPPOSING TEAM’S “crazy fan section.”  Oops.  The Timbers kept them pretty quiet though, with a final score of 3-0.  My job during the game was to google all the black players and see if any were from Sierra Leone.  No Sierra Leoneans, but a Liberian and Nigerian so…some good West African representation.  Peter was pretty vocal during the game and would occasionally yell things out in Krio.  I always love watching people around us watch us while trying not to look like they’re watching us. J  I always want to lean over to them and give them my stalking secret. Sunglasses.  You can look anywhere and nobody knows!!

After the game we stopped off at the hotel before heading to dinner.  We used a gift card we got for our wedding which is my FAVORITE because I love eating for free!! I love it so much that, even though we were heading to dinner, I begged Peter to let us stop off at the hotel restaurant where they were having a “managers reception” with free appetizers and free drinks!!  I just can’t pass up free Diet Coke!

It ended up being a good thing because our wait time at the restaurant was over an hour.  Thanks Free Pre-Dinner!!!  About 30 minutes into our wait, Peter looked at me and said, “I don’t know if it was the medicine I took or what, but I’m feeling really tired.”  I asked him what medicine he took and he told me he took the cold medicine….the nighttime one, since it’s evening time now.”  Ha! There’s 50mg of Benadryl in that medicine!!  He was wiped!!  I told him we could just go grab dinner and take it back to the room but he wanted to press on. J  Conversation during dinner was….not lively.  At one point I asked him a question and it took him 3 seconds to come up with “yyyyeeesss!”  You could almost see the neurons trying to connect through the fatigue.  We went back to the hotel where he walked straight from the door to the bed and was out in 2.7 seconds.  At 9:15.  I spent the evening watching HGTV….and am going to get to hold this one over him for a while! J 

The next morning at breakfast I commented how much more talkative he was when he wasn’t all drugged up and he kept shaking his head and saying he was never doing that again! J  Later we got to have lunch with some good friends who were actually in Sierra Leone soon after Peter and I started dating.  (Shout out Stephen and Pasha). Steven had had the mission while he was there to “scope this guy out” and get a guy’s perspective. 

What happened at the end of our weekend is really why I decided to write a blog.  This was just my really long way of getting there.  A friend of mine works with a Sierra Leonean woman and she called Peter to tell him about a special prayer time they were having for Sierra Leone in Portland. It was perfect timing because we were already up there.  We spent an incredible 2 hours worshipping the Lord together and praying about the Ebola crisis in Sierra Leone and the rest of West Africa.  There were probably 30-40 people there and they were from all over Africa.  At the beginning of the meeting the pastor called up several people who were NOT from West Africa and had them each pray in their own language.  He remarked that while they weren’t from West Africa, their hearts were still burdened for their friends and were calling out to God on their behalf.  It was beautiful.  These people understood. They too are far from their families and friends, watching the suffering from a distance.  I shed tears for Sierra Leone, for the people who are suffering, the people that are interceding, and for my husband. 

I got to watch Peter worship in his own language, sing songs from his own country and become instant friends with people he just met.   I am intimately acquainted with the loneliness that can come from being so far from home, but was always so blessed to have a community around me from the United States.  My home culture.  Peter hasn’t had that.  And his country is in crisis.  So although I thoroughly enjoyed spending time with Sierra Leoneans, speaking Krio (although I was ashamed of how bad it’s become) and sharing stories, my favorite part was watching my husband enjoy it. J  After the service we were invited to a woman’s house who had made a staple Sierra Leonean dish (cassava leaf or “green glop”) that I didn’t even know we could get in the States!  Peter was in heaven!! It was the perfect end to an incredible weekend and as I drove home I marveled at how much God had blessed us and how incredible the Body of Christ is.  Thank you so much Jesus!! Thank you for stretching us, and thank you for encouraging us!  

This virus!!

The other morning I walked into my house after a night of working in the ER and I had one of those moments of absolute bliss. You know those moments? They’re not common, but when they happen you think “There is no way my life could possibly get better.” My adorable daughter was snoozing away and I climbed into bed with my wonderful, happily sleeping new hubby.  I’d had a great night at work where I’d had plenty of supplies, tons of resources, and best of all a doctor who was WAY more knowledgeable than me.  It had just been fun! Blissful. 

Not only was my little fam sleeping, but I saw that Marie and my niece had put the.....toilet plunger to bed. Complete with blankie. 

I took a nap and woke up to the sounds of my hubby and daughter playing together.  I got on the computer and did what I do most every morning (or in this case afternoon) which is look for any update on the Ebola situation in West Africa.  The bliss was immediately gone.  The situation isn’t getting better. More new cases. More violence.  More pleas for help.   My heart was being torn in two.  Again.  I want to be there!! I’m not supposed to be here! I’m supposed to be there, in one of the space suits, fixing this whole situation!!  They need me!!!!  It’s an inner struggle that I deal with several times over the course of any day. 

Yesterday Peter and I got in an eh hem….discussion.  I was upset at his lack of……frustration.  I’m tormented about this. I’m constantly researching, talking, thinking, praying, trying to figure out what we can do. Should we go back?!? How would that be possible? We’d need new tickets, how would we pay for it?  What would that even look like? What about Marie? What about this? What about that? On and on and on. 

I see his crestfallen face when we read something new.  I see the e-mails that say they’ve added money to our Skype account yet again because he’s calling so much to check in.  Last week he stopped eating for a day and a half.  I know his heart is heavy.  So WHY ISN’T HE FREAKING OUT LIKE ME?!?!?!!? 

I realized that I wanted to see him stewing and fretting like I was.  I wanted him to be worried and constantly looking for a way for us to go “save the day.”  That’s just how ridiculous I am.  He gently reminded me that we didn’t plan for this.  We were planning on being in Sierra Leone by this time but as of now, they’ve cancelled our flights.  We don’t know why God allows these things to happen, but why fight against it?  He can see things that we can’t.  (I think I’ve heard that somewhere else before…..)  Oh this husband that God’s given me.  Such a quiet, calm and rational balance to my somewhat frantic, emotional exuberance. 

And he’s right.  This isn’t what either of us would have chosen and we’re both waiting for an opportunity to go back.  But for now we’re here.  And I’ve started counting the blessings I have in being here. There are a lot!! 

Peter and I have been brainstorming for a while about the best ways to serve and love the Sierra Leonean people from afar.  And we are getting excited!!  The details are being finalized for an operation that would involve supporting the churches in two of the districts hit hardest by the Ebola virus.  People in the church are dying and their family members are suffering.  They need food. They need water. They need cleaning supplies.  What an incredible opportunity we have as the body of Christ to stand with our Brothers and Sisters across the world and show them that they’re not alone!!  We haven’t forgotten them!!  Most of us will probably never meet them, but they are still our family!!  I get tears in my eyes just writing this!

But it doesn’t end with the Church!!  What if that was just the starting point?  We are going to help the local church reach out to its community by providing food, cleaning supplies, and other necessities to those people who need it most!  We can empower this church that is hurting and grieving to rise up and share Jesus with their community that is also suffering and grieving.  From thousands of miles away we can reach out to the Church and the communities that these churches serve.  It’s exciting stuff!! So excited to get to be the hands and feet of Jesus. 

If you’re interested in getting on board, you can make checks out to:

Willamette International

PO Box 772

Albany, OR 97321

*Just put “Ebola” in the memo line

If you’re looking for other ways to give, Doctors Without Borders is an awesome organization that’s been spearheading the Ebola epidemic in Sierra Leone. Their website says that they can’t earmark money for Sierra Leone, but they were able to even begin working there because people had donated before so I think that’s a good option.  Samaritan’s Purse is also working heavily in Liberia and I’m sure would love any support we could give them. 

Ebola II

It’s been a rough few days.  Yesterday afternoon Peter and I decided that we’ll be delaying our trip back to Sierra Leone. It was with heavy hearts that we made that decision.  Very heavy.  Several things happened within a couple days that just made us really unsure of what was going to happen. One airline stopped flying into Sierra Leone and Liberia started closing some borders with Sierra Leone.  Sierra Leone is surrounded by Guinea and Liberia and so we started getting concerned that if things continued to escalate, travel would be really difficult. 

Originally we were going to extend for a couple weeks just so we could see where things were headed, see if they settled down or escalated.  As of this morning, we’re not sure when we’re going to be able to go back.  The president has declared a “State of Emergency” for the country which we think is good! This should provide better control and will hopefully stop the spread!  We want to go back as soon as possible. 

The hardest part about not going back is feeling like we’re abandoning our friends and family back in Salone.  “Hey good luck with that Ebola thing! We’ll see you again after it’s nice and safe for our family to come back.”  Yuck.  During all the years that I was planning on becoming a missionary, I was going to be THAT girl.  The one that stayed after everyone else left.  I was single (and not looking to mingle) so I was going to be able to do things that people who had families just couldn’t do.   I was going to be one of the ones in the space suit.  And I loved that idea! 

To be honest, there’s a big part of me that still REALLY wants to be over there in one of the space suits, right in the thick of the chaos. Part of this is because yes, I love the adrenaline. That’s why I work in the ER and ICU.  But also…..they need help!!  SOMEBODY needs to be there taking care of these patients. Somebody needs to take the risk.  Sierra Leonean doctors, nurses and other medical personnel are taking incredible risks (as are missionaries) and I want to do our part!! And these are Peter’s people! He’s thousands of miles away from his family during all of this and I can’t imagine what that would feel like.  That doesn’t even take into consideration the fact that Peter is the brand new Country Director for our NGO…and what will happen to the NGO? We have a lone missionary there right now and we wanted to go back and support him as well as all the other people working for the NGO.  But I’m also concerned for my family!!  What could happen to Marie? What could happen to us if we couldn’t get out? So many unknowns and so much to think about.

Peter and I have are from different cultures and had very different experiences growing up.  For these reasons we often approach decisions with very different frames of reference. While we have been praying for wisdom and discernment, we have also been praying for unity in our decision. We are both really thankful that as difficult as the decision to stay has been, we both feel a peace about this. 

Please pray for the situation in Sierra Leone, Liberia and Guinea.  Pray for those who are still there!! Please, please please pray that this will be resolved quickly!!

Ebola

Peter and I are celebrating our one month anniversary today. 

Woo Hoo!!

We’ve celebrated our anniversary by having hours of conversation about whether or not we should re-enter a country that is in the middle of an unprecedented Ebola virus outbreak with a 60% mortality rate.  Wow, that sounds dramatic doesn’t it? (I’ve always had a flair for the dramatic....ask….well, anyone).

To be perfectly honest though, we have spent HOURS in the last few days (many of them with me in tears….sorry Peter, can’t return me now) trying to figure out what to do.  We’re supposed to go back on Sunday.  When we left in May , the outbreak was present, but hadn’t escalated like it has now.  We’ve talked to so many different people, both here and in Sierra Leone and have received very different advice.  I think that's what we're struggling with the most.  People who we love and respect are telling us different things.  Last night  we were both utterly confused about what to do. So we holed ourselves up in our room and hashed everything out, all the while begging Jesus for wisdom and discernment. 

We’ve decided to go back.

We have precautions that we’re going to put into place.  Peter will be doing the administrative work that he can from home and will meet only with the people that he must.  I’d left my job at the hospital before we came to the States to get married, so I have no commitments at any health care facility right now.  I was planning on taking a couple months and help get our family established, help Peter in any way I can in his new role, and get homeschooling off to a good start. 

Now I’m a bit torn.  I won’t be going to the hospitals where the Ebola is, but as a health care worker, I find it difficult not to do anything when I’m sitting in the middle of an epidemic!!  But so far ALL the advice has been for me not to get involved in the health care aspect of things at this time.  Many of the Sierra Leonean people are confused about what is actually causing the outbreak and are angry with the health care workers. There have been some angry gatherings at hospitals and ambulances are being stoned.  There are lots of rumors and lots of distrust.  Any work that I would be looking at doing would be in seeking to educate the people.  I’m just not sure at this point what that would look like and what the risk versus benefit ratio would be. 

So we’ll get there and figure out what the best thing to do will be.  We’ll see. Please please pray for this outbreak in Sierra Leone, Guinea and Liberia.  Pray for the health care workers, the people risking their lives. Pray for the infected people and their families. That fear would not overwhelm truth and that trust will be built between the hospitals and the people.  Pray for the stability of the country. Unrest and violence will only make a dangerous problem exponentially worse.