Day 5 Limones
Day 5 began with the usual loading of supplies in the back of a cattle truck. This destination was the furthest and was only made possible due to the completion of a new road late last year. Limones is a beautiful farm community nestled in the hills where you have to walk about a quarter of a mile to get cell coverage. The predominant mode of transportation is horseback which was the case for many of our eagerly awaiting friends. We set up our operation in a “brand new” clinic where the health department had asked us to conduct our services. This way more people in the area would be made aware of its existence. That said, it had no electricity or plumbing and the floors were dirt. Our triage and consultation took place outside under an overhang. Dentistry, readers and the marketplace each had a small room inside. Our pharmacy was in an adjacent structure which we attached a canopy to for the rain has been tough to circumvent. As soon as we arrived the community leaders made an announcement over their radio that we were there...
Two things strike me on this day. The first was the sheer number of children; the second was the familial vibe. While our guests come for treatment, they stay for energy and togetherness. What's super cool about that is we want nothing less! We were ready, enthusiastically willing and able to create what resembled a child's art studio. Countless children participated in creating the most beautiful pictures in paint, marker and crayon! I can still picture, while writing this blog, the long table of smiling artists.
When complete with expressing their creative side, there were other fun things to do to expend their energy. Zip lining was a huge hit. I can't tell you if everyone knew each other but I can tell you it appeared that way due to the manner in which they helped each other on the zip line. And then there were games! Andrew on our team had a long line of excited children waiting to play his "which hand is it?"game with tennis balls. The children had to guess the hand he was hiding the ball and if they guessed correctly, they received the ball. If incorrect they had to return to the end of the line. On occasion, a special smile or a certain look would lead Andrew to break his own rules and give them a ball even though they may have called it wrong.
During all the activity we saw over 470 people for a variety of conditions. While it was our largest and longest day, the phenomenal Team Nicaragua remained steadfast, hydrated and enthusiastic knowing we had a hand in helping so many. God's grace gave us the strength and endurance to make a difference, again. #grateful