November already.
I have attempted to write the follow-up post(s)
from my Cambodia trip several times. However, just shortly after my first post,
we were asked to remember to maintain a heightened level of sensitivity towards
what we publicly post, as the long-term missionaries and their ministry are
under close watch. So anything other than the ‘touristy’ things I did (which
encompassed all of one day there) I can’t really post here on my blog. I
decided, however, to send updates on the trip through emails to those of you on
my support list. If you don’t receive my emails and would like to, you can
message me on facebook or my email (brilbart@ut.utm.edu) so I can add you!
Once again, I want to thank those of you who gave
so I could be apart of this initial scouting team to Cambodia. We were thrilled
at the overwhelming response we received from the community and God’s obvious
presence and hand in this endeavor. We sent out another team of girls just a
few days ago for the second trip there. Please be praying for them as they help
out on the Lake, encourage local believers, and meet the needs that God puts in
front of them!
As an update from life here—I am loving every
single second of it, of course. This has in many ways become the norm—home—to
me, and the thought of having to leave it behind (sooner than later) is a
painful one to have. I am learning so much and am happy that midwifery is one
of those things you never stop learning about. I love love love learning Visayan
and am continuing language lessons with one of my best friends here. Our
teacher is so wonderful, and I think I can speak for the both of us by saying
that we quite look forward to our language lesson on Saturday afternoons.
Onto the babies and mommas! Here are pictures of my
continuity patient, Marian, and her newborn. Look at the eyelashes on that
beautiful girl!
Most of you probably heard about the typhoon that
hit the Philippines just a few days ago. Thank you for praying and showing
concern for me here. We only experienced a little rain from the storm, but
areas further north were hit very badly. I have been scavenging the internet
for ways to find out what exactly happened and how bad the damage was, but
reports are inconclusive, as communication to the affected areas is limited.
Friends I know in the areas posted that they were seeking shelter before the storm hit, but I have yet to hear from them since. Vonn has been able to contact some of the people there that he did mission work
with earlier this year, who report flooding and mass looting. To see a few pictures of the devastation of Typhoon
Haiyan (or Typhoon Yolanda as it is known locally), check out the links below.
The second link mentions a death toll of over 1,000. Please continue to be
praying for the people here in the Philippines. This country is repeatedly hit
with super storms like this one and the destruction is always quite
devastating. May the Lord use this time to continue to draw people to Himself.
Will write again soon,
Midwife Brittany
