Two of the babies that went to Tamale came to the Center this morning to pick up the transport money that we promised them. The doctor in Yendi thinks that one of them might have had a stroke and the other one might have Cerebral Palsy! Hopefully we can get a clear diagnosis on them.
When we were visiting the church at Jerigdo a few weeks ago when Marcus and Evan were here helping us with the work we were introduced to one of the church members who has a 1 year old child that has Down Syndrome. The problem is not that she has Down Syndrome; the problem is that she has trouble breathing. Her mother said that she has always breathed strangely. Steve told her that the breathing was not normal and that he wanted them to take the baby to Yendi hospital to make sure something was not seriously wrong. Steve gave her the money for the transportation. The mother took the child to the hospital on Friday and the baby was admitted. She said the baby was on oxygen for 4 days; they gave her a couple different types of antibiotics; they are treating her for pneumonia. The doctor discharged her this morning with a referral letter to Tamale hospital. The mother said that her husband was aware of the letter but that at this time he was not prepared to take the child to Tamale. She said that he had to wait until he could find the money for the transport. The mother was relieved and all smiles when Steve gave her the transport money for both her and her husband. I cannot imagine how awful it would be not to have the means to help your sick child! Our thanks go out to all of you who give us money for the babies and for whatever comes up!
Mr. Iddrisu went back to the hospital about his back again today; they gave him antibiotics. How in the world do they think antibiotics are going to help his back is more than we can fathom! The guests have left his house. He said that the man that was contesting for the chieftaincy lost so he went home sad. A total of 8 men were contesting for the same position. The Ya-Na actually inskinned (enthroned) 2 men yesterday. The other seat had 12 men contesting for it. When they contest they bring lots of gifts and money hoping to sway the Ya-Na in their favor. Some contestants even shower the Ya-Na’s wives with gifts hoping that they have some influence over him. The gifts and the money are not returned to the losers.
Zorash said that her knee /leg was feeling a little better. She said she went back to the healer this morning and he pulled and massaged herbs into it. She said that she cried because it was so painful. She said that if she does not cry it will not get better! I guess they believe in the “No Pain, No Gain” idea!
Have a great day!
In HIS Service,
Steve, Kandie and Skeeter
The Monkeyshines
It is hard for me to explain the awful thing that happened to me today! It is still hard for me to wrap my little head around the events of this morning! Red (the part time driver) came to the mission house this morning to work on Paul’s truck. (Paul is Kandie’s oldest brother.) He brought a new battery and it started but when he tried to put it into gear the clutch was not working. Mom and I were outside. I have no idea why we were outside when Red and a strange truck were in the yard. Somehow Mom thought that she was going to be of some help! What! Does she think she is a mechanic? I was so nervous and anxious that I could not sit still! I jumped on and off of Mom’s shoulder; my heart was beating out of my chest! That truck was lurching all over the yard; Red had to restart it more than 20 times! It was awful; I cried warning after warning to Mom but she would not listen! I wish I had the ability to speak; I would have been shouting, “Danger! Danger!” Then Mom decided that it was her job to close the gate after Red and the truck left! The truck died again and I bolted; I yanked the leash out of Mom’s hand and I took off in a dead run heading for the backyard! All Mom could see was my dust! I was dragging the leash behind me and it felt like the leash was chasing me which made me run faster! She started looking for me and calling me but she could not find me. He solicited Dad’s help and he spied me near the top of a very tall tree; these trees are ornamental trees that grow straight up; they are much taller than the mission house. I would have come down if I could have but that leash got wrapped around all the branches and the more I struggled to get down the tighter the leash got! Dad got the big extension ladder but it was not long enough to reach me and the tops of these trees are not stable; they sway in the breeze; there is no way they could support a ladder and a full grown man! The tree was near the house near the flat roof that covers the steps. The flat roof has a ladder. The parents climbed up on the flat roof; then Dad dragged the extension ladder onto the flat roof and leaned it against the tree. I could touch the top rung of the ladder but it was too unstable for Dad to climb out to me! He said that was a good way to fall to his death! Well, it would have been for a good cause! He went down and got the pruning shears with the long extension handles. He was able to cut one end off the leash because it had lots of tension on it but he could not cut it close enough to my body to set me free. I was so afraid he was going to catch my tail in that cutter and I would be a tailless monkey! Dad went to Plan B and taped a serrated kitchen knife to a long pole. He was able to reach out far enough to cut the leash about 6 inches from my belly and I was free. Once I was free I had no trouble getting out of the tree; in fact I beat Mom and Dad to the ground! It was the happiest day of my life when I jumped into Mom’s arms; I thought I was going to have to spend the rest of my life in that tree!
Proverb by Skeeter: “When climbing a tall tree remove the leash first!”
Love, Skeeter
