week forty one - Karpasdanga

spending the week with Tiffany at Karpasdanga. new nursing students and the absent of Benuka made the week rather quiet, but still enjoyable. we did some ANC clinics seeing over fifty women. one clinic was an hour away and one i had gone to the first time i spent the week there. it was neat to see some of the same women and continue their care and not be strangers each time!

thursday was Bangla New Years, and we were awoken to drums beating nearby at five am. they continued on for the morning and after breakfast we were ushered over to the school next door to watch the celebration. all the children were dressed up beautifully and then we heard the drums. a large crew of teenage guys came dancing into the school yard, some covered completely in mud, banging on drums and shouting. then we saw a ‘couple’ under an umbrella. after getting a closer look Bek, who had come to visit for the night, said ‘oh my thats a boy!’ the ‘girl’ in the couple was dressed as a women. then i noticed that some of the girls had dressed as boys as well. i’m not sure why, i tried asking but with limited english no one could give me an answer apart from ‘celebration!’. the dancing crew left and went on to the hospital grounds then on to other homes in the village. the crowds slowly dissipated and we returned back to the hospital. we had lunch and then all three of us returned to Bollobhpur for the celebration.

some of the girls on my team got dressed up in their sari’s, (a wrap around dress) and we went to the field in front of the church nearby. they had a stage and music set up. me and Naomi stayed for an hour and when nothing happened we left. we heard after that the program consisted of a man talking for quite some time, then random people singing and then dancing. but the dancing was cut quite short because of a cyclone that hit suddenly. the cyclones here are quite fun! the wind all of sudden picks up and all the shudders and doors bang like crazy. everything has to be locked up. the thunder is so loud and lightening lights up the house. then the rains come and pound down for less than an hour and then everything returns to normal! the air is so cool after its really nice as we’re heading into their hot season. already i feel like i’m melting away. today i have taken a total of five ‘showers’ just to cool off.

me and Tiff returned to Karpasdanga friday morning via bicycles! yes our team are now owners of two very old fashion bikes including bells of course! it took us just over an hour to get there and apart from riding against the wind and feeling like i was sitting on a cement seat the ride was good.

because it was still a holiday (new years) there were no clinics, so we hung out with the nursing students who had fun playing dress up and filled our faces with lipstick, eye liner and mascara. they even gave us jewelry to wear and a bindy for our foreheads. (the circle stickers) me and Tiff ended up falling asleep on their bed and slept till it was time for lunch. in the late afternoon the girls took me to the river just behind the hospital and we hung out and talked and taught each other our languages. Tiff wasn’t feeling well so she stayed in bed. they asked if i wanted to cook so i made fried eggs and hash browns. Tiff and I were excited to get out of eating the evening rice. (they eat dinner around nine pm and rice is the staple food so lunch and dinner always consist of a large portion) With Tiff still unwell i began monitoring the one women in labour (only one the entire week). between checking in on Tiff and staying with the soon to be mom Tiff fell asleep and the women became very tired of being in labour. she like to stay on the floor and refused water or food. at one point she finally obliged and took a sip of water not knowing it was mixed with a glucose powder to give her energy and she spat it strait out! including all over my one foot! at ten fifty five she gave birth to a beautiful boy! it was a nice delivery but she did tear. i asked the girls if they would suture and they said ‘no you suture’ so i sutured. my first time all on my own. it went good, i was nervous but tried not to be! lots of prayer and my headlamp on she was sutured up. i even got a compliment from one of the students, which help reassure me i hadn’t destroyed the poor girl!

the next morning i had woken up but was still laying in bed and heard a knock on the door, when i didn’t answer a face appeared in the window, the new little boys grandma stood their holding the baby motioning me to come outside! a little taken aback but not completely surprised, i got dressed and went out to find them packed up ready to go. i was very grateful that they woke me up. they had also prepared breakfast for me and Tiff. the hospitality here is so genuine i’ve never experienced anything like it before. a roti and very good omelet filled me right up and it took a bit of persistence for them to take no for an answer that i was in fact not going to eat any more!

we had tea and packed up and got back on the bikes and made our way home to join the team. a better drive but by bottom being very very sore. i nearly hit a goat and a lady but made it safely with no injuries on me or others. the problem is the bikes are quite high and my feet don’t touch the ground so stopping and starting are somewhat challenging! also my very heavy backpack was strapped to the little ledge on the back of the seat which threw off my balance a little, but again God kept us and the rest of villagers safe!

i did ANC that morning, and then got to relax for the afternoon. sunday we had church and spent the afternoon cleaning and then me and Naomi went to the village market to buy some grocery’s and use the internet. my second time online. its not possible to use my computer there and its easier to write out these updates on my computer so sorry you had to wait so long to read them. sunday i really wanted to call home but couldn’t find anywhere to get enough credit for the phone so no call.

monday, day off. sleeping,shower, movie, shower, eat, shower, movie, shower, eat. and going and checking in at the hospital to see if they are any women labouring. there are none today. its almost seven pm now, power off. very hot. but feeling rested which is nice, ready to start another week here at Bollobhpur!

till next time...