I figured it was about time I posted another Moore update, since I
have been slacking off a bit. Now that it is the weekend, I have an
open schedule and a quiet afternoon to devote to writing. Where to
begin?
Now that Scott and Vicki are back from Boise, there have been a great deal of projects for me and the guys. The Mercy In Action tricey that Joks drives required a complete rebuild, and so both John and John were hard at work rewiring, repainting, tightening the brakes, the turn signals, replacing foot pegs, cleaning, polishing, and practically giving the old Suzuki bike a face-lift. There was still the matter of the engine, which had some issues and required intense tinkering and creativity. It is now up and running, a much more reliable means of transportation for the midwives to make their post-pardum visits.
Prior to the bike, John and John took apart the old generator and tried to restore it to a functioning asset here at the land in the event of a power outage. They searched all over town for tiny parts, visiting all the little parts shops, finding bits here and there that could work if they modified the parts to fit their needs. In the end, they piecing together a generator that runs, though not very reliably. It is more difficult to start than the Honda at the clinic, and not nearly as good a quality, but in a tight spot, they can use power tools and plug in a fridge.
The two of them also fixed both the washer and the dryer at the clinic. It is necessary for the clinic to have a functioning washer, so it is a great benefit to have it up and running once again. If John and John had not been there to fix it, they would have had to purchase a new washer to replace the broken one. It was much more economical to have the part replaced than to buy a brand new machine, and they are very grateful to have the guys come and do maintenance work around the clinic. In many ways, our being here to work on seemingly small, behind-the-scenes projects, such as broken washers and dryers, enables to clinic to operate smoothly.
One of the Aeta ladies gave birth at the clinic, and traveled a great distance to do so. She came from Mangpuieng, across the river and up a mountain trail. After her birth, she and her husband stayed at the land in one of the maternity waiting homes for a time before going back home. Our land is a halfway point from Mangpuieng and the clinic. I was able to help in a small way by preparing the cubo for them. In the future, we will have more waiting huts located closer to the base of the mountain as halfway point for more Aeta women and their families. A recent development: I may be learning to become a birth assistant to Theresa in the case that there is ever a birth that takes place here on the land.
Last night, John and I were getting ready for bed when we received a call from Jessica. They needed John to transport one of their patients. John had been on call all day, as the patient had hemorrhaged after the birth, and her vitals had gone up and down throughout the day. Now stable, now unstable… At 9:30pm we carried the woman out on her mattress and lifted her into the back of the ambulance. Imelda carried their newborn daughter, a healthy baby girl, Jen held up the IV, while Jessica and the woman’s husband climbed into the back as we made our way to the James Gordon Hospital. Once there, she was loaded onto a stretcher and taken into the ER. Imelda, Jen, and the woman’s husband followed, carrying the baby, and Jessica waited with us in the ambulance. We waited for her test results, which were to be available at 2am. And so we waited, driving out once to grab blankets and water for the patient. If the results were good, then the patient was free to go home, and we would take her back to the clinic. If not, then she would be admitted to the hospital for the night. And so we waited some more. By two in the morning, the lab results came in, and showed that the patient needed to be admitted. With this news, John drove the midwives back to the clinic, and we went home. It made for a late night, but all in a days work. She wound up having four blood transfusions, so please pray for her.
Today, the guys completed welding the trailer. It will hitch onto the back of the Eheler’s Pajero and will be used to haul rocks out of the river and onto the land, where we will be constructing a series of rock walls, starting at the bottom and building our way upward. It will be tiered, and the bottom layer will be 270 feet long – quite a stretch.
Then the waiting cubos will be constructed. There are still 3 more huts that are covered by the grant from One Day’s Wage. We are waiting to commence on building those until the end of typhoon season – though rainy season is officially over, we are now in typhoon season, which does not end until December. So we are looking at January.
Another project we will be undertaking is the construction of a large rock wall at the back of the clinic, as well as down the side, to help prevent another major flood. A group of volunteers is coming in February, so we will most likely begin then. There is also talk of adding a gathering area at the back of the clinic, so it would be possible to meet there on Sundays.
As you can see, there are a lot of projects out on the table now, and there is plenty to keep us busy. I will post more and elaborate later, but my time is running out and I must draw this to a close. Much love to you all, and thank you for the prayers! Grace and peace be with you all.
originally posted on October 22, 2011
Now that Scott and Vicki are back from Boise, there have been a great deal of projects for me and the guys. The Mercy In Action tricey that Joks drives required a complete rebuild, and so both John and John were hard at work rewiring, repainting, tightening the brakes, the turn signals, replacing foot pegs, cleaning, polishing, and practically giving the old Suzuki bike a face-lift. There was still the matter of the engine, which had some issues and required intense tinkering and creativity. It is now up and running, a much more reliable means of transportation for the midwives to make their post-pardum visits.
Prior to the bike, John and John took apart the old generator and tried to restore it to a functioning asset here at the land in the event of a power outage. They searched all over town for tiny parts, visiting all the little parts shops, finding bits here and there that could work if they modified the parts to fit their needs. In the end, they piecing together a generator that runs, though not very reliably. It is more difficult to start than the Honda at the clinic, and not nearly as good a quality, but in a tight spot, they can use power tools and plug in a fridge.
The two of them also fixed both the washer and the dryer at the clinic. It is necessary for the clinic to have a functioning washer, so it is a great benefit to have it up and running once again. If John and John had not been there to fix it, they would have had to purchase a new washer to replace the broken one. It was much more economical to have the part replaced than to buy a brand new machine, and they are very grateful to have the guys come and do maintenance work around the clinic. In many ways, our being here to work on seemingly small, behind-the-scenes projects, such as broken washers and dryers, enables to clinic to operate smoothly.
One of the Aeta ladies gave birth at the clinic, and traveled a great distance to do so. She came from Mangpuieng, across the river and up a mountain trail. After her birth, she and her husband stayed at the land in one of the maternity waiting homes for a time before going back home. Our land is a halfway point from Mangpuieng and the clinic. I was able to help in a small way by preparing the cubo for them. In the future, we will have more waiting huts located closer to the base of the mountain as halfway point for more Aeta women and their families. A recent development: I may be learning to become a birth assistant to Theresa in the case that there is ever a birth that takes place here on the land.
Last night, John and I were getting ready for bed when we received a call from Jessica. They needed John to transport one of their patients. John had been on call all day, as the patient had hemorrhaged after the birth, and her vitals had gone up and down throughout the day. Now stable, now unstable… At 9:30pm we carried the woman out on her mattress and lifted her into the back of the ambulance. Imelda carried their newborn daughter, a healthy baby girl, Jen held up the IV, while Jessica and the woman’s husband climbed into the back as we made our way to the James Gordon Hospital. Once there, she was loaded onto a stretcher and taken into the ER. Imelda, Jen, and the woman’s husband followed, carrying the baby, and Jessica waited with us in the ambulance. We waited for her test results, which were to be available at 2am. And so we waited, driving out once to grab blankets and water for the patient. If the results were good, then the patient was free to go home, and we would take her back to the clinic. If not, then she would be admitted to the hospital for the night. And so we waited some more. By two in the morning, the lab results came in, and showed that the patient needed to be admitted. With this news, John drove the midwives back to the clinic, and we went home. It made for a late night, but all in a days work. She wound up having four blood transfusions, so please pray for her.
Today, the guys completed welding the trailer. It will hitch onto the back of the Eheler’s Pajero and will be used to haul rocks out of the river and onto the land, where we will be constructing a series of rock walls, starting at the bottom and building our way upward. It will be tiered, and the bottom layer will be 270 feet long – quite a stretch.
Then the waiting cubos will be constructed. There are still 3 more huts that are covered by the grant from One Day’s Wage. We are waiting to commence on building those until the end of typhoon season – though rainy season is officially over, we are now in typhoon season, which does not end until December. So we are looking at January.
Another project we will be undertaking is the construction of a large rock wall at the back of the clinic, as well as down the side, to help prevent another major flood. A group of volunteers is coming in February, so we will most likely begin then. There is also talk of adding a gathering area at the back of the clinic, so it would be possible to meet there on Sundays.
As you can see, there are a lot of projects out on the table now, and there is plenty to keep us busy. I will post more and elaborate later, but my time is running out and I must draw this to a close. Much love to you all, and thank you for the prayers! Grace and peace be with you all.
originally posted on October 22, 2011
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