Today we had quite a unique experience! Well, then again every day is unique... We spent the night on call in the hospital. We were hoping that a baby would be born, but alas, we ended up being able to sleep through the night without interruptions. Today we were driven out to a small town about an hour up into the mountains. Laura and I held a medical clinic there alone--just us and the translators! It was quite an experience. Joe prepped us with some broad instructions for the use of certain medicines that we would likely be using. Fortunately, everything went very well! We saw about 55 patients in the couple of hours we were there. It was just in one small room. I'll post pictures when I can!
One event in particular during our trip really stuck with me. A woman brought her baby girl to our clinic. She set her on the floor to sleep while we spoke with the mother (this is actually pretty common here). After we finished discussing her medical issues, we commented on how beautiful her baby was. The woman proceeded to ask us if we wanted her baby! She was being completely serious. It was so sad! I think I've already mentionned why people don't want girls, but it's because of the expensive dowry to have them married. She told us that she would only want her baby if it was a boy. I don't think I could ever get used to hearing that from patients. Dr. Sima told us that sometimes women will try to leave babies at the hospital when they give birth to girls. Please be praying for these families!
On a lighter note, we had pizza for dinner last night! I had never been so thankful for American food before :) Thank you for the prayers. I miss you guys!
One event in particular during our trip really stuck with me. A woman brought her baby girl to our clinic. She set her on the floor to sleep while we spoke with the mother (this is actually pretty common here). After we finished discussing her medical issues, we commented on how beautiful her baby was. The woman proceeded to ask us if we wanted her baby! She was being completely serious. It was so sad! I think I've already mentionned why people don't want girls, but it's because of the expensive dowry to have them married. She told us that she would only want her baby if it was a boy. I don't think I could ever get used to hearing that from patients. Dr. Sima told us that sometimes women will try to leave babies at the hospital when they give birth to girls. Please be praying for these families!
On a lighter note, we had pizza for dinner last night! I had never been so thankful for American food before :) Thank you for the prayers. I miss you guys!
WOW Kelli! What an amazing time you're having. So many of the things you're seeing and going through even I have not been able to experience. I loved the observation about the stray animals. And the part about the baby girls, it breaks my heart every time i think about it. So amazing how different cultures think of things differently. Be sure to take pictures of the views when you can!
ReplyDeleteWoo Hoo for the Pizza! :)
Sending a hug! Rohini
Hey Kelli,
ReplyDeleteI like the picture of the dog hiding under the car. It reminds me of the cats in St. Thomas hiding under the cars so they wouldn't get wet in the rain. I wonder how Riley would survive in India. He'd probably just steal enough food to survive, or live with mountain goats... I can't wait til you get back!
Robbie
Kelli!
ReplyDeleteI just found your blog when I was on Facebook and it has been fun to read! It sounds like you girls are having some amazing experiences down there, although some of them are also shockingly sad. I will be praying for you and for India!
Angela