Tiffany's thoughts........

I have been wanting to share this with you. It was written by a nurse anesthetist who was recently down for a surgical clinic. Her names is Tiffany and this was her second trip to Guatemala to participate in a surgical clinic. I enjoyed reading her thoughts and hope you will too..........I also look forward to her next trip down as I am sure she is planning one :)

Friends & Family,
Well what you do say when you have been smack dab in the center of God's work? It is just amazing!!!! For those of you who were thinking of me and praying for me while I was in Guatemala, I am eternally grateful. Everyone on the team and the patients felt your prayers. We were able to do about 40 surgical cases - about 1/3 kids plastic surgery (cleft lips and palates) and the rest gynecological surgery (hysterectomys etc). With this being my second time there, this trip wasn't as "shocking" as my first, but yet more heart wrenching. I love these people. Even though I am back here physically, my heart is still there. And I find myself trying to manipulate schedules to get back there quickly.

For fun, here's a list of "Ten Things Gleaned from Guatemala."

1. God is just as busy in Hendersonville as He is in Guatemala! I am just too distracted when I am home to see it!!!
2. Guatamala is all four seasons in one place, you just need to drive around a little.
3. God is bigger than a blood bank! We had a bit of a scare with a patient that had some post-operative bleeding. She probably lost half her blood volume. I remember thinking, "Good Lord, we don't have access to ANY blood products!" Well that same Good Lord made it possible to give her back 300 ml of her own blood and miraculously provided us with some albumin to give her. The patient did exceptionally well. It was a total God-thing.
4. Mission trips are even more fun with a dear friend. Thank you Lorie for being a good roomate, travel buddy, precious friend, and sister in the Lord.
5. DOLOR is pain in spanish. DOLAR is money. Big difference! I know those sweet patients think I am such a goober with my country accent spanish as I go around inadvertently asking for money while trying to assess for postoperative pain in the recovery area!
6. I have now come in contact with some of the most grateful humans on the planet. I was putting a spinal block in one of my patients this week and when I laid her back down, she was crying. The spinal had gone right in, so I was shocked to see her reaction. "Perdone, Senoirita, no tiengo meida …" In my poor broken spanish, I told her I was so sorry for hurting her. She said that she was not crying tears of pain but tears of joy because she was so thankful for all of us and what we were doing for her. WOW.
7. Latex grows on trees. It's not man -made, but I am sure that you already knew that.
8. I am the most selfish person I know! This sobering realization is all over me as I drive down the road in my car with my seat warmer on and drinking a smoothie. My patients are back there with a dirt floor, tarp roof, no running water, and possibly hungry. Yet they are very, very happy.
9. God's love and peace truly does surpass all understanding. And, it transcends all language and land barriers.
10. Take a mission trip - "you'll live right for one week out of the year, so you can live better the other 51." (not my quote, but Scott's- isn't that good?).