Down for the Count

Ok, that title is a bit dramatic but when have I ever missed out on a chance to give my writing that extra twist?

Yesterday I felt just awful--backache, headache, a feeling of foreboding and hopelessness and every joint felt out of place. By the evening it became clear that I most likely had malaria.

I waited until morning to take the medicine because I wanted to be sure but after a restless night I had no doubt it was malaria. The funny thing with malaria is you can feel much better during the day but by the night it all comes back again.

For example, I actually managed to get a report done and emailed out today but now as we approach 5 PM I can feel the parasites beginning to circulate again. I know...TMI!

Today was regular shopping day and so Tom and everyone else headed out early this morning. We decided that the only way I'd get any rest was if I pretended to be out with  them as well. So, I gave the kitchen lady all her instructions and then ducked into the house as Tom and the kids left. 

Just after they left I realized my mistake. I'd brought no food or water into the house with me (there isn't even any Christmas candy left after a particularly PMS-ridden day earlier this week).

I don't think we fooled anyone anyway. Our manager came to my door twice and knocked insistently. 

By 1:30 this afternoon I was starving so since I knew the staff would be eating in their lunch room I dashed across the yard into the kitchen to prepare some lunch. I left evidence of my cooking  and since they don't have elves as part of the local lore, I'm pretty sure I'm busted. No matter. I will continue to ignore the knocks at the door and get my rest.

This is quite possibly my 10th episode of malaria in my life--I've honestly lost count so I kinda take it in stride. It can be serious but treated quickly and properly can mean all the difference. I've had hepatitis since being in Africa so I have to be extra careful--both diseases affect the liver but if I take care and rest I'll be just fine. Thanks for your prayers.

This Day Just Gets Better and Better!

Continued from yesterday's post:

Boy, were we ready for the day to get better. Living out in the bush there are a couple things we look forward to when we head to the big city: eating in restaurants and watching movies on the big screen. With all the hype built up around Avatar Tom was hoping against hope that it would still be playing to Lusaka. As ill as he was feeling he jumped out of the taxi and headed straight for the cinema as soon as we got to the shopping mall.

Oh joy! Avatar was indeed playing! Tom could have done a jig right then and there. Did I mention he’s a sci-fi fan? I was more interested in watching Invictus but was so glad to see Tom happy and feeling better (mentally at least) that I would have sat through all four Alien movies with him.

After planning when we would watch the movie we checked out a new restaurant. It looked like a really fun place which we would have enjoyed taking the children to. Just after we had ordered lunch a missionary we knew walked by. I glanced around and saw his wife sitting at a nearby table. I was so excited. Living so far out in the bush affords us little opportunity to visit with other missionaries. Being able to sit down and discuss, pray and fellowship with other missionaries is one of the things we miss most from our time in more populated areas.

  We had a wonderful lunch visiting with this sweet couple who recently started the adoption process of a little girl in addition to their four other small little girls. They are an inspiration.

  After lunch we did some internet work and then headed over to the travel agency. I will be visiting the States for two months in April and May. My oldest son is traveling with me but will be staying in the States to go to school. When I emailed our travel agent to book the tickets the prices she quoted me were shocking! Both tickets were double what I paid last year. I asked if she knew why prices had gone up so drastically but she couldn’t give me an answer.

  When we got to the office to make payment, I asked the agent to make sure that we got the missionary ticket so that we could get the extra baggage allowance it makes such a difference in what we can bring back with us in the way of supplies for the orphanage. She called the manager in a different office to arrange the tickets and found out that the price of each ticket came down by half!! I was so excited! When we go back to the States to fundraise for our operating and renovating expenses having a huge travel budget tacked on is not the way you want to start out the trip. What a day this was turning out to be!

Still on a high we passed by the bus station to buy our return travel tickets for the next day and then went back to the mall for our movie. I don’t want to say much about Avatar right now (maybe later) but it was worth watching.

Afterward, since Tom was feeling so much better he suggested that we go have coffee at an outdoor restaurant. They provided free wi-fi so he was able to type up his thoughts about watching the movie. I was thrilled to see him feeling better but also cautioned him not to overdo because malaria is notorious for hiding and then coming back with a vengeance. Truer words were never spoken as you will see tomorrow.

We were high in the sky on the rollercoaster ride but we were about to hit a steep downgrade. Hold onto your hats!