An Easter Mosaic

The picture shown here is a beautiful mosaic created by Catherine Schwebel. Catherine is one of the chaplains serving on board the Africa Mercy with her husband and three children. She is an incredible artist. Many times I have bought cards with images of her paintings on them. Now she has created this beautiful mosaic picture. It has truly been a labour of love undertaken during lent. She carefully chose the image and outlined the picture. She designed the contents of the picture. The hills, the garden, the two figures, perhaps one is Mary, kneeling. The empty tomb, the angel of the Lord appearing. Catherine had in her mind’s eye the finished product. She knew what it would look like before it came into being. I didn’t. All I could see was a blank white canvass. If I looked closely I could see a faint outline of an angel, a kneeling figure. But I didn’t know the intimate details, the colours, the beauty. But week by week the mosaic took shape. One by one, Catherine selected scraps of paper. Each carefully chosen. The right colour. Actually it was more than just colour, shades and tones mattered. Then each piece was cut. Precisely. Lovingly. And finally glued in place. Not any place, but the exact place Catherine had prepared for it long ago. Long ago when she designed the mosaic.

This mosaic is a reminder of you and me. Each one of us carefully chosen and formed by God. Each piece in the mosaic is different but each is carefully chosen, designed, and set in place. Not any old place, but a specific place. And together all the pieces make up a beautiful picture. If one was missing the picture would be incomplete. So it is with us. Each of us is set in place by God and if one of us was missing, our world would be incomplete. My world is, here on the Africa Mercy. Your world is wherever you are….your workplace, your family, your church. Each one of us is significant, made in the image of God, chosen to reflect Gods beauty. Individually we reflect in part, together we reflect the whole. God knew what he was doing when he made you. Before the full picture was finished , he chose you and made you specifically, lovingly, uniquely. No one else can replace you. He set you in place. You are valuable to him. You are valuable to your world. To the people around you.

This Easter, do you know your significance and your worth before God, the God that died for you and rose again to give you new life? If you don’t believe what I say, ponder the following statements from the bible:

Acts 17 verses 26 & 27 says God

…determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live

Psalm 139  verse 13 – 16 says about God

For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb.

…I am fearfully and wonderfully made

My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place.

When I was woven together….your eyes saw my unformed body.

All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be

Esther 4 verse 14 tells us

And who knows that you have come to royal position for such a time as this.

Civil unrest

I am meant to leave the ship this evening to do an airport run. The Africa Mercy has a constant turnover of volunteer staff. Over 1000 people will arrive and depart in a 40 week filed service. That’s a lot of people to take and fetch from the airport. Each department is responsible for picking up its own volunteer’s. The hospital makes up almost half the crew so we have a lot of airport runs to do ! Actually they are quite fun and not really a chore. Sometimes the drive is fun…a chance to feel free and independent, other times you are picking up friends and welcoming them back to the ship; and other times you get the pleasure of picking up new volunteers and welcoming them to the ship. They have a mixtue of nervous anticipation and excitement. I like airport runs.

However, sometimes airport runs are not so much fun. Tonight might be one of those times. There has been political unrest in Guinea for several days now. Ever since we arrived 8 months ago there have been occasional political demonstrations. Most of these do not affect our ship activities, patients can still reach us and we can move around freely in town. Only on rare occasions has our personal or business activities been affected. This week has been different. Yesterday (Saturday) we went on a boat trip to the beautiful islands just off the coast here. It was an outing for all Operating  Room staff including our local workers. However, due to recent violent protests some of the local workers didn’t want to leave home, especially the women. We live in troubled times.

The political unrest here has deteriorated into ethnic violence in some areas. It hasn’t reached main stream news but you can read reports on Reuters News Agency network. The following is a brief summary of what has been happening this month, taken from the news articles on the web.

Guinea is a former French colony, and when President Alpha Conde narrowly won the presidential election in 2010, the election was billed as the first free poll since the 1958 independence. Although the election was marred by deadly riots and opposition allegations of fraud. There had previously been a military coup in 2008, and the transition back to civilian rule is still not complete. The final step is legislative elections, which after much delay have finally been scheduled for May 12^th. These elections are a prerequisite to unlock millions of dollars of frozen foreign aid, and were originally scheduled for 2011 and have been delayed many times already.

Preparations for the elections are being hampered by opposition claims the government is seeking to rig the outcome in advance. The opposition, has called for a number of protests. But meanwhile, the head of the Guinean armed forces, General Diallo, was killed in a plane crash in Liberia on Feb 11^th. He was one of the main architects of the reform of Guinea's powerful military, which seized power in the military coup of 2008. Diallo was a strong supporter of the Conde government, but Diallo's predecessor, Nouhou Thiam, is in prison facing trial for his alleged role in a gun and rocket attack on President Conde's home by soldiers in 2011. During the period of mourning for General Diallo the protests were called off but restarted this week on wednesday Feb 27^th.

In 2010, President Conde promised to unite Guinea in the same way Nelson Mandela did after apartheid in South Africa. But many of his compatriots say he has failed. The opposition protest on Wednesday turned violent and some 130 people were injured. The violence continued and Guinean President Alpha Conde appealed for calm on Friday after rival ethnic gangs fought with knives and truncheons. Reuters reported ‘Security forces in full anti-riot gear took to the streets of the crumbling seaside capital Conakry to try to stem violence in which at least 65 people were injured, according to a statement from the presidency.’ And that ‘Residents of Conakry fled in panic as the gangs from rival ethnic groups roamed the streets. Shops and business were looted in many parts of the city.’

I feel safe on the ship, and we are monitoring the situation closely. Most of the violence is further outside the city than where we are in the port. Guinea is the world's top supplier of bauxite, the raw material in aluminium. However, the economy produces only about $1.50 per person per day despite a wealth of natural resources, including the world's largest untapped iron ore deposit.

Politics are mainly drawn along ethnic lines. The opposition coalition is broadly supported by members of the Peul ethnicity - the country's biggest ethnic group - and the government by the Malinke. Sadly, the political protests now appear to have degenerated into inter-ethnic violence between the Peuls and Malinkes. The US government and UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon have called for calm.

To reach the airport, we drive past the Grande Marche area of Madina. This is where there were running street battles between the Malinke and the Puel.

I will await further instructions from the captain and managing director as to who is going to the airport and how we get there. They are very experienced and have all the information they need from a variety of sources. I am confident wise decisions are always made here as Mercy Ships takes crew safety very seriously. So those of you reading this needn’t worry. Reminds me of trusting the Lord. We don’t need to know everything or know the outcome, but what a relief when I have confidence in the authority over me. Knowing they are there to protect, to lead and to guide. I thank God for Captain Tim and Donavan, and pray for them for wisdom, strength and energy as they steer the ship and crew through troubled times. I also pray for the people of Guinea, for peace and reconciliation. For good men and women, people of integrity and courage to lead this nation. The last women in government who stood against corruption was assassinated a few months ago. Guinea needs our prayers.  

Risky Business

Being ill in Guinea, or any country in West Africa, is a risky business.

Your chance of recovery depends on, not just how severe the accident or illness is, but on numerous other factors. Namely:

1.    How close are you to the nearest hospital?

2.    Is the necessary treatment is available?

3.    Do you have enough money to pay for your treatment?

My local hospital in England is under threat of closure. The local MP is campaigning hard to keep it open. It is 5 minutes from where my parents live and if it closes they may have to drive 30-45 minutes to another hospital. That seems like a long way by British standards. Most of the patients I see, live at least that far from a hospital. Some of our patients have travelled 2 days by bus to reach the ship. Even in the US and Canada, patients drive many hours to seek specialist help. Even with hospital closures, we are still very fortunate in England.

A friend of mine was unwell so she saw her GP. He did some blood tests and sent her for further investigation and biopsies at the local hospital. Biopsy results back, the GP started treatment and made a referral to a specialist hospital consultant. Specialist seen, she is now on treatment and getting better. All this within six weeks. God bless the NHS. In Guinea you don't have a local GP, even if you did they might not know what to do. If they knew what to do, they probably wouldn't be able to perform the specialist tests and investigations, because of a lack equipment (surgical or drugs). Doctors graduate from medical school and struggle to get jobs. Not because there isn't a need, there is, but there is no money to pay them. Their knowledge is far less than British graduates and their practical experience even more lacking. Specialist training is virtually non-existant. Only surgery; obstetrics and gynaecology; perhaps paediatrics, but little else. No cardiologists, gastroenterologists, neurologists, different types of surgeons, pathologists, anesthetists, or all the numerous specialities we are used to. In Guinea, you might have a hospital nearby, but you probably won't have the necessary specialist doctors and medical equipment to treat you. We are very fortunate in England.

My brother is moving to to work in another European country. He will have to pay for healthcare. There is no NHS where he is going. Even if his wife takes their baby daughter to the GP they will have to pay. Many first time mothers visit their GP frequently. The baby is not well, the mother is concerned and not sure what is wrong....first response is visit the doctor. That is a good response, it is safe and good for child health.  We don't even consider the cost, because in England we don't pay. It might be different if you lived in Europe or America. But we are English so we don't even consider these things. In Guinea you have to pay for everything. I visited the main hospital in Guinea a few weeks ago and accompanied a surgeon on his ward round. I met a young man who had been knocked over by a motor cycle. He had a broken jaw, and deep wounds on his arm and leg. His jaw needed surgical fixation, and his wounds needed cleaning and dressing in a sterile fashion. It was Friday afternoon. So far, nothing had been done other than apply a few old bandages to his wounds. If the man or his family could raise the money, he would have his operation on Monday, and his wounds dressed properly. If not he would be discharged. Meantime, his family still had to bring him meals while in the hospital. No free hospital meals like the NHS. In Guinea you may have a hospital, you may have specialist but do you have the money? I don't know what happened to the man I saw. In England we don't think about cost. We are very fortunate.

Being ill in Guinea is a risky business. In England we are very fortunate, despite hospital closures and NHS cut backs. We still have hospitals nearby, with highly trained medical staff, working equipment, and you don't pay a penny.

Thank God for the NHS. It might not be perfect but it is better than Guinea, and quite possibly, better than many other countries in the world.