Then, through a series of God-ordained events, one of my leaders on another mission earlier this year "just happened" to mention to me that she had been contacted about a need for another nurse to Madagascar. I told her I had been trying to get on the mission and she put in a good recommendation for me. Within a few days, I had an email in my inbox inviting me to join the team. I could hardly believe it! This was really going to happen!
To add to the "coincidence," I found out that my friend Jaime was going to be working nights on the mission with me. We were both staying beyond the mission and decided we would travel together for a bit after the mission ended.
Antananarivo or "Tana" as it is more commonly called was not a disappointing place to end up. The people were definitely different than the Africans I had come to know so well in West Africa. I quickly came to learn that there was both Asian and African influence in Madagascar and the people looked and seemed to be a combination of the two...not quite as loud and friendly as the West Africans, but still very warm and kind-hearted. Many of them spoke French and I was excited to practice my broken French for the first time in a long time. Thankfully, there was always at least one person who understood French (or should I say MY French) who was able to translate into Malagasi to the other Mama's in the room.
In spite of the fact that I had only done three missions prior to Tana, I was designated the "nurse in charge" on night shift. Apparently, I have that "natural leader" trait, so I didn't have a choice. I enjoyed being able to help out the others as much as possible. Our local nurses were also wonderful and I had the opportunity of getting to know them well.
Our local nurse "Malala" and I with one of our patients before surgery
The mission went smoothly and in spite of moments of children crying and everyone needing their pain meds all at once, it was beautiful to be back in Africa, taking care of these wonderful people who were so grateful for the surgeries we were able to do for their little ones. There were too many cute kids to count and in spite of occasionally making the kiddos cry when I forced their medicine down them, I still ended the mission with a bunch of new friends (even some of the kids who decided to forgive me...it's amazing how much forgiveness hugs, bubbles, and toys can bring)!
We had so many wonderful patients with their own stories of hope. But one of my favorites was a father and his son who had their cleft lips fixed the same week. The Dad recalled that he had been sad about his cleft lip his whole life, but that when his son was born, he realized there was a purpose. Now his son wouldn't feel alone! He would be able to relate and empathize with his son. And now, so many years later, they were both having surgery. It was so special.
The mission came to an end before we knew it and Jaime and I headed out to the rainforest. What we didn't know was that our late departure from Tana and lack of planning was not the best combo for traveling out to the Volcana Lodge. Thankfully, though, we had God on our side and He definitely paved the way for us.
As the two of us boarded a bus full of people heading the direction we wanted to go, we got cozy as we realized we would have to put aside the term "personal space" for the duration of the trip. Thankfully, Jaime and I have both been in these situations before, so it wasn't a big deal for either of us. About 5 minutes after driving down the road, the bus stopped to pick up more people. We saw a guy get on who was wearing one of our "Operation Smile Madagascar" t-shirts. We said hi and realized he was one of the local surgeons from the team. And we were VERY grateful to have someone on the bus to tell us where to get off because we didn't really know what we were doing.
A couple hours later, we got to the town where we were supposed to get on the "connecting bus." We hadn't realized when we left town that there would be a time crunch. This was the very last one to go to the town we were headed and there was about one seat left...maybe. Jaime and I squeezed into the back, along with two other guys, who decided it would be easier for them to just stand on the back of the bus and hold on to the back door than to try to find a spot inside. We started off and within the first few minutes, Jaime had a chicken pecking at her foot. We couldn't help but laugh. This situation was not ideal, but it sure was comical...we were the only two white people in this bus that was jam-packed with people and animals and now a chicken was hoping that her toes were something he could eat. Thankfully, the ride on the chicken bus was only about 45 minutes (compared to several hours we had spent on the first, less crowded bus), but it was still long enough for Jaime and I to form a life-long chicken bus, random African experience, BFF connection. When we arrived at our destination, we found out that there were no taxis around. Thankfully, we had made a friend on the bus who happened to work at the hotel we were staying. We were able to get a ride up to the hotel instead of walking several miles up a dirt road that was now covered in mud from the rain (not to mention it was getting dark). So it was the grace of God that we made it in one piece.
The next several days were filled with lots of fun activities, a walk through the rainforest to spot families of lemurs, a "night walk" where we saw lots of chameleons and other fun little animals with our flashlights. We even got to visit a little island that was full of lemurs that we were able to feed. It was so funny having them all crawl around my shoulders and walk on my head. They LOVED the bananas we brought them and reminded me a lot of little monkeys!
Jamie and I with the lemurs
After our fun trip to Volcana Lodge, Jaime and I headed back from our trip and then parted ways, as I started out for Tamatave to see my friends from Mercy Ships. It was very different visiting the ship as a guest instead of being there as a crew member, but I had a lot of fun catching up with old friends, visiting the patients on the ward, and helping out with the kids at the orthopedic rehab center down the road. I also brought some fun things for the kids at the "Hope Center," the facility that Mercy Ships used for patients who needed follow-up, but no longer needed to be hospitalized and had no place to stay in Tamatave. The kids quickly warmed up to me and before long, we were taking tons of selfies and goofy photos. I couldn't help but think to myself "Oh Africa, I have missed you!"
Before I knew it, it was time to leave Tamatave. I had a nice little stop in South Africa on my way home for a safari, as well as a visit to several old friends from Mercy Ships. I came home with a full heart, grateful for the opportunity to see so many dear friends and make many new friends in two amazing African countries. Until next time, Africa...
