health in the tropics...

Well... we've had a restful weekend and the rest isn't over yet for Jair! On Thursday we invited Karen, Caroline and Florrie over for dinner because it was Karen's birthday and had a wonderful celebration finishing off with sticky date pudding... hmmm. Yes, well, dates were cheap in the store because they had passed their used by date (best before, not poisonous after, right?) and the Wycliffe recipe book has homemade sweetened condensed milk. It was delicious... but I felt a little off and not because of the food.

I thought straight away that it must be malaria because I felt weak and dizzy and achy all over very quickly. And then also, two weeks before I'd had a sore eyelid and Jair said that he had a sore eyelid two weeks before getting malaria. So I was kind of expecting it... Well Thursday night was paaiinnnful - my back ached as my kidneys fought the parasite. Friday morning, almost first thing, Jair took me down for the test and after I found out I was positive, I started a course of coartem. Coartem makes me feel queasy and I'm thankful that I took my last dose tonight so that I can feel a bit more normal. But I'm even more thankful that I got onto it straight away and that there is fast effective medication for it!! I spent Friday reading and snoozing in the hammock.

Then Friday night, Jair felt ill, so Saturday morning we did another trip to the doctor and he had malaria too. Different type though. So he started his course of coartem as well.

Well, the malaria is quickly easing and we've spent the whole weekend resting to help our bodies get over it. But... yes there is a but. Jair's had a sore toe for a couple of days. On Tuesday his toe nail lifted up and ever since then it's been hurting so finally on Saturday evening he went to see Kevin and ask if they could do anything. He's got cellulitis in his toe (no, it doesn't mean he's got cellulite there). It's all red and pussy and sore and it could get worse. Cellulitis is the inflammation of the tissue under the skin. In hot tropical conditions it can get bad quickly so he's got to rest and keep his foot up all day.

You can imagine how hard it is for him to rest all day, but it is vital that he does this otherwise the infection might spread. Anyway. I wanted to tell you this so that you could pray for healing and also patience for him as he hangs around all day!!

Apart from that things are well. September is a busy month with different groups coming into the transit house. So we'll be busy. Oh, one last thing, we just got our crate of mechanical parts from NZ. Thanks to the people who had a part it getting it here and thank you especially to Mrs Larsen for the nutella, chocolate and yoghurt packets! It keeps us sane! Bless you :)

visitors!

For the last two weeks, we've been very happy to have my (Lauretta's) parents over visiting us. Tomorrow they go back, so we'll be sorry to see them go, although we've had a fantastic time with them. I thought I'd put up a few photos to show what we've been up to. Mum and Dad have had all sorts of new or different or just enjoyable experiences - drinking from coconuts, shopping in the market, trying out the local fruit, buying fresh fish from the side of the road, scooting around in a tropical island on a motor bike, swimming in the warm ocean, paying $20 for a coffee(!! - well, Solomon Dollars), lots of reading and snoozing in the hammock for Dad.

We saw the typical tourist sites, of which there are few - like the army landing craft graveyard, the American war memorial, Boneggi Beach (where there is a ship wreck and tropical fish) and the odd cafes around the place.

Last week Thursday, Jair and I had to go to Auki which is on Malaita for a night and two days.

Kevin was running a workshop on prison ministry so we went along for support and also to try initiate CBI there in Auki prison. Auki is a 3hr boat ride away as it's on another island. So Mum and Dad came along too. Neither of them got seasick though the sea was rather rough. We kept joking that they went on a tropical cruise because the views were amazing, especially through the passage of the Florida (Ngella) islands. While we were busy workshopping, my parents rested in the SSEC Transit House where we stayed, or went for a walk in Auki township. It's a very small town, but because of that, it's actually not too bad. They even managed to find an ice cream stall!

Right now, Mum's gone out for coffee with the Director's wife and Dad's scooting out on some tropical road! I think they've had a restful time and we wish them all the best as they head back to cold, wet New Zealand!! I'll let the photos tell the rest of the story!

This is my favourite picture - Dad found his brain!! ;)

Dad drinking a coconut...

and on a tropical cruise

at Boneggi Beach - that's a WW2 ship poking out of the sea. Unfortunately, it was too rough for mum and dad to snorkel there. Mum had a ball though - I even brought her a little tropical fish in a plastic bag to show her what they were like!

buying fish on the side of the road... mmm fresh fish for dinner!