FYI: Donations to my work on Mercy Ships can be made online now on the Mercy Ships webpage. This is the direct link https://secure.mercyships.org/webinfo/staffsupport and I am listed there, Desiree Cabot. So far, God has provided $2,965 to fund my trip! Thank you to everyone who has contributed, and thank you to everyone who supports me in other ways!
As an update, my initial budget was anticipated to be $6,200. Total amount needed now: $5,200. :) That puts me at about 57% of my budget. More than half!
I've been doing an online orientation for Mercy Ships and it's pretty neat. I think I am going to learn a lot... Some things I've found interesting so far, is that Honey is sometimes used on wounds on the ship, we teach patients how to mix their own saline using boiled water and salt. Noma is something I've never heard of before, but apparently it is a disease sort of like gangrene that effects the mouth and nose. It usually affects children age 2-5, and is usually found in malnourished children or children with other sicknesses such as malaria, TB, ect. If the person lives, they have disfiguring scars, that are not only cosmetic but can also cause problems eating, ect. Here are some examples from sources other than mercy ships:
Another patient I read about was a boy who lived in Ethiopia as a street child. He had been attacked by a hyiena when he was small. His head was disfugured, and a european who found the boy in Ethiopia brought him to the Mercy Ship where he had reconstructive surgery.
I think this trip is going to change me, and help me look at the world as more than what we see here in the US. In some ways, we really have no clue about the rest of the world. We do not know how good we have it.
In other ways, we still have human suffering... I see it in the hospital here-medicine does not have all the answers, even when money is no option and the best of the best hosptials are accessable. Bad things still happen. We live in an imperfect world. But I know that in the midst of it, God wants to reveal His goodness to us.
Here is a great video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zZI2gOBvBHk about God speaking to us through all the things in our lives.
3 comments:
You mentioned that you thought that this trip was going to change you. I don't see how that can be avoided! How rich you will be. What an experience! Thank God you were given a heart to reach out and touch people AND an adventurous spirit. I'm just blown away by the magnitude of where you will be and what you will see and who you will come into contact with and the people you will help!
And thank God for those who have extensive resources to help. So often we hear of the follies of the rich and famous - but rarely are the airwaves bombarded with the news of their humble sacrifices to projects like this. (individuals and corporations)
And you're so right - I don't have a clue about what goes on outside of my little world. It certainly is hard to claim importance in what little impact I've made to mankind.
Please do all you can to help.
God Bless your heart!
Bonnie Ochse
You and Jesus are at the core of my blog today - I hope you have a chance to read it.
Hi, Desiree! Greetings from the Africa Mercy! We are long-term crew here and look forward to meeting you when you arrive on the ship. You'll be leaving in a few days to come so...enjoy your friends and family...relax and you'll have lots of people here to help you settle in to life on the ship. You can go to http://mercyshipslinks.blogspot.com/ and learn lots before you come. This blog has links to many crew blogs. You can even learn what is for dinner by checking out the Chef's blog....http://www.tyroneandstephanie.com/blog/afm-menu/ May God bless you abundantly as you travel and trust in Him! See you soon!
God's blessings,
Denise and Rob Miller
Mercy Ships, M/V Africa Mercy
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