I have been home from the Dominican Republic for a week now. Not only did I bring myself home, but I also brought home a bad case of poison ivy. I also brought home new friendships, encouragement, lessons learned, fun and laughter, and so many memories. Highlights/memorable experiences from the trip include:

• Spending time with the kiddos helping with the feeding program and just playing with them
• 2 home visits allowing for time to talk with and pray for the families
• Relaxing beach time
• Getting to know new friends in the group
• Sunrises at MOHI
• Seeing a 24yo guy with a nasty arm wound and fracture from a gun shot that occurred while crossing the border from Haiti to the DR. He unfortunately will not have an easy or good prognosis unless money and a private surgeon can be found. 
• Splinting a 9yo girls fractured arm with Dr Carmen with no pain meds which would have been given in the states prior to anything happening.
• Dr Carmen and Melissa’s speaking sessions
• Worship times
• And so many more things that I can’t even think of at this moment

The first session we had on the first day, Dr Carmen spoke with the title being “Called to be Fearless”. There were so many take-aways from that session but it made me think about my job and how I can relate to my patients trusting me, to me trusting God. This is what I wrote in my journal:

“At work I always put a gait belt on my patients to help hold them up when they are standing or walking. Most of my patients have a fear of falling and usually it is a valid fear because they have seriously injured themselves as a result of a fall. When we first get up to stand, I explain to them step by step what we are going to do and tell them that I will have my hand(s) on their belt to prevent them from falling. The response I get as we stand or once in standing and starting to walk or transfer is ‘I can’t’ or ‘I’m going to fall’. My response almost always is ‘take a deep breath. I have a hold of you and am not going to let you go. I will NOT let you fall. I am right here with you. Now, let’s take a little step.’ I was reminded when Dr Carmen was speaking that God is basically saying the same thing to us. He is with us. We don’t have to be afraid. We may stumble or even fall, but God always has His hand on us tightly holding onto our ‘gait belt’.”

In the Bible, Esther faced fear. With encouragement, she was able to be courageous and was reminded of her identity as a daughter of the King. Esther trusted in God and not in her own strength. A note I wrote on my paper was trusting God doesn’t eliminate fear. We can be scared, yet still trust God’s biggest purpose. My patients can be scared, yet trust that I will be there to hold them up and guide them in the right direction. I moved to Cleveland, OH to start a new job in October scared, yet trusting that God knew what He was doing and last week I accepted a new position of Therapy Manager. I am nervous but so excited for this new role. I have an amazing group of co-workers and am ready to help lead this team. 

Hope you enjoyed this food for thought. Now, enjoy some pictures!