Category: Nepal Mission Visit 2015

Early morning and the sounds of animals and rain are coming from the window. Rain means electricity in Nepal and black outs are normal daily events. The hospital yesterday had a large battery collection(looks like car batteries) designed to channel the high and low surges of electricity. Imagine surgery with black outs… Aghhh! It brings a whole new perspective to  appreciation for our unlimited power at home. For these reasons, we welcome the rain today.

By the way, I have great pictures but the Internet connection is not consistent long enough to get them form my phone to here. Eventually they will be added. Today we have a road travel day. With the weather being as it is we will drive to the village Janakpur instead of fly. It is a 6 hour drive and there is a new road which we are told by Hugh, is very nice. Yay! This will also give us a scenic view of the country. Hugh and his wife, Diana, will be our guides. Hugh is the leader of the American Leprosy Mission here.

We saw monkeys yesterday just hanging out downtown above the storefronts. They are sacred here so they have freedom to go about and play, entertain and just be here. Today will have its own revelations. I have the patients we saw yesterday on my mind. Someone asked me, “having seen the patients for yourself, what do you think?” I didn’t have an answer yesterday. Suffering is suffering is suffering. When you can’t fix it you sit with it. Holding hands, feeding, offering silence or conversation – whatever be needed. My Paramedic background holds me to a place where both tears and strength are required…and ended. Each in its own measure. I know where we are headed will be different than where we have been the past 2 days.

Rain or electricity…take your pick.

“I love you, O Lord, my strength. The Lord is my rock and my fortress, and my deliverer, my God, my rock in whom I take refuge, my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.” Let it be. Psalm 18:1-2

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The Bodhnath (Boudha) stupa is the Tibetan Center of Nepal.  As Hugh Cross put it, “you have no idea what you are about to see”. And indeed, there was no knowing that behind the tall street buildings, shops and city life, a giant dome emerges in the center..with prayer flags blowing in the wind, people walking in meditation, incense filing the skies with the scent of frankincense. Breathe in deep…walk clockwise…let your heart be still. Namaste is the greeting. Silence is the practice. Chants give rise to prayers.

From the leprosy research lab and hospital to the spiritual center of Kathmandu, we simply listen, walk and wonder. Being who we are…we stumble quickly into the shops where Tibetan wares are handmade (or not) with the depth of the culture hammered into their form. The singing bowl makes water dance and the sound of the prayer chants emerge as you run the stick around its edges. We try many. We evaluate the sounds. Each one is different. Can we capture this and take it home? It only takes a moment to understand the people value taking time to honor one another and be with each other. No one here is hurrying; everyone moves about with purpose.

I am thankful we are here. Many cultures meld into this sacred space. Many people come seeking. They feed the pigeons to offer penance. The monks in training are robed in maroon garments wrapped about their bodies to tell us who they are in this space. The monastery is flanked by a coffee shop one one side, pashmina scarves on the other. We are caught between the scared center, the shops and our own journeys. Journeys that keep telling us God is so big and the world as we know it has become small. Let it sing.

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It rained today and we were cold. It fit well with our walk through culture, leprosy and science. The healing hand of God was revealed through the scientists, doctors and researchers that make leprosy their life’s work. I loved being in the medical world again; how fun to have my world merging all the way across the world! We visited the research lab and then the hospital ward at Anandaban Hospital in Kathmandu. We ran into three other Americans who also came to see and learn. One is a research physician from Harvard so Dr. Jim being an alumni was a nice connection. Two non-profit leaders that support the leprosy mission, one from Texas and one from California. All of us finding our way through the realities of this ancient disease that still isolates people physically and spiritually.

We learned many things today. Yes, leprosy is curable. But it is also illusive and can lay dormant for years. Poverty, vulnerable immune systems and lack of basic health (clean water, healthcare, food, etc) are major factors that give rise to the disease after you think it is “cured”.  In some cases it can take 20+ years of treating outbreaks to get someone off the meds. All of this is important because comprised immune systems are a huge risk factor. In countries where basic health is at risk, leprosy can find its way in and wreak havoc with a life.

How great is the havoc? We visited the hospital ward where some patients have been more months. The bed is not electronic. It doesn’t inflate and deflate to avoid sores. There is no “call button” for the nurse attached. Most of the patients have portions of their hands, feet and/or legs missing. Leprosy damages the nerves and this often leads to loss of limbs. It is an unforgiving disease.

In the typical Nepali hospital meals are not included in the hospital stay. If you want to eat your family has to bring food to you. In a leprosy ward no one is coming to visit so this hospital feeds all patients. We arrived at meal time and saw many happy smiles as people enjoyed their food.

Food. Basic necessity for life. Compassion. Love. Basic necessities for Life.  Jesus said he wanted us to have life and have it “abundantly”. Sometimes “abundantly” is having someone to care for your wounds, give you a space to sleep and feed you with good food every day. What’s your abundance?

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We arrived in the fog and rain. Everest was hidden from us, as are many other things. We arrive late..wait a long time for 2 bags that didn’t make it…and ultimately land at our hotel in Kathmandu. It is a welcome and enchanting site after 2 days of travel. The rain outside my door sings a cultural melody..of slower pace…of peace..a gentle “welcome”. I came with a carry on and backpack, like everyone else, and already I feel that I packed way TOO much! Do we ever learn simplicity?

We met up with Dr. Hugh Cross and his wife Diana. Over a Nepali dinner we hear more of their personal story that led them from Zimbabwe to Nepal via a school in Britain where they met, fell in love, married and began an adventure of a liftetime. Hugh became interested in “walking” after 17 years of being a shepherd. His podiatry education led to a PhD and eventually (as all God stories tend to be) to the American Leprosy Mission throughs Asia. From the beginning he was mesmerized and “called”  to leprosy.

The Internet connection is bad so this post is written at 1am Nepal time on March 2nd. When it goes “live” is yet to be seen. Ben and Kate Heacock are on my mind. If they were here we would be finding a way to access Mt. Everest before leaving. As it is, I am thankful just knowing it is somewhere near and probably, without even knowing, I will stand in its shadow this week. Let it be.

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The sun is rising here and already it is a morning of blessing.  I woke early for my quiet time and was welcomed by the sound of the prayers coming from….where? It is almost as if they are coming from the air. They float out and everyone hears the chant.  It was the same yesterday as we walked off of the airplane and onto the bridge connecting us. Prayers.

So this morning as I found my way to my prayer space, I was hearing yours. It changes my sense of God. It reminds me, once again, how small God can be when I only hear, see, experience one tradition.  And yet, it is my tradition that grounds me and guides me on the path. I suspect God is big enough to hold us all and I am certain that Jesus is walking through this moment with us.

We fly to Kathmandu today which is in Nepal.  (Dubai is in an area called the United Arab Emirates). Mount Everest is out there and if it is clear we may see much of it when we land.  Anticipation is great.  There are 7 of us on this mission learning excursion.  The three of us, and four members of the American Leprosy Board.  Today we will meet with Hugh Cross, the leader of the mission in Nepal. When he visited our church we were all blessed. What grace of God for us to now be visiting him in his “church”.  Prayers and Peace for the day!

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A Night of Flying: Arrival in Dubai

Do all adventures begin with a need for sleep? In every way I am thankful for 12 hours of flying time to catch up on sleep and rest. The confines of my airplane seat are not an enemy today; it is, instead, the cocoon that wraps me up and holds me until I am rested and ready for the landing that is soon to come.

We don’t know what this adventure holds. There are three of making the journey. We are the eyes and ears of the body of Christ we know in Franklin,TN. We only have the heart of our church, ourselves and the spirit of Christ to carry with us. We come with no expertise. We come with no answers even though we understand our church’s financial support has been a small part of an answer to the leprosy villages in Nepal.

But we have never had leprosy. We have never been to the Eastern part of the world. We haven’t studied leprosy or transformation of communities or Nepalese. We have never been shunned and isolated form our communities. We have not suffered physically to the point of losing not only our physical health, but also emotional and spiritual health. We are not even completely sure how we ended up on this adventure, and yet, we are arriving. I call it the grace of God. Our minds are open and our hearts are ready…to be changed.

We three…different perspectives, different life experiences…united in the love and grace we find unrelenting. Dr. Jim McGinley is a general practitioner that arrives with a mandolin and great sense of humor. Shannon Bennett, who serves on our Missions Team for church, carries the enthusiasm and spirit of adventure that invites you into miracles. We met up with 4 members of the Amercian Leprosy Board and they will be our companions for the remainder of the time. As Christ has loved us, so we are compelled to love others. Let it be.

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