delivery #12

this was a very smooth delivery. we usually begin our day in the labour room checking each women's vitals and seeing who will deliver the quickest. the mother i checked was Gravida 4 Para 3 .. which means she has been pregnant 4 times and she has 3 living children..always a good sign when none of her children have died. She was healthy and had a stretched perineum. i hadn't fully checked her when i kept smelling poo.. she had pood all over herself and kept wiping it with her kanga. i gave her a good wipedown and went to fill out some of her paperwork. before i knew it Louise was calling me to tell me she was seeing a head. i came over and did the delivery despite a swollen cervix crowding the passageway, the baby's head came through the perineum with only a slight graze.

I am used to doing young mothers but this mother was a bit older and knew what to expect which always helps me especially with the language barrier. Mothers that don’t know what to expect are usually afraid and some think they are going to die but most of the time I don’t know what they are thinking and saying... I had one of the doctor’s translate for me once what my woman was saying because he laughed after she said it…he translated that she said “tell her husband goodbye for her because she was going to die”.. I was so surprised that that was what she was thinking. And told him to tell her that it is part of life to bring new life into the world, it is a pain that she has never experienced before but that it is also natural.

i have hard days here in Africa and i have good days, but one thing that keeps me going is knowing the satisfaction there is in bringing life into the world in the name of Jesus. Reflecting on the testimony of my own life and my genuinety in wanting this child, this mother to know the same God that i know. proper health care is an important part of everyones well being, and GOd calls us to do so and when we do it in the name of Jesus, He is glorified through it and is able to work in these womens lives and in these babies lives. Perhaps i will have no idea the impact we have made but i do know that obeying Gods call is somewhere that i long to be because it draws me closer to him which in turn draws others closer to knowing who He is.

the mother and baby were both very healthy and lively as they were transferred to postnatal. we got the name Sarah-Estelle for the little girls and prayed 1 peter 2:9 over her. that there would be protection over her body and spirit and that she will grow up to know her heavenly Father.

my work in Tanzania is volunteer-based. Although my costs have been covered for the school, i am still in need for costs to be covered for my flight home. if you would like to contribute you can follow these instructions.. thankyou and God bless you!

All checks to be made out to YWAM. You can send your
donor-preferenced gifts to:

YWAM, PO Box 3000, Garden Valley, TX
75771-3000.

-Please don’t put my name anywhere on the check but include my name (Elizabeth Huckaby) on a separate piece of paper.