Hi from Candice!

Hello everyone!

Here I am, at the backpackers place in Pietermaritzburg for Easter weekend! It’s really nice to be with Peter and Krista and Gillian again. I’m very thankful it worked out!

Saturday I visited the house that they are building. We ended up not building but watching Michael Jackson music videos and playing with the kids. They are really cute! Yesterday we went to a small Baptist congregation (10 people – including 4 of us and a baby) which was…small, but nice, and then to Durban for a day at the beach.

The last week of work went well, I think mostly because I got over my “I-really-want-to-be-somewhere-familiar” desire and was willing to enjoy each moment of what I was doing. Working in a government hospital here is SO different than working in a hospital in Canada (or a private one here). I have gotten used to calling everyone patients rather than clients; most of the patients are black and don’t speak a language close to mine; it’s not the most sanitary place although is sanitary enough (cats running into the wards???); smiles work wonders. I have seen cerebral palsy kids, wee babies in the neonatal ward, people with visible aids, burns, amputations gone horribly bad, broken arms, strokes (many people with strokes are quite young), developmental disabilities, spinal cord injuries (paraplegics and quadriplegics), hand injuries, club feet, patients who are comatose, a 3 year old walk for the first time, and the one with which I have the most experience: a child who is hyperactive. It’s quite interesting to experience so many kids with cerebral palsy here when in Edmonton you mostly see kids for autism or developmental disabilities. The turn-over in the hospital is also quite fast here, and there have been a couple times where I’ve finally figured out what the most effective intervention will be and go to do it, only to find out the person is leaving the next day.

And it’s not that common here for an OT to ask someone what he or she likes to do. People don’t understand the question. Rather, it’s how they are managing at home or at work. It’s about finding out things like if they have electricity or have to walk to get water and what transportation they have access to. In Canada, the more common questions center around work and other activities people like to do (the things they do that bring meaning – a bit more of addressing the leisure side). I’m sure it’s the same here with a different class of people, but just not so much the ones that I get to see. Another huge difference is the knowledge people have of basic medical issues. One nurse pulled me aside to ask some questions about her niece and said that the biggest problem is that people don’t have the knowledge. An extreme example is a mother not knowing that if her child stays in a curled position for years, it is not normal and she should be checked out. It shows as neglect in a huge way, although not necessarily because of purposeful maltreatment. Unfortunately, that child is now 10 years old and has extreme spastic quadriplegic cerebral palsy. I’ve NEVER seen a smaller 10 year old in my life. She easily fits in a small crib; partly because her legs and arms are so incredibly bent. Thankfully, though, that one has a relatively happy ending because the doctor recognized the need for the mom to have a social network and the child to have medical care so they are now booked to come in multiple times a week.

There are other things that I’ve gotten used to like living in a grimy apartment with ants, having the water or the power shut of randomly, that when it rains it feels SUPER cold and I need an extra blanket because there’s no inside heating (while having comments made to me about how the cold must be nothing to me), minimal internet time, no phone line and not being able to go out after 6:30 by myself (I have two friends who work at the hospital who are male and also black, and that was quite a blessing last week when the power shut off, it was really cold outside, it was really cold inside all day at the hospital and then at home and I just wanted something warm to eat and drink… I could walk outside with them after dark!). There are many people who have offered me rides, laundry, hang-out time, and have sent me text messages to see how I’m doing… I have not been stranded (although the first week really felt like it). I’m getting used to being on my own more. Sometimes that’s detrimental because I’m so used to telling people about my day and being able to think by talking, but at the same time it’s quite nice because I don’t have a choice but to be still (unless I want to read my textbook – which inevitably makes me want to fall asleep). I have more opportunities to just BE, and to pray and read my Bible. It’s good to be away from the mayhem of this last semester, to see Peter, and to experience something new.

I’m also looking forward to coming home. I’m pretty sure that if I planned to be here for longer I would be able to continue on. But since I know I’m coming home in 2 weeks, I’m really looking forward to it! I know there are many things here that I will miss though and want to bring along even though I can’t. Some things like the people (especially some of the rehab staff and patients that I really like), some of the culture (like sleeping on the ground wherever just because you’re tired and can), and the beach in Durban (minus the fear of someone stealing our stuff), and Peter (who will be home 3 weeks after me, so that’s not so bad). But, for now, I am still here and get to experience all the things God still has in store for me. He has protected me so far – physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually, and I’m pretty sure He will continue. I have more people to meet, more things to see, more to learn, more to pray about, more to learn… and I think it will be very good.