So it's not a trip to Africa without some kind of language difficulty. We get through the chaos at the Johannesburg airport after arriving over two hours early, only because Martha has Star Alliance status as a frequent flier and tells them that Stephen is her brother and I am his wife - cut to the front of the line! We ride trams to the tarmac where everyone is scrambling for luggage space and to get to their seats. Stephen witnesses a gentlemen trying to explain to a woman that she is in his seat. She refuses to acknowledge him until Stephen asks for her boarding pass. After she gives him a blank "language barrier" look, he shows her his boarding pass. She pulls hers out and voila! She's in the right seat on the wrong flight. As Stephen shows her the destination on his boarding pass, she jumps up and gathers her belongings shouting "What do now? What do now"? He tried to help her to the flight attendant, but she scrambled over him and the gentlemen whose seat she occupied and disappeared down the isle. I hope she made her flight.
What a coup! Once again all of our luggage has made it. This might be a first. Ray, Orant's in country director, and Timeyo, the right hand man in Malawi met us at the airport. Orant also has a contractor here working on the renovations of the clinic. His name is Jimmy Wilder and he was there as well. Jimmy has spent several months here and is back to finish up the final touches. He drove us to Kasese while Ray and Timeyo completed some errands they needed to run in the city.
I feel it is important to see the friends I've made here in Malawi even though they are no longer working directly with Orant Charities. Timeyo was suppose to take me to Kalembe to visit Father Joseph and Father Levinus and see their mission and parish there this afternoon. But unfortunately, it became too late for me to have more than a half hour or so to visit with them - which wasn't long enough considering I traveled 3 days to get here, it's an hour and half round trip and I have no idea when I'll see either of them again. So the plan is that I will work at the clinic in Kasese tomorrow rather than going into the field and Fr. Levinus will retrieve me around 3:00 or 3:30 and bring me back before dusk (6-6:30). It's best to be off the roads by dark here. Although there are few vehicles, some don't have working headlights and there is no public lighting.
Our team will be split for our clinical work this week, Stephen and I each working with either Wilson or George who are the clinical officers that work at the clinic. Clinical officers in Malawi function as general practitioners use to practice in the states before the age of specialization. They take care of almost everyone and everything, with minimal access to ancillary services including lab and x-ray. They are true clinicians and they do an amazingly excellent job. Although I had hoped to have more of a shared experience with Stephen and Martha, it will be a big help to work one on one with a clinical officer, as there are illnesses here I don't see at home and their guidance and advice will be appreciated.
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