A Better Update

Another chapter of this adventure is over, thankfully.  That was not one of my favorites, to say the least.  Nevertheless, it has been evident that God is good, all the time, and He really does watch over His children.  I am truly thankful for all the prayers and e-mails and cards from those of you who are far away.  What an encouragement you are!  Thank you for being there for me.  I am also thankful for loving, caring coworkers who were here for me – they took me to doctors, bandaged my fingers, provided meals, washed dishes, cleaned the bathroom, and helped in so many practical ways.

Three days after my last post, lab tests identified the bacteria causing the infections as Staphyloccus aureus, and showed its drug resistance and sensitivities.  With that information, a doctor prescribed an antibiotic which has successfully eliminated the infection.  It is wonderful to have the use of my fingers back again.  I am actually typing this post with all ten of them.  What a great ability this is!  Here are photos of my hands today, so you can see their recovery.  Head and legs are looking fantastic as well.

In addition to the antibiotic, I have also been very diligent to rest and eat a healthy diet, taking vitamins to boost the immune system, and getting regular exercise again.  It seems both the infection itself and the antibiotics tired me out greatly, but thankfully, this week energy levels are returning.

An allergist in the capital city (Porto Velho, capital of this state, not of the country) wanted to do some more tests.  When those results are back, the second week of August, I plan to see her for a follow-up appointment.

After that, I will hopefully be well enough to return to the village and get on with the real adventures.  The rest of the Neno team went back a few days ago.  It was so hard to watch them leave.  I truly wanted to hop in the car with them, now that the infection is gone, but knew that it would be wiser to wait a few more weeks to completely recover and get the last test results.

In an attempt to make the best use of time here in the city, I am finally regrouping and organizing my To-Do List, which is very long due to several weeks of accomplishing almost nothing.  First major project is my prayer letter, which is almost ready to send.  It will be full of pictures, so you can see bits of daily life in the village, and the new friends and experiences there.  If you read this blog but are not on my e-mail list, here is the link where you can sign up.

Paulette’s E-mail Updates

A fun activity this week was making gingerbread cookies with the children here in my apartment on Monday night.  That had been an idea of Lorena’s back in the village (she was looking through a Christmas magazine and asked if I knew how to make the cookies pictured there).  The only problem was that we didn’t have ginger, molasses, decorations, or cookie cutters.  So here in the city, I tracked down all of those items and we made “Christmas” cookies in July!  Why not, right?  The children (ages 7, 5, and two 3-year-olds) loved making them and everyone enjoyed eating them.