Wild Hope Stories

I just wanted to remind folks that I also blog for Wild Hope. While I haven't managed to keep that site up the way I keep maintain this personal/family blog, I have posted almost 50 stories on it in the last couple of years. So, if you'd like to hear more about what Wild Hope is up to, Karibuni! Oh, that means, "Welcome" in Swahili :-)

Check Wild Hope's blog HERE

Thanks for reading!

Perspective

I would just like to commend to you my friend, Todd, and the story of how he was shocked in the head by more than 13,000 watts of electricity while doing some charitable building in Mexico recently. I guess you'll have to read his blog from the bottom up to allow the story to unfold.

The key information is that Todd was on the roof of a building he was working on when he stood up into a live power line. He was knocked unconscious and would have fallen 26 feet to the ground had our friend, Jim, not been then to catch and hold him.

I have a little problem of some skin cancer on my nose. Todd has a better perspective on serious happenings. He is a survivor of a terribly sober accident and he will continue to take a long time to heal.

We love Todd and Heather. Todd was my younger brother's roommate in college. Todd and Heather helped us build a house 16 years ago in Kenya when the first one burned down. They have been incredible friends over the years.

I am so hugely thankful that Todd is alive today. You can follow his story HERE

Biopsy Back and I Give My Face Some Love

The lab report came back showing that I have 2 kinds of skin cancer cells present on my nose.

The side of my nose started to bleed spontaneously after my shower on the day we left Tanzania. We flew to London and on to Lisbon that night and next morning but as soon as I got to internet again after landing I asked Mom to book me in at the dermatologist when we arrived in California.

So, yea, skin cancer. Hhhhhmmmm. I have basal and scquamous cells present.

The C-word... Never welcome.

Here are the fortunate things--

We found this very quickly.
The doctor says this is still in the "good" zone, whatever that means.
Removing skin cancer from faces seems to be par for the course here in California.
Basal cells are relatively non-threatening.
Scquamous cells "can be aggressive if not treated" but we are treating them.

I have a pre-op visit on May 5 and surgery on my nose on the 12th. We hope that it will be a small surgery and not require a skin graft. But even a skin graft wouldn't be such a bad deal in the scheme of things.

But, yes, I was teary and shaken to hear the words "skin cancer."

I've not really been a sun-worshipper. I've had some bad burns accidentally in life and those all add up. I've been in a lot of sunshine since I've lived in California, East Africa and Portugal.

I've also never really done much to care for my face. I mean, I do wash it in the shower and I've used mascara and lip gloss for a long time. I haven't had a lot of product for the old face apart from moistureizer. When I was 39, I went to the make-up counter with my big sister and had the lady show me how to use a little foundation. I figured I should grow up a bit since I was about to turn 40.

So my new thing this week is to give my face a little more love. I bought a hair band to push my hair off my face so I can cleanse it properly. And every morning I smooth a nice #40 sunblock for faces on, which I should have been doing for many years. Then I don my lovely new hat to shade me.

Being nice to my face is kind of pleasant. The redness and scabbing is all gone from the biopsy sites and I look no worse for the wear.

Thanks for prayers. Mostly, I feel calm... And a little freaked out from time to time.

cold, heat, biopsy, vanity, blessings

So, we've been cold, cold, cold since we left Arusha. The temperatures were hovering in the low 80's as we departed.

The brisk Atlantic breezes in Portugal had us shivering like a bunch of sillies who left their socks and jackets in Africa. That's because we are a bunch of sillies who left our socks and jackets in Africa. Good thing our friends were happy to share.

California greeted us with sunshine but we were still cold... until today. Today has been just flat out baking hot. I refuse to complain when I've been so chilled of late.

No news on the biopsy of the questionable spot on my nose. I must have heard wrong when I thought she said "end of the week." I think she said "end of next week."

In the mean time, the biopsy site has become infected and inflamed and ugly. I'm 100 miles from the dermatologist but another doctor friend here told me to go ahead and drain the infection and keep disinfecting it etc.

Here are 2 lessons I've learned in the last few days...

First off, Americans are incredibly polite. I have met A LOT Of people in the last few days, as well as greeted many old friends. Only one person asked me what was going on with my face. Everyone else chatted nicely, while they must have wondered at my sore red lower nose and bunged up bridge of nose. The dark blister on the bridge of my nose if where the doctor froze something off. The angry looking lower part is the infection that developed around the biopsy site. Now I'm putting make-up on the red part so it just looks weird, lumpy and chalky. Ha!

I can't help but think fondly of my African friends who would be asking if I walked into a branch or if my husband beat me or something. So funny how cultures do politeness differently.

The second thing I learned is that I'm vainer than I think. I don't like meeting and greeting all these people with my nose all alarming. (But I have to say that it's so, so worth it to be here at Westmont with our boys and all their friends and to have attended SBCC's annual retreat over the weekend.)

Finally, I've been touched by many sweet gestures from friends since we've arrived back in the States. To be honest, I have been quite surprised by love.

Love feels good. And that cheers even my nose up :-)

a short list of doctors

We've made it to LA and have begun down our do-list of doctor visits. Back dude for Byron; skin chick, teeth guy, eye expert and lady specialist for me.

I went to the dermatologist today and she immediately took a biopsy of the spot on my nose that started to bleed after my shower on the day we left Tanzania. (I had a mole there 10 years ago that this same doctor removed. It was biopsied and found not to be a problem at that time so this is a new development.)

I will hear back regarding today's biopsy on Friday and I would certainly appreciate prayers for a cancer-free result.

Check out my new sun hat and note the pretty band-aid on my nose where the doctor poked me with a needle and then cauterized the area. Ouch.

xx

in the garden

stone cold heart
hard-pressed
tomb-still

i stand here
knowing only
that they killed you
then stole my chance
to wrap you
in the sweetness
you deserve

a gardener's voice
breaks into the emptiness
i hear my answer
from across a thousand miles
of loneliness

mary
he says
mary

my dead heart
startles
and chokes
awake

this vacant place
that was my chest
rushes warmth

mary

a creator's power
invoking life
where there had been none

mary

and i knew you
i knew you

by the way
you said
my name

all the broken places

i am quite sure
i have no words
to name your pain

tiny body taken
by force

darkness deeper than
oceans
the brutal need
to crush

multiply it out
times a hundred?
times a thousand?
times a million?

how many millions?

words fail

on this cold day between
as his body lies
so very
very
dead

i can only hold to this

that he was
battered
torn
tortured
murdered

to heal

all
the
broken
places

Thank You! (or Africa was good for Tehur and Tehur was good for us!)

Having Tehur with us for the last 6 weeks in Tanzania was a huge gift to our family.

After mornings of school, the creative stuff flowed. I loved seeing Tehur and Heather writing fairy tales, reading poetry, knitting, making up dance routines, playing the piano and talking about great books they've read.

We had some lovely adventures with our Te and we are very happy that Africa was a big blessing to her in the midst of them all. I loved watching her unwind from some of the stress of her last 6 years and embrace all kinds of new things.

Tehur, our European city-girl, hiked for hours in buffalo and elephant country. She camped away off yonder where there are no city lights and where we could hear hyena, baboon and zebra at night. She rode on the roof of the car and got dustier than she probably ever imagined was possible. She bathed in the stream, ate new foods, drank tea with Maasai friends, and was touched by the faith and joy of Tanzanian women. Tehur drove the big Land Cruiser over bush roads like she was Kathryn Hepburn. Go, Te!

I think my favorite part of Tehur's adventures was the confidence and joy I saw emerging as her new experiences showed her that there are whole parts of herself that are yet to be discovered. I loved hearing her declare herself "The New Tehur." I loved that the simple lives of Josephine and Eva, (the women who work the fruit drying business out of our kitchen) changed Te's perspective on just about everything and showed her again that joy comes from something quite other than where most people think it comes from.

I love that Josephine and Eva taught without teaching and that they cried when Tehur left. And I loved all our evenings together; laughter, tea, mosquitos, power cuts and all.

So... THANK YOU to all of you who participated in getting Tehur to Africa. You blessed us deeply. And THANK YOU, Tehur, for boarding that plane and sharing yourself with us.

We love you.

Portuguese Pleasure

Ahhhh... Here we are in Portugal again. As I said, it's now 2 years and 8 months since we said goodbye to our season of life in Portugal and all I can say is that it feels really pleasant, familiar and comfortable to be here.

Look at that church in the photo above. It pushes out into the road that leads into the center of the village where we lived. So pretty! So totally unlike any of the beauty we enjoy in Africa. I feel fat and full of life to think that I have the privilege of experiencing such different worlds.

You know what I love about here? I love our friends. I looked around the room during the party on Friday night and thought, "Look at all these crazy people that I love." Drums, guitars, food, friends, noise, children, laughter, tears, prayers, ridiculousness. What a fine list of ingredients for a night.

A brief list of highly enjoyables:

Portuguese coffee
Portuguese bread and butter
Portuguese bread and butter with Portuguese cheese
Portuguese bread and butter with Portuguese cheese and wine
Portuguese barbequed chicken (with Portuguese bread and butter)
Walks on rocky Portuguese paths to rocky Portuguese beaches with Carey

FYI I declined the dip in the cold Atlantic with her. I used to always jump in with Carey but my African blood is a little thin right now.

Now, on the yet-to-be-enjoyed list there is really only one thing outstanding...

I need a morning pastelaria stop. This stop will have to be at some highly frequented very local pastry shop where I can order a warm pastel de nata and a piping hot meia de leite. Translation: I need a cream pastry (similar to a little custard thing) and Portuguese latte. Yes.

Byron thinks it's funny that my pleasures here seem to be all about food. Food AND friends, Byron. Food and friends... What could be better than that??

Next Post from Portugal :-)

Just running out the door...

Shuttle to Nairobi awaits!