Subject: Good Morning
Dear all:
It rained steady all day. Not a hard rain, but just a steady rain. It was not much of a problem because we went to the leper colony (the one where Grandma Tiny lived before she passed on). It was sad not to see her waiting to see her friends come yet another time. This colony is such a blessing for all of us. It is a dramatic reminder that I do not have any problems that are worthy of complaint! Our medical providers (some of them students) did a great job with them. It is not an easy thing to scrape the dead skin from what is left of their feet or hands and put the anti-bacterial jell over their raw wounds and of course fresh dressings. For the lepers it is simply "the way it is".
But it is more than sad, it is disgusting to know that inexpensive medication exists that could stop further deterioration of what they have left. The official in charge of the colony is worse than mean, he simply does not care. No meds, no heat, poor food, little if any medical attention, etc. etc. These people are invisible. They do not exist. They are hidden in a small walled compound out of sight to rot away. Their families are also victims of this, because the children and grandchildren also live within the colony. The adults can only find work that no one else will do for little payment, even by Vietnam standards. The children are allowed to attend school, and even that would not be possible if COPI did not help them with tuition money. However, this year the first grandchild of a leper will enter college! This is a huge example to all the other kids who are looked down on in school and in the larger community. They are like the "boy named Sue" who become stronger because of their situation. If all of this were not difficult enough, the compound will be torn down next month to build a golf course and these people will be moved and hidden once again in a strange and unfamiliar place.
I know I am being blunt, but I know a man who was also blunt when he said "I was sick and you did not minister to me, I was naked and you did not cloth me." Then the dreaded words... "Depart from me into outer darkness." In some ways I feel more sorrow for the perpetrators than for the lepers.
Moving on to a lighter subject... We had a great dinner at a local fish restaurant tonight. We also understand that the weather will be better tomorrow when we travel to Hoi An, a small city toward the middle of Vietnam. Tomorrow morning we will have time to wander around Hanoi, then return to the Hotel by 1:30 to board a bus to the airport and fly to Da Nang. We will take a bus from there to Hoi An. Then a free day in Hoi An where we can order tailor made cloths if we choose! Apart from that it is a delightful town and we will have beautiful accommodations to rest up for the next series of clinics.
Jim
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