There was no road...

'It wasn't your typical Thursday'

Thursday morning me and most of the PR team on the Africa Mercy jumped into a Mercy Ships Land Rover and took off for our own little African adventure. Excited we were, prepared we were not. The main goal being to get Abel back home to his family.

After three hours north on a highway we took a sudden right in Atkapme, onto a dirt road. Slowly the town gave way to bush as we travelled further and further away from civilization. For two hours we trucked along on this road, our bodies in a constant state of.... well bounce. There is no other word for it, we bounced left and right, up and down. We flew from our seats every other minute. There were times we went up so high we all smashed our heads on the roof (*Note we are in a huge land rover, this is no small car so we had to have bounced over a foot out of the seats).

When we weren't jumping canyons we were driving through small lakes with water that came over our tires and sliding, literally sliding, down parts of the road. See its rainy season here so the roads, or trail through the bush as we come to know it, get washed out and bumpy and floated. The whole time we are staring at the sky praying it won't rain because we wouldn't get back through there in the rain for sure.

This part of the road we just kinda slid down. It was really slippery

This is the bush and a random African lady chillin

After two hours and with aching bodies we arrived at the Abel's village. Now, I'm use to getting stared at here because white people aren't exactly common in Togo but I have never experienced anything like this... We were driving through the village as the residents stared in amazement and then I turned around to see the ENTIRE village was following our car. They wanted to see Abel's miracle and the Yovos ( A Yovo is what they call White people here) that did it.

Group shot of some of the kids that followed us

More kids that literally followed us everywhere

Driving through the village Abel was so cute. He dove under the seats and hid. Even tho these were his people and his home he had never been in front of so many people at once. I will never forget his laugh it is absolutley adorable. When he got out of the car he was so nervous amist all his neighbors so to cope he grabbed Liz's (AFM Photographer) point and shoot camera and started taking pictures of everyone. He is a true photographer because thats what we all do when we get shy is grab a camera. Lol.

Abel taking pictures of his crowd. Took from the top of the Mercy Ships vehicle.

Abel walking with straight legs, without crutches and casts, for all his village.

Abel and his father had been away from his family for three months. The entire family of aunts, uncles, gradparents and everyone else showed up for the occasion. His mother was by far the most excited person to see him. She swooped him up in her arms with a giant emotional hug, all the while carrying a small baby tied to her back. The last time she saw her son he had deformed and ugly legs, now three months later he looks normal and is healing by the grace of God.

Abel gets a huge hug from his beautiful mother.

Abel with his father (left) and his granfather (right). This was an incredibly emotional moment. I almost cried.

Inside Abel's hut his family greeted us and offered us water and liquor, which we drank in moderation of course. Lol. No they really did have a ton of liquor there for us but we couldn't sit there and get drunk considering we are Mercy Ships and we have to figure out how to maneuver our way back to town from this village. The problem was in Africa you have to eat or drink what you are offered, its really rude not too. So we decided we could take one shot. The family had only one shot glass so we all shared it, 7 Mercy Shippers and the 20 or so people of Abel's family. They chose to grace us with Sodabe, which is a homemade liquor, yes like moonshine. This stuff is potent let me tell ya. You can feel it go alll the wayy down. Whew. I felt sorry for Elaine, a writer for the ship, she isn't and never has been a drinker I don't think and shes a little bit older so yeah... it was funny

Some of Abel's distance relatives... I think they had too much Sodabi

Abel with family inside his house
Abels grandma and granpa

We were also invited to his pastors house for lunch. They fed us very well and just kept putting food on the table. The entire time I could see people gathering outside the house. A group of little kids climbed a tree so they could peak in the window at us eating.

The spread before we ate it all
The pastor and his family

After we ate we took off through the bush again. We went alot faster this time because it was getting dark out there. On the way back we had to stop twice to let some kids heard ox across the road. While we were waiting the guy that was with us, Alex, said ' Well it wasnt your typical Thursday' lol Ill never forget that.

Gotta wait for the cow lookin things to cross the road

Some of my favorite pictures from the day:

This is my absolute favorite. This lady wanted me to take her kid with me tho, that was sad
This is one of the first things I saw when we pulled in the villlage. They are getting water from the 'well'



There were alot of topless women in this village.

This is Abel's beautiful mother. :)

Abel before his surgery.. for those of you that didnt see my blog about him

TIA- This is Africa

So, I guess Imma break down and write an actual blog lol. People want to know about Africa I guess. Well I have to say its pretty awesome. :) I really don't know where to start....

How I get around - Transport is usually interesting because its some of the best experiences I had in Africa. Getting anywhere in general is difficult unless you walk. The main two modes of transport are taxis and Zimis. But taxis aren't what you just imagined it to be. They are the smallest cars ever and they are falling apart! There is usually no interior, doors don't work or lock, air conditioner isn't even reasonable in the state 99% of these taxis are driving around in. On average a 5 seater sits 7 or 8 here, 2 people in the passenger seat and 5-6 in the back. So imagine sitting on someones lap you don't know with their arm around you (who prolly hasn't showered in a few days or even know what deodorant is lol). All the while the taxi is driving as fast as possible and hitting pot holes the size of a small pool... Its interesting to say the least.

Now Zimis, they are neat. They are basically motorbike taxis that take us everywhere. There are hundreds of them driving around. They are fun but very dangerous, the cars cant see them and the drivers usually top the bike out with every chance they get. My favorite moment on a Zimi was in Pkalime, which is a touristy town in north Togo. We rode the Zimis up and down the mountain. It was amazing.

On the zimis you get dirt in your teeth and eyes, you usually smell like exhaust and trash afterwards and there is a possibility of death or serious injury, but its so much more real than riding around in a car. I remember thinking 'I can feel the heartbeat'. The heartbeat of Africa. The music and people are right there with you and you can feel the pulse riding along the streets (usually at full speed lol). Not to mention, you are guaranteed at least one adrenaline rush with each ride.

Zimis are definitely the best way to get around despite the danger. Being in a Mercy Ships car, or even a regular taxi for that matter just kind of ruins the experience. You can see out of your window and all but on a Zimi you are IN Africa. You can see it, smell it and reach out to touch it if you want. My first ride on one of these motorbikes was with a friend on the ship that bought one to ride around on.

Zimis, streets of Lome
Jo and Eddie getting on Zimis in Kpalime (notice the mountains in the distance)

The things I've ate- I have eaten some pretty weird stuff. My first experience with really weird food was at a friend of ours, Jib, house. He is a Togolese friend that cooked for me and some friends on different occasions.

The first time I ate at Jibs he served Goat. Fair enough as alot of people eat goat in Africa right... Well see, here, people dont waste anything at all from the animals.. soo our plates consisted of goat meat and everyyyything else, i.e guts. Ugh we were like OMG and I just kept saying ' we have to eat it its the culture... we cant be rude... just do it' Lol so we ate it. Alot of the stuff I couldn't identify but I know for sure I had an ear, a kidney and the best of all..... a testicle. Yes, I had a goat ball on my plate. And I ate it.

Since then nothing else has really fazed me. We eat Fufu and goat on a regular basis at local restaurants (or a version of a restaurant), most the time it doesn't contain anything but meat (and the skin which is really chewy) but I just stopped looking at what I put in my mouth, its easier that way. Once, I somehow got an eyeball. I didn't eat it because in the process of playing with it it fell to the ground... Ooops. ;)

What I see and who I meet- I have seen some amazing things and some really sad things. Kpalime is a really cool town north of here. There are really pretty mountains there and the town has a really touristy but still African feel. Its a good mix. Me and some friends had alot of fun here one weekend. We hiked some mountains and camped at the very top of one. We played drums at a jimbay club, on stage, we danced around camp fires, rode Zimis through the mountains and managed to ride back to the hotel in the back of an ice cream truck, which ended up being the highlight of the trip lol.

I have also seen some aweful things. The one thing that sticks out in my mind the most happened just this weekend. I was at the beach with a friend and a man in rags walked up and started going through the trash and eating stuff. Mind you, the trash here is os a different variety of that at home. This was old goat and fish that had been in a pile on the beach for what looked like a long time. I think they just pile the trash up there and burn it. It was horrible, I dont think I have ever come so close to vomiting in public as right then. We see people sleeping on the streets with nothing in large multitudes, not just one here and there. They are everywhere.

I have met amazing people tho. I already mentioned Jib. Another good friend of mine is Meheza, my depts translator. She takes me everywhere I want to go and makes sure that no one bothers me lol. She is a wonderful and smart woman that I adore alot. I will miss her more than anyone else in Togo, or on this boat for that matter.




Meheza :)

Meheza, myself and Farouk Rufino's (a patient's) mom

We also met some amazing kids one Saturday. Some friends and myself stayed at a hostel on a Friday and that morning we were sitting on the terrance and kids started showing up looking at us ( which isnt unusual since most of them have never seen a white person before), so we started playing music and then there were like 20 kids around us dancing and jumping rope. We bought them cokes and juice and played with them for a few hours. By the time it was over we had them all nick named lol.

Even going back and reading this I can tell it doesnt do it justice. It just doesnt. I dont know how to explain the feeling you get being here and seeing this stuff. It is very humbling. To see what people do without and to see what they have to do to get what they have. Its good being with Mercy Ships too. Almost every white person here is with Mercy Ships so everyone knows who we are. There have been countless times walking down the street and a local would come and and say 'Mercy Ships? Thank You.' Probably the only English they knew. Its good to be appreciated especially since so many people back home don't understand or even care why we are here.

Here are some random pics for you guys.

Meet Abel

Hey Everyone. I know I'm not good at blogging. I know I know. But when you sit down to write there is so much to say I can never figure out what should come out first. Hence, I am posting patient stories. These are about out patients here at Mercy Ships that either me or another writer has already written. I try and only post the Kids that really made an impact on me personally, not just anyone. So know that when you read these children's stories that they in some way changed or touched me in a profound way.

This one is about Abel, he is an ortho patient that Elaine, MS writer, wrote about. But to me he is so amazing because he is so happy all the time. He is one of the first people I encountered here that made me think that God put people in the world just so you know he is real. People so wonderful you cannot know them and not know that there is a God. When you look at his pictures and read his story below imagine how hard your life would have been if your legs looked like that. Because I know, I would have been so angry at the world and miserable, but he wasn't, he was happy and now hes even happier, I just saw him 20 minutes ago during his check up visit and I was like ' I have to go tell someone about this kid'. So here ya go:

Abel is an unusually happy eleven-year-old, who says his favorite thing to do is to make friends . His attitude is exceptional, considering the physical problem he has been living with for most of his life, and the reaction of most people to that problem.

His childhood was normal until a problem arose following an injection. The muscles in his legs stopped growing, but the bones didn’t. Because there was so little musculature to direct them, his legs did not grow as they should have. They began to bend backward at the knee, forcing his upper thighs out behind him. .His parents took him to three different doctors, but none of them knew what to do for him.

Despite this condition, the resolute Abel learned to correct his balance enough to walk, climb, and do about anything any other active boy could do. He’s even the goalkeeper on his football (soccer) team. The only thing he couldn’t do was ride a bicycle, since it requires sitting straight on the seat and pumping down on the pedals from the front.

His physical problem was so out of the ordinary, that the other children made him the object of ridicule, calling him terrible names and beating him. Yet, all of this never brought him to despair, never dampened his joyful spirit. His parents, however, were greatly concerned for his future.

One day, there was an announcement on the radio that a Mercy Ship was coming to Togo, offering surgeries without charge. Abel’s father was hopeful that this time maybe some-thing could be done for his son. He brought Abel to an orthopedic screening in Lome, where he received his appointment card for a surgery on the hospital ship Africa Mercy. Several days later, the volunteer surgeons straightened his left leg.

A wonderful surprise awaited Abel when he awoke after surgery. His left leg was straight out in front of him, wrapped in a cast. He sat in his bed admiring it. Then he asked his dad, seated beside his hospital bed, if his right leg would also be straight after the next surgery. His father assured him that it would. “If the other leg is going to be like this one, I am going to give a big thanks to the Lord,” said a jubilant Abel. In a few days, the second surgery straightened his right leg.

The surgeries have required a long period of recovery. During that time, he and his dad have been staying at the Hospitality Center a short distance from the ship. Here, Abel did, indeed, make many friends among the other children recovering from surgeries. Many times, Abel and his dad were transported to the ship for post operative care before the third procedure, plastic surgery on his knees. So, Abel has made many friends among the crew, also; flashing his brilliant smile in appreciation of all that is done for him.

With the World Cup approaching, Abel is intensely interested in watching his favorite sport, and especially his favorite player, Chelsea’s Didier Drogba on TV. After so many weeks of recuperation, he is eagerly looking to getting out on the field himself. But his long-term goal is to become a surgeon some day, like those on the Mercy Ships “because of the things they have done for me,” he said.

Written By:
Elaine Winn, PR Writer for Mercy Ships

Before Surgery

Before again

After surgery, walking to the Africa Mercy gangway


Abel Dalome! Happy Kiddo at the hospitality center in Lome

Abel walking during a video interview

Prayer Request :

On a personal note please everyone pray because I am trying to extend to go to South Africa with Mercy Ships but there are difficulties finding a position I could take as well as the funding.

Most of you might be aware that my mom is hosting a benefit softball turnament if not call her up! And I also added a donate button here on my page so you can use ur CC to donate if you feel called to do so. Funds are used to pay crew fees here on the ship and personal expenses, like toiletries and transport from one place to anther.

But most of all pray they can find me a spot to work. I'm not ready to leave Africa :(

Souleman Konde

Souleman is a boy of few words. He attended the first Mercy Ships medical screening in Lome, Togo, along with his mother. While other children his age scramble about in boredom and agitation, he sat solemnly waiting in line for his turn. Souleman had been quieted by a deformity, a large keloid on his left ear. A keloid is a type of scar that is benign, non-contagious, and sometimes accompanied by severe itchiness and pain. In severe cases, it can affect movement of skin.

According to his mother, Souleman was not always so quiet. He use to play along with the rest of the children in his neighbourhood and enjoyed the company of his siblings. Because of the growth on his ear, Souleman adopted the unwanted nickname Big Ear. His parents even took him out of school to help avoid the ridiculehe endured everyday. This became his reason for silence and his shy nature.

Upon arrival to the Africa Mercy volunteer surgeons removed the keloid from Souleman’s ear. Over the next week in recovery the boys personality began to glow more everyday. He began to smile and play with the nurses and volunteers in the Africa Mercy ward. After seeing Souleman’s ear for the first time after the surgery his father shared his enthusiasm in the ward, “I am overjoyed about the surgery because we don’t have a lot of money for surgery but now we have the grace of God and we have Mercy Ships and all they have done for us.”

Slowly the boy of few words had something to say. Three weeks into his recovery Souleman visited the ship for a check up and bragged about all the people who can no longer call him Big Ear. “At school and in the house they use to call me Big Ear. Now everyone wants to come to see what happened to the Big Ear because it disappeared. I am no longer the Big Ear!”

Souleman can now live the life of a regular eight year old. He will begin school again this year in the second grade. Through the amazing care and love of volunteers on board the Africa Mercy Souleman is no long just Big Ear,and he managed to find his voice again.









Written By: Yours Truly

Souleman and his mother waiting in line at screenings

Photo By: Debra Bell

Souleman before surgery
Photo By: Debra Bell

Souleman after surgery and during his recovery; along with father

Photo By: Debra Bell

Souleman after surgery :)

Photo By: Debra Bell

Kossin Delou

Hello Everyone! I know I havent blogged in a very long time so I am going to post some patient stories today. Then I promise I'll actually blog. SOON!

Kossin Delou:
Sixteen-year-old, Kossin Delou, spent four years of his life sheltered by his family and kept out of the public eye due to an enormous tumor that dominated the left side of his face. When the tumor first appeared, Kossin visited local hospitals in Lomé, Togo. But his family could not afford the necessary surgery.

So, the tumor, which started from Kossin's upper jaw, continued to grow. It soon covered his eye, hindering his vision.

As the insidious growth enlarged, Kossin's life became more difficult. Kossin's father is a local pastor, and the church is an important part of his family life. But people viewed the tumor as a curse, so Kossin's shame prevented him from attending church.

In fact, the children who were once his friends now ridiculed him on the streets and at school. He even felt like an outsider among his own siblings.

His emotional turmoil intensified as his dream for his future began to fade away. Kossin wanted to study at a university to become a teacher. He wanted to enrich the lives of children with knowledge and love. His grotesque facial deformity would prevent him from pursuing his education.

Then Kossin came to our hospital ship, the Africa Mercy . After many hours of surgery, he emerged with a newly constructed face.

Joy radiated from Kossin and his family. His father, Pastor Delou, says, "In this life each one of us need s help in some moments of our life. I can say that through Mercy S hips, we have found that help. Y ou can have a bad story - but, before the end of your life , God will open a door and smile deep into your heart. I know that God is working through Mercy Ships for the best in my life and in Kossi n 's life ."

Kossin is ecstatic about his new life. He can go to church with his family and friends. He's no longer an object of ridicule. And - best of all - in September of 2010, Kossin will be able to start school to fulfil his resurrected dream of becoming a teacher.

Patient Story Written By: Yours Truly

Kossi at screenings; he recieves appointment card

Photo By: Debra Bell

Kossi before surgery
Photo By: Debra Bell

Before Surgery; laughing

Photo By: Debra Bell

Kossi, his father and myself a few weeks after surgery

Photo By: Liz Cantu

Kossi a few weeks after surgery

Photo By Liz Cantu