C'est la vie!

Hello friends!
    I’m beginning to wonder if I’m causing you stress for my lack of posting (I hope I would be missed if I got eaten by spider...) or if you all have given up on me yet.  Don’t worry! This will be either my second to last post or last one depending on how much energy I have when I get home Wednesday.  That’s right, Wednesday July 20th my feet will once again walk on Texas soil.  It really is hard to believe...  As I write to you, my journey has already begun.  I’m sitting in the guest house at Niamey having just stepped off the plane from Galmi a little over an hour ago. 

The children army...

    Before I leave Galmi behind there are some happenings I’d like to share with you.  In the time since I’ve last posted we’ve had more and more people pile into Galmi.  Among those were the Lau’s (a family of 7), the Meguill’s with their 3 young ones, the Stares with their two little boys, and 2 other short termers, Evan (from Alaska, graduated from Biola University in Cali) and Crystal (grew up in Niamey, has graduated and is back teaching).  Did I mention that there are more children on the compound than adults?  It’s playtime...all the time... Talk about bringing in some fresh energy and joy!  The poor parents were pooped.  If there is one thing that scares me about serving as a medical missionary, it’s traveling with and raising children abroad.  Oh boy... C’est la vie (That’s life) as they say. 
    Of the other notable things since the last post, one is particularly important.  After our July 4th barbeque, I lost all the weight I had gained from the meal quicker than I expected.  After lying in bed for hours in pain, vomiting seems so terrible, but the moment after is the most wonderful feeling.  I’ll spare you the details...  So for the rest of the week I wasn’t exactly available to work.  I spent my time indoors sleeping (or trying to) and in endless debate which was better, living with my hunger or the loosing the food after indulging.  Praise God the stomach thing healed up quick.  When you live on a compound full of doctors usually sickness doesn’t get a chance to hang around long.  I was back on my feet by Wednesday and working hard with a smile until Friday afternoon.  By then I managed to pick up something else though.  Let me explain. 

    Poor Will and Michael, the 2 that arrived recently, got sick almost the instant they arrived.  Michael was vomiting and Will had terrible congestion and a cough that quickly was recognized around the compound.  When you heard a cough you knew where to find Will!  By the time Michael felt better, I had just gotten sick.  Unfortunately something is still hanging onto Will, but he’s much better since I left Galmi.  The other thing I managed to pick up that Friday afternoon was exactly what Will had.  I exchanged no eating for no sleeping with constant coughing replacing my upset stomach.  It was frustrating to be sick because I had so little time left!  I wanted to complete my tasks given to me and to be there for others.  God taught me patience and great trust in Him during this time.  Looking back I miss being sick because of how close I felt to God during some of those times.  Just like my experiences when I traveled here, I find that God’s peace is present in the times I most needed it.  For that reason I want to seek out opportunities that push me to my limits because I know that’s where I fellowship with God the most.  I think being a Resident Assistant at JBU this coming year should make up for all the pushing I could want.  For the days I worked, I tried to get as much done on the cabinets built by the competing carpenters, helped a bit with crutches, and got on Starke’s roof to scrub off rust to prepare it to be painted.

French fry success! Aka. Kitchen=not on fire

    Being sick is not the only thing worth mentioning.  Have you ever had GRILLED pizza?  In the middle of the desert nothing tasted better!  For Michael Harling, “Doctor” Michael, we had a farewell cookout July 11.  Never has pizza tasted so awesome.  Also never have french fries tasted so often.  Guess who’s kitchen did NOT catch on fire this time.  That’s right.  I, Josh Morgan, successfully did not catch my kitchen on fire.  The french fries turned out great, but the fact that I walked in with eyebrows intact and smelling normal was my gem for the evening (well normal smelling as in not smokey..).

Will and Evan diggin the pizz

  All of the regulars showed up, including all the STA’s and Deb.  Deb is a smart woman.  Befriend the STA’s and get their stuff when they leave!  I’m just kidding.  She was a true blessing along with all the others I met there.  I especially enjoyed my time getting to know Will, Michael, and Evan.  They’re pretty awesome guys with huge hearts for God.  I wish I could take them back and keep em around.  I’m not so sure how they’d feel about that... I will miss them all a lot.
    Amidst all the sadness, I was quite happy with my packing.  Getting everything into one bag was SO satisfying.  Of course, it helped that not everything I took was coming home with me.  Since half of the things I packed last time were food, most people were willing to lighten my load.  I ended using 3 packs of ramen out of the 30 or so I brought.  The other hungry college guys were ecstatic.  It’s true that it’s the little things that mean the most.  I left all 3 bottles of sunscreen which I put on maybe 3 or 4 times during my stay there so there was plenty to go around.  Most of the toiletries got picked up and a few office-like supplies I had. 

The gang

My shop bro's (can I say that?)

    Upon leaving, I was blessed to have a small crowd see me off from the Galmi airstrip.  I was surprised and touched at the number of shop workers who had come to wish me farewell.  As Deb said, despite that we couldn’t establish friendship through conversation, the fact that I was there working hard among them made me family.  When Douda and Abraham asked when I was coming back, I was sad to tell them that I didn’t know.  Maybe someday I’ll return as Michael Harling did, but even then I would work in the hospital and not see them as often.  I can imagine that like Michael, studying would take the place of much of my time as well.  I ended up telling them that I might return in 11 years after I’m done with schooling.  It sounds unbelievable but that’s what you get when you add up 2 more years of undergrad, 4 years of medical school, and 5 years of residency.  As I told them, I laughed in disbelief.  It still phases me that I’ll have spent almost 30 years of my life in school by the time I’m done, but I feel at peace and confident that medicine is the path God has called me to.  It’s one of those things someday if I make it, I’ll look back and say only by God’s grace did I succeed.  I hope others too who know me and who have known my struggles will say, “Your Lord, He is God!” because it will be so evident that I could not have done this on my own.  So far I see there have been too many events and people in my life to ignore who have helped me blaze this trail.  Thank you again for your support and prayer that have made my time to process this happen and have given me the chance to serve the community of Galmi and be a blessing among them. 

    Now as I write this last bit, I’m sitting in the SIM office in Charolette, NC.  Unfortunately I didn’t have internet to post this between my time in Niamey and my travels on the way home.  Traveling back was much easier, partly because I’m more comfortable traveling and also United States’ airline companies typically don’t lose your baggage... There definitely is culture shock being back in the States.  Reverse culture shock is what I’ve been told they call it.  I almost left Galmi without getting my phone and passport out of the compound safe.  When I went to get them, I honestly could not remember what my cell phone looked like.  Holding it felt so odd and a bit like putting a chain on.  There’s something freeing about not having a cell a phone attached to my hip all day long, but being connected through the internet over there has helped with the technology flood (Well, at least when there was power available).  It’ll be weird to not have power daily, sometimes hourly power outages.  Having reliable electricity almost feels uncomfortable after being so used to not having it.  That certainly is funny to think about.
    Reading the progression of this blog makes me dizzy.  Hopefully it can give you a good feel of how crazy and fast these past few days have been for me.  Just 2 days ago I woke up, cooked breakfast, and packed my things on a different continent.  The place I left was becoming more and more like home.  I said stepping onto the plane at Galmi that I felt as though I was leaving home to return home.  I’ve processed most of what it means to leave, but I know there’s a great deal of processing to do now that I’ve returned.  

The pilot needed a break, don't worry I've watched him do this before.

    I look forward to getting in touch with you all when I finally get home.  If you haven’t heard, Dallas Bible Church has kindly allowed me to host a kind of get together Sunday the 24th to give anyone who wants it a rundown of my experiences.  It starts at 2 p.m. and will last until about 4.  I apologize if I don’t emerge from my house for the next few days when I finally get home.  Haha I’ll probably be sleeping and maybe will get up to do things like eat and process the trip until then.  Speaking of eating, I think we might go to Chick-fil-a for lunch... It’s the one place that’s been on my mind traveling home.  Of course it also was technically my last meal in America so it kind of makes sense.  Anyways I hope you all are well!  I hope also to see you again soon :) 

By prayer,

Blessings :)
Josh