Bits and Bites…

It’s been nearly 10 days since my last post… That would be indicative of how quickly our summer is going by.

* We went camping at the beach for 2 nights this week.  It’s a lot of work, but fun!  This time we went to the outside beach.  If we were to take a boat straight out from where we sit on the beach, the first land we would hit would be Japan…

I only took my Blackberry with to keep down the amount of stuff we were taking, hence the poor quality photos…

* While we were at Family Conference “I” and her husband had some difficulties which including him punching her hard enough to knock the wind out of her.  I’s family has decided that they should divorce and he should pay (money) for hitting her.  I asked “I” who would get the money and her family members would.  Nice.  I doesn’t want to get divorced.  She feels it is contrary to God’s will and has no interest in going down that path.  She asked me to help her defend her point of view at the meeting about it as she said that she was the only voice against the divorce.  So I walked down with her, not really sure what I’d say or do, but feeling like I should support her.  Just before the little rickety bridge over the creek to her house we met her dad.  He shook my hand in the traditional way (grasping wrists) and asked me if I’d just come back from Pyramid.  Pyramid is where they are all from so it’s meaningful to them that we went there.  He continued to hold my hand as we walked over the bridge…  awkward… for me that is.  Here it is quite common to hold hands for extended periods of time with friends/family.  Then he had a coughing fit and let go… whew…  He and “I” went inside and I could see him asking her something.  I wandered around and took a photo of their “washroom”…

It is strategically located over the creek and that hose carries water (when the water at the source is actually turned on) for folks to bathe with.

“I” came out of the house and quietly told me that her dad said I had to go home.  So she walked me back up the hill.

The next morning I asked her if she was divorced and she told me that she was successful in defending herself.  Yay!  She said the people asked her dad why he sent me away.  He said,” You don’t know her.  She is someone who talks a lot and if she would talk, you would not say anything but just listen to what she said…”

* While we were away at conference I had instructed “I” to go get a chest x-ray done to see if she had TB.  She has some of the symptoms so it is necessary for her health to get checked.  I got a paper from a Doctor so that she didn’t need to see a Dr. at the hospital first.  But each time she went there, they told her that there was no doctor, even though she didn’t need to see a doctor, and sent her home.  I feel frustrated that anytime she needs anything medical, I need to go with to make sure she gets what she needs!  I know the health system in Canada isn’t perfect, but people, it sure beats the non-system they have out here by a mile!

* Hugo is doing a lot better now that he’s done his antibiotics.  Flagel is nasty stuff that has side effects that can be worse than the symptoms themselves.