December 23rd

I finally made it down to chapel on time and there was no one
there. Well, one of the hospital’s brown men was there and I
asked where everyone was. He responded with “no one done
come”. I didn’t know why but he wanted to lock up the room
so I left and went over to Solomon’s to wait for him to start
rounds. I asked him why no one was there and he told me
pastors Jarr and JBT had gone to help slaughter the cow for
the staff’s gift from the hospital (real meat, though to them real
meat is fish). I started rounds in the men’s medical ward with
Solomon, but while I was waiting I saw one of the hospital staff
walk by with a black plastic bag, sticking out of the bag was a
cow leg… it was so absurd it made me laugh. Rounds went well,
a new patient but the usual, malaria with possible typhoid. We
did about half the medical side then he had to go so Tom
finished up the medical side and then Linda did the surgical
side (with me tagging along of course) I didn’t finish out the
rounds because Karen called me to go with her to take some
Africans to Kakamba (we thought Kabombo which is on the
way). We only found out Kakamba as we entered Kabombo
but at least it was only two villages farther along. They needed
to go to collect some wood they had gathered and bring it back
to Kamakwie for a church youth president conference coming
up in January. They told us the wood was getting stolen there
and they wanted to bring it here to lock it up in their office in
Kamakwie. While we were there they took us to meet with the
eldest village elder who was in town for the holidays (he stays
mostly in Freetown now). While meeting with us he told us
that he wants to let us have the school and to build the church
there. He thinks will be good for the village to have both
mosque and a church. Anyway, we collected finished talking
with him, gathered up the wood, and headed home. We
dropped the Africans and their wood off at their office and
then went over to the field next to the school. Karen was
helping me learn to drive a manual (since that’s what their
vehicle is). It’s really hard but considering the road conditions
here, if I can learn how here it will be a walk in the park at
home. After lunch I went out to the Orphanage to visit Alusine
and the rest of the kids. I got there and found out that the ball
I had given them was not very good. (I suspected that so I
brought another ball along to give them just in case) I didn’t stay
there long, Alusine and the others cleaned up while I waited and
then we walked over to Kamakwie to go to the soccer final match
between the Kamakwie town team and the Fullah team. (Fullahs
are one of the tribes here and a lot of them live in Kamakwie 2
and 3 so it was sort of Kamakwie 1 versus Kamakwie 2 and 3) It
was quite rowdy and these three guys in front of us tried to beat
up Alusine because he made some comment about how the
Fullahs were only here in Kamakwie because the Limbas brought
them here. Granted exactly nice but these guys were just itching
to fight. Then they made a comment about how Alusine should
go back to his daddy (Alusine is an orphan) so he got mad at
them. Luckily Solomon and Samuel were there with us and kept
anyone from fighting. I had to leave half time to make it home
for dinner so I didn’t get to see the end but I did find out that
the Kamakwie 1 team won the game 1 to 0. In the evening I
went down and visited Solomon for a little while before
coming home and heading off to bed.

Blessings from Kamakwie,
Ryan brooks