Providence

I still cannot access my blog from China so we may have to give up on that one. Just wanted to send a note before I head off to rest. I went to the doctor today in Yanji (a bigger city about 90 minutes away) due to some pain and fever/chills. He confirmed that my "appendix is sick" but not bad enough to remove it. Praise G*d!! Can't say I'm exactly thrilled about the idea of surgery in China (it's still a possibility if the pain worsens so please pr*y). I'm on antibiotics now and need to "rest" - that's a difficult concept for me. You know me - I'll still be plenty busy but I'm trying to make myself cut out extracurricular activities. This too is difficult being that we have two teams in town and Mama and Papa (the leaders) are gone. :o)

Some fabulous news...last Thursday I took 4 children from Special School and their mothers to the hospital in Yanjito see an orthopedic surgeon from South Korea who was in town for 3 days. First let me say this day was quite emotional for me. We rarely see the parents of these children because some live at the school and the others ride a bus to and from school. It was so touching to see these mothers who love their children SO very much caring for them, helping them on and off the bus, dressing them up in their nicest clothes, having pride for their children who have a disability and are so often shunned by the public. Ah, my heart was in my throat. The doctor recommended that two of the children have surgery - Lang Qiang and Jun Qiang (sounds like Long Chiong and Jun Chiong). Jun Qiang's mother agreed right away and they stayed behind. However, Lang Qiang's mother got on the bus with her son to return to Hunchun as she could not afford the surgery. My heart broke and of course I cried - I was actually able to hold it in until I could sneak off to be alone. The entire way home I couldn't stop thinking about how this little boy could be helped if only the finances were available. A long story short - I told Mama the situation and a couple from a visiting team said they wanted to pay for the surgery and the mother finally accepted!!! So, Lang Qiang and Jun Qiang have undergone surgery on their legs in hopes to have the ability to walk better. G*d is SO, SO good!! I visited them today when I was at the hospital and their faces lit up! It was so special to see them again. :o)

The children at Special School go on summer holiday July 10th - September 1st. It will be strange not seeing them. This will open up my schedule a little bit but I'll still be working in the office, organizing teams, doing labor at the ranch AND I finally will have time to take Chinese class. Yay!

I miss you all and hope you are well!
~Keira