February 20th 2012

CAMEROON AFRICA

This is our Blog…The blog created by Steph Nynas and Llonda Thompson.  Our Hope is to take all of you on this journey with us.  We recognize that this is a journey that many will never have the desire or get the opportunity to take. Yet it is a trip that is very important both to the people of Cameroon, Africa and to those of us sitting here in our nice comfy homes here in the USA.

God has called us to not only to open up our hearts and our minds to these very deserving people, but also to try and reach yours.  Perhaps one of the most important things that we can accomplish is to raise awareness and bring those of us sitting on this side of the globe to the world of Africa. They live in a world very different from ours... Many have little more than a fire to keep them warm at night, let alone a house with a floor and a door, running water and electricity.

We are beginning this blog prior to our departure to try and bring you all up to speed with where we are going, and what we plan to do.  Sitting here we are capable of doing many things right here in our home, such as the map above, that is nearly impossible to obtain from there.  Some days the electricity will be out and there will be no water for a shower. On other days there will be no internet (our only connection to the outside world as we know it) and that can be quite unsettling.

 

Leaving on March 2^nd, first we will take a nearly 24 hour flight from Minneapolis to Douala, Cameroon.  Douala sits on the ocean and is very different from the place we will travel to in-land and to the north…  Ngaoundere, Cameroon is our final destination.  Luckily they tell us that the planes are currently flying, at least someplace close to our destination.  From past experience I know that we cannot rely on this and may need to make alternative plans for travel.  Trust me when I tell you that the alternates are not easy and would make our trip from Douala even longer than our travel from this side of the globe.  Buses and trains there are nothing remotely close to those we have the luxury of traveling on here, & that would be the only other way.  It is hard to describe really, so for now, we pray for the plane and a 5 hour bus ride.

We are going for a very short stay in the terms of missionary work to this part of the world, and we will have to hit the ground running.  Having been there before, this will be easier for me, but I know very challenging for Steph.  Being weary from travel, the culture shock, the way of life, the heat, & all we will see at the hospital, can be very overwhelming.  There is much to be done immediately upon arrival. It is challenging just to prepare food so that it is edible and to be able to drink clean water.   Modern conveniences that are part of our every day life are not the norm there.

In Many ways, I feel like I am being called back to Cameroon again so that I can bring Steph along.  She has many talents that will go really far in improving health care for this village and this country.  God could not get her to there without me, so my role is largely supportive of her.  Yes, I will be performing many other duties, but feel that my main job is to put her in the right place, with the right people, with interpreters to help her get the job done.  She has a stamina far beyond mine and I will be doing all that I can to meet our basic needs, so that she does not have to worry about them.  I will support her and steer her through obstacles that are not pertinent, so that she can focus more fully on our mission, the mission to improve health care in Cameroon.

Here in America, we can make the difference for a patient or 2 or 3 at a time, but there we have the capability to impact the way that healthcare is delivered not just for not just a hospital or community, but a whole country.

Prior to departure to this remote destination in Cameroon, we had to first visit the Travel center at the Duluth Clinic. We have to be educated and vaccinated for tropical diseases.  Let me see…there are shots for yellow Fever, Meningitis, typhoid, Hepatitis and Rabies. (Yes rabies, even the domesticated animals have not been vaccinated, so you cannot take the chance).  While there we must take prophylactic medicine to prevent malaria and have a ready supply of antibiotics to treat diarrhea.  I’m sure that I probably missed a few but in general when you leave there you feel somewhat like a pin cushion from so many injections.  You feel sick and who knows which injection left you feeling that way.

On top of that you need passports that are stamped with a VISA to visit this country.  You need official invitations, pictures, proof of vaccinations, and a registered bank account before you even apply.  We got our passports back officially stamped with Visa’s just this week, so a big weight has been lifted off our shoulders.  Other than packing, we are ready to travel.  Less than 12 days now, so no more procrastinating.