"No, we are waiting for Mzungus"

This is what the little boy said when told he needed to go to school. I was waiting for a minibus to get to the clinic, and as usual was surrounded by a group of preschoolers. A woman told them to go to school and they said something. Apparently, they said, "No, we are waiting for mzungus" which translates to "No, we are waiting for white people". Its pretty funny being such a novelty.

I had one of my best days in Africa this week. I have been helping the midwife some at the clinic in the mornings helping her with prenatal exams and family planning. On Tuesday, a woman came in labor. She was 19 and this was her second pregnancy. She arrived in active labor and dilated at 7cm. The midwife thought she would deliver in 3 hours. I stayed with her while Janet, the midwife, went to another room to do the prenatals. I felt pretty uncomfortable as this woman was in obvious pain and I couldn't speak her language to see if I could do anything to help her or if she wanted me to leave her alone. Her mother had brought her, but was waiting in the waiting area. From what I can tell, most women do not have family or friends present for the labor or delivery. I left her alone, but at one point, she was trying to massage her lower back so I tentatively started trying to massage her. For the next 3 hours, I became a masseuse/labor coach as each time I stopped, she would hit her back and point at me. She didn't progress as fast as Janet had expected and the baby's heartrate was dropping quite a lot so Janet was a bit worried. No fetal monitors here, just a fetoscope that you place on the tummy and put your ear to the other side. Just as we were hanging an IV, things started moving more quickly and she delivered a healthy baby girl after 5 hours at the clinic. It was amazing and such a privilege to get to share in this moment. Right after delivery, Janet had me take the baby to rub and suction and examine. It was tense for a few minutes as the baby was trying to breathe with lots of secretions, but after suctioning, everything was good and the baby was breathing well. I gave her to her mom and she immediately started breastfeeding. I was humbled again by what an amazing God we have, with such creativity to bring new life into the world through women. And I was humbled by the strength of African women. Baby and Mom will stay at clinic for 2 days so I got to see them again yesterday and all was well.

Things here are going by quickly and slowly at the same time. I can't believe I have almost been here 2 months, yet there are days that are very slow. Last night, I was in bed at 6:45! I'm looking forward to taking a week off in a few weeks to take a ferry to the islands and the Mozambican side of the lake. From pictures, it looks amazing.

Thanks for the comments you are posting. I love reading them. Thank you for your prayers. I continue to need them. Many blessings.