Hello from Zimba!

It’s hard to believe our two weeks here is almost up. I know the team has really enjoyed our time here. It’s the little things we’ve learned to be thankful for, like ice for our drinks & fresh brewed coffee in the morning. The mission hospital is a short walk from our house, so it’s been nice to leave like five minutes before clinical starts. I think we all have enjoyed our experiences at the mission hospital. One day last week, two other girls and I were able to go on a health outreach to a village with some staff members from the hospital. The village was about an hour’s drive from Zimba. Once we reached the village, hundreds of mothers and babies were waiting for our arrival. The day was spent preparing and administering vaccinations to the babies. Some of these immunizations included measles, rotavirus, polio and hepatitis B. Unfortunately towards the end of the afternoon, the vaccinations ran out. It was difficult to turn some mothers away because of a lack of supplies. Another outreach will occur next month, so at least these babies may be able to receive the vaccines next time. 

This past Saturday our team walked to a nearby visit the grandmother of our cook. Gertrude lives in a house on the mission, and is very gifted in the kitchen. There’s an endless supply of cookies available for us at all hours of the day. She has really been a blessing to our team. When we went to visit her grandmother, we went in anticipation of learning more about the village life. Upon arriving to the house, the grandmother hugged each one of us in warm welcome. During first part of the morning our team walked to the village well (called a bore hole here in Zambia) to fetch water. Each one of us carried a jug of water back to the house; unfortunately we could not balance the water on our heads like the African woman do! Some of the girls helped cook nshima, vegetables & fish for the lunch. A group of us also played games with the grandchildren. After a couple of hours we shared the meal together. I think everyone agrees that this time was such a blessing, to meet this wonderful woman and her family.

One night our team watched the sunset together. It really does remind me of the Lion King. Our pictures just can’t capture the beauty of the African sun as it sets in the evening, but I think our photos show how much our team has grown to love each other. 

As today is the first day of October, we’re soon entering into the second half of our trip. Thank you for all your continued support & prayers! 

- Andria (Zambia 2014 team member)