Learning Patience by Being a Patient

Wow what a week it has been! Just 7 days ago I was wrapping up my time in Serukam visiting at Bethesda Hospital. It had been an amazing time and I was ready to head home to Salatiga for the start of a new unit of language school. This past week feels like it has taken a month! So much has happened in the past few days it is hard to keep track. Lots of challenges but so many blessings as well!

So my last post had us to Sunday afternoon, when I had been told I needed to head to Kuching, Malaysia to have a plate and some screws placed surgically There were a couple of complications though that were going to make that difficult but the Lord provided in some amazing ways, which you can read about more in this blog post.

On Monday afternoon we were blessed to find a boot in one of storage rooms that helped provide support and allowed me to put a little weight on it while walking. The other option was casting it but because of the large amount of swelling that was not a great option, especially since it was likely to swell more with the travel.

I was so blessed to have an amazing supportive community around me, when this happened! I was rarely alone in my days in Serukam. There was always someone bringing me food, helping me with personal things, and praying with me. There was also a chicken named Caspian (belonged previously to a missionary family who returned to the US in June) who would come every morning and hang around all day long. We had lovely conversations as I sat on my patio and he in the tree outside :)

After getting the boot on Monday afternoon I practiced walking with a walker and partial weight-bearing on the foot. I then headed to dinner at the hospital director's house, with our guests Pastor Bruce and Julie and a couple of other Indonesian teammates. Shortly after that we left for Pontianak. It was a long bumpy and very uncomfortable trip but we made it just before 1 am. We then slept for a few hours before getting up early to catch a 8:30 am flight to Kuching, Malaysia.

We went directly to the doctor's office in Kuching. He took one look at the x-rays and recommended surgery to have a plate put in. So I was immediately admitted to the hospital and surgery happened just four or so hours after we arrived in Kuching. There are many friends of the hospital in Kuching, including the Wong family. Mrs. Wong helped things happen smoothly, and it was during her prayer right before surgery that the tears started and were hard to stop. My cell phone helped me keep in touch with family, friends, and teammates during this time. It was such a blessing to know that so many were praying. The surgery took about 2 hours. They did spinal anesthesia with a little medication through my IV to help me sleep.

Keeping in touch - thanks to my iPhone!

Post-surgery - looking and feeling a bit pale. 

I come with a bit of new hardware these days! 

That first night in the hospital was a bit rough due to pain and not being able to get out of bed. I would definitely put it in the category of longest night ever :) I did get a couple of shots of IM Demerol which mostly just helped me sleep. At the visit the next morning with the surgeon, he suggested staying 48 hours after surgery but with a little sweet-talking he was ok with me leaving at 24 hours. So on Wednesday afternoon I moved to a hotel. It was more comfortable and gave me more control over position in bed, food, meds, and activities. That night was my first good night of sleep in almost a week and it was amazing!

Resting at the hotel and keeping my leg elevated

After a couple of days of recovery we were back in the Dr's office on Friday morning for a post-op check. He pronounced the incision good and told me I could do partial weight-bearing, which was way better than hopping to and from everywhere! He also cleared me to return to Indonesia. So this morning we flew back as far as Pontianak, Indonesia. I am blessed to be at the New Tribes Guest House with a lovely room and several friends around. I will spend a couple of days recuperating here and practicing using my crutches, especially on stairs. To get back to Salatiga on the island of Java I will need to be able to climb about 20 narrow stairs up to the 737 plane. I am looking forward to being home in Salatiga! There will be lots of friends there and since I am living with Paul and Becky Geary in their house I will have plenty of help. There is also a physical therapist in the community who has offered to help with my rehab. I will be partial weight-bearing and dependent on crutches for at least 6 weeks. I am also hoping I can arrange for one of the language school instructors to come to my house, so I can continue language school. So there you have the rest of the story.

Thank you so much for all your prayers and well wishes via email and Facebook! When I was discouraged and lonely all I had to do was read a few to encourage me. It will be a long six weeks ahead and means adjusting to a new normal but I know God has a plan for this time too!