Unforgettable 4th of July

Hey Everyone!

I hope everyone back home had a great 4^th of July. We had quite an interesting day to say the least.

So the day started out fine. It was a beautiful morning and we had invited some friends over for an afternoon cookout. I was running around the house trying to get everything set up, while Newman worked a half day at the clinic. Per usual, Newman had planned on accomplishing certain things that morning, and ended up getting pulled in many different directions causing him to accomplish completely different things. When we finally met up around 1pm to drive into town and get the rest of the things we needed for our cookout, he was feeling somewhat frustrated. He was venting to me in the car on the way to the market, which I completely understood his frustrations, but we both also know that this is the way things work around here. After having managed a Chick-fil-A for the past year and a half, Newman was very accustomed to things being well timed, and accomplishing a lot in a short amount of time. In his current position, due to factors beyond his control, small tasks are often accomplished over a long period of time.

So anyways, we drove into town, picked up drinks and vegetables, and began to make our way back home. We were almost to our turn off the main road towards home when we spotted a group of high school students crowded around a girl. She was on her knees and there were two boys on either side of her, each holding her up under her arms. Her head was flung back, and I could see she was unconscious. I yelled at Newman to pull the car over, and I jumped out before the car even came to a stop. Also, at the same time, our friend Mustafa happened to be driving up and pulled over as well. He ran over there with me, and I was so glad he was there to help translate and move the girl. I ran up and told them I was a nurse and to please lower her down to the ground. I checked her pulse, which was strong, and I could see that she was breathing normally. I asked what her name was, and the children replied, “Lydia.” I called her name and tried to see if I could get her to open her eyes. I told Newman to bring the car over so that we could put her in the back and take her to the clinic. Luckily we were really close to the clinic too. We put her in the back seat with one of her friends and began to drive to the clinic. I tried to get as much information from her friend as I could. His English was pretty good. I asked if she had had a seizure or if she had just fainted. He said she just passed out. I asked if she had been feeling bad earlier in the day and if this had ever happened to her before, and he said no. We got her to the clinic, and the staff helped us get her into the nursing room. I was so pleased with the staff and how they reacted. We have a few new nurses, and they are AWESOME!! They quickly checked her vitals, started an IV, and checked her blood sugar. Everything was normal, but she was still unconscious. We stayed with her for a little while to see if she would wake up, and she didn’t, so we asked them to update us when she woke up.

Next, we went back to our house to finish getting everything ready for our cookout, as people would be arriving in the next hour. We kept our phones close by in case the clinic called. About 15 minutes later, there were two men standing on our front porch. Newman went to talk to them and I kept working in the kitchen. Then Newman called for me to come outside. I went out there and one of the men held up my big pink wallet and asked if I was missing something. My face dropped and I said something to the effect of, “oh my gosh, yes, um, yes, that’s mine, and where did you get it?” They began to tell us that when I had jumped out of the car to help that girl on the side of the road, someone came up to the window of the car, reached in, and took my wallet. These two men said they saw it happen and they began to chase him down on a boda boda (motorcycle). They got the wallet back, and luckily everything was still in it. There was not much cash, and I was not worried about that, but it did have my SC driver’s license, my international driver’s license, and my credit cards. I gave them each a hug and thanked them profusely for returning it. We gave them a small reward for bringing it back and they left.

We just looked at each other like, what just happened?? It was a crazy chain of events. I had just begun to think earlier that day as I was walking through the market how safe I felt here, and how we have only experienced kindness and hospitality. I will be a little more careful in the future, but I think if I see another person on the side of the road who needs help, I probably still won’t remember to roll my windows up and lock the door before I jump out.

The rest of the day, despite a downpour of rain for a little while, was really nice. We had a small group of about 8 people come over, and we had a really nice meal. We were updated later that the girl, Lydia, had woken up, she was fine and her parents were coming to pick her up. I think that she was just dehydrated and overheated. The school children always have a lunch break between 1 and 2, and that’s when we saw her. It was extremely hot, and she probably had not had anything to eat or drink for some time.

Looking back, Newman and I realized that had his morning gone the way he intednded it to have gone, we may not have been passing by when that girl needed help. Also, the fact that Mustafa just happened to be there at the exact same time was such a sign that God was with us. We both said that we are going to try really hard not to complain when things are not going our way, because there could be a reason and we just can’t see it yet from our perspective.

So I hope everyone had a blessed 4^th of July. We definitely felt blessed and happy to be here. Thanks so much for all of you who are praying for us. We can really feel your prayers and love. I will leave you with a couple pictures of the view from the backyard. I took these yesterday morning before I knew what the day had in store for us.

Love,

Trish