Hello, friends!
Thank you so much for the birthday wishes and all the support you have been showing me! I even got my 2016 first happy birthday card on the ship via crew mail from Canada! Wheeee!
Since there was quite a lot of confusion / questions about Mail (Crew Mail, Container etc.) I updated the infos on my page to try to make it clearer – most importantly there is two main infos: Crew Mail takes 2-3 weeks and is free up unto 10 ounces (283,5 Grams) of weight, everything heavier than this should be sent via Container, which will take approximately 8-12 weeks to arrive. More detailed Info here: https://rubenandsilkeatsea.com.amphora.sui-inter.net.amphora.sui-inter.net/mail-post/
So I had a lovely celebration on the ship with new friends, an AMAZING homemade chocolate fudge cake with mousse filling in a beautifully decorated area in Midships (yayyy, Nina!!!) alongside wonderful company. I am glad that there are so many loving, caring and amazing people on this journey with me – especially on days like my birthday or in this upcoming Christmas season when I dearly miss my friends and family at home (YOU know who you are)! And I also miss the cold (and even rainy Hamburg-) weather – Christmas just feels so different in the heat and humidity of Africa. But thankfully there are a lot of Christmas – loving (mostly Americans) on the ship that will make sure to spread as much holiday feeling as possible!
So we will start decorating (decking the halls) on Saturday. Yay!
Arriving on the ship three weeks ago I pretty much dove right into work- and shiplife, which I really, really love.
Currently in the Operating Room we are doing surgeries in Orthopedics (loads of kids in casts running around, check out my Madagascar Ortho blog here: https://rubenandsilkeatsea.com.amphora.sui-inter.net.amphora.sui-inter.net/2015/11/) , Maxillofacial (MaxFax) and General Surgery. In January we will be starting the eye surgeries and also Neurosurgery along with MaxFax continued.
I will try to write some more about my work as soon as I get some pictures from the Communications department, as we are not allowed to take any patient photos. So far work is going very well and I am already really comfortable at my work and “back in” again.
In my free time during the last three weeks I mainly hung out with friends on the ship, played some Volleyball, had two Movie Nights and baked Apple pie and Pepernoten with my beloved dutch friend Deddie, whom I also work with in the OR. Last weekend some of us visited Ouidah, one of the historical sites nearby and the weekend before that I got my first ever official food poisoning from going out to a local restaurant – very productive last weeks 🙂
I am glad that I have my “on-boarding family” (the crazy people that I did the course in Texas with) here with me, they are my partners in crime – we go on trips together and they take good care of me whenever I fall ill 😉
Apart from these times being filled with exciting days like my birthday and Pre-Christmas preparations and lots of other stuff going on, time seems to fly on the ship. It has been a time full of joy and laughter for me, but also deep reflection and some challenges. I feel that God is working on my heart a lot these days and chiseling away things that keep me from stepping into the fullness of His presence and purpose for my life. So I spend each evening outside on the decks, praying and listening to God’s voice and letting Him do His work. I am more than grateful for these times, because I feel that I will be able to grow in them. So please, if you will, keep me in your prayers (and check out my prayer request page if you like: https://rubenandsilkeatsea.com.amphora.sui-inter.net.amphora.sui-inter.net/prayer-requests-gebetsanliegen/)
As always, thank you so much for all of your support and encouragement!
I hope to post some more updates soon!
Much love from the Hospital Ship in Africa!
Silke
