G’day Everyone! J
Hope this finds all of you well and enjoying September!
I’m happy to say I’m back home on American soil and relishing harvest season, though I’m still adjusting to the temperature difference, especially since it's not in celsius. When we left Papua New Guinea (PNG) I don’t know what the temperature was, but it was hot! The humidity was something like 84%, and it dropped drastically to 48% when we reached Townsville. What a difference! Coming to Spokane almost seemed like winter!!!
This week I’ve been catching up from jet-lag and recovering from a cold I picked up the last week in Townsville. I traveled from Townville (left at 6am Sunday) to Brisbane to L.A. arrived at 7:30 am Sunday. Hit Spokane at 7pm Sunday- what a trip!!! I think the trip was 28+ hours and I’m giving myself a gold star for navigating the international airports! WOO HOOO!!! J
Thank you so much to everyone who has been reading my blog and keeping updated with Facebook and photos. I’m so excited to be sharing this journey with you, and I’m filled with enthusiasm to share my experiences, but this wouldn’t be possible without the love and support of all of you! Thank you also to my parents for spreading the word and advocating about my mission and purpose, and those who were praying for me and my team. We saw breakthrough, miracles and lives changed because of your dedication!
These last 5 months (8 weeks in Australia and 12 weeks in PNG) has been the experience of a lifetime! I’ve lived in villages without electricity or running water, and also taken on the role of a doctor prescribing medication for adults and children. I’ve experienced multiple 28 hour sails (with seasickness),sank into thigh-deep mud, almost fallen through bamboo floors and shared my story in front of a crowd of 300 students. WOW!
I look back and realize that even though it was hot, muddy and extremely trying at times… I wouldn’t trade this experience for anything. I see myself sitting in a rocking chair 50 years from now with my grandchildren, recollecting stories of PNG. I yearn to tell them what it is to have mothers inform you they are unable to feed their babies because flooding has destroyed their crops and they have no food. To convey the pain and intimidation in one woman’s eyes as she reveals a stump on her left arm from amputation- a result of her drunk husband chasing after her with a knife and slicing deep into her flesh. And yet, to convey the laughter and hilarity, sheer joy of late nights on the ship singing songs in Motu and Pigeon (2 of the 700 languages in PNG) with the PNG nationals aboard the ship. I want to urge and implore my grandchildren to experience and know first-hand what it is to be a life-giver, to offer hope…real hope.
Christina with mom and happy baby (before immunizations) in Western Province
PNG brought out some characteristics I didn’t even know were in me. I discovered I have substance: I’m strong, and more importantly, I am an overcomer! I can conquer challenges; stare fear in the face, and laugh while having “nothing.” I realized that the intimidation of impossibilities is just a screen ready to be marched through and conquered! Through this, I realized I have a fiery, fervent desire to be a part of something greater than myself; I want to be part of the solution, justice to those suffering the injustice of poverty.
Our motto heralding the ministry of the medical ship is “Mi Like Stap Laip” which in English means “I want to live.” This is derived from John 10:10 which says “The devil comes to steal, kill and destroy, but Jesus came to give life and life abundantly.” I feel I was born to fight for something… I want to fight for LIFE! It is for this reason I am planning to return to Townsville in Australia in January to complete a second-year school “Introduction to Primary Health Care” (IPHC) which trains individuals to be capable of treating 80% of the diseases in the developing world. As I mentioned in my previous posts, I discovered and grasped a hold of a passion for teaching, and have excitement about training non-medical individuals to have the medical knowledge and skills to diagnose and treat 80% the preventable diseases in 3rd world countries. Similar to the DTS school I just completed, I would spend a portion of the time in lectures with an outreach portion in PNG!!!!!!! J After the five months of school, I will commit to be on staff for 2 years. I am here in the States for 4 months to take care of a few things as well as raise support since I’m returning as a full-time volunteer.
Because there is no way to describe 3 months of PNG in 1 post, I wanted to start sharing stories over a period of time as I recount this incredible journey. Sorry to keep you waiting, but be watching with baited breath for the next post! J
Hope you enjoyed reading this. If you are interested in more information or would like to partner with me in more specific ways, feel free to email me at christyp20@gmail.com !
Thanks a million!
God bless,
Christina
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