Four weeks in...

La Fuente Clinic

     I've been working two days a week at Clinica La Fuente, a medical ministry to the poor in and around Cusco.  The clinic offers pediatric medicine, women's health, psychology, and dentistry. I work with a wonderful Peruvian Dentist named Saulo.  He had a very successful career as a private practice dentist until God called him to leave his practice to serve Him full-time. We are training Paula to serve as our dental assistant.  She has a great attitude and is a quick learner. The dental clinic has only been open since the first of August, but our books are full.

    My favorite patient so far was an orphan boy name Markos. Markos had severe physical difficulty coming into the clinic and I helped carry him to the chair. Initially we thought he was partially blind and deaf, but we were surprised that he could hear us. He even asked the name of everyone in the clinic. I was able to clean his teeth, and thankfully, he only had one small cavity. Markos kept reaching up and touching my hands in what I felt was an appreciative way.  Every time I asked how he was doing, he would say he was doing okay. Our medical director, Nathan Wilson, dropped by and took the picture below while I was working. He thinks Markos may have some slight form of Cerebral Palsy. I couldn't help but wonder what Markos can understand, and I can't wait for him to return.

New Friends

     We have been invited to join a Thursday night English class. Students from the local medical school come for a snack, to learn English medical terminology, and have opportunities to converse with English speakers. We had a fun time and look forward to getting to know the students better.  I have already seen some of them at La Fuente, and we hope that many will come to work alongside us there.
     Lastly I should mention Tom and Adela.  One Sunday after church we were eating outside at a restaurant when a brief shower drove us to take cover under an awning.  Tom and Adela took cover with us and with the help of Amelia we introduced ourselves. They had recently opened their own restaurant in the downtown area of Cusco.  When I told him I was a dentist, he told me he was looking for a dentist, so I invited him to visit us at La Fuente.  I told him, "We'll come find your restaurant" and he responded, "I'll find you first." Well, a week went by and no Tom.
     The following Friday, Michelle and I went into the center city to eat a nice meal.  Though we tried and tried, we could not find the restaurant we were looking for.  However, I noticed we were very near Tom and Adela's, so we decided to eat there instead. The food was wonderful, and they were glad to see us again. I reminded Tom that I found him first and invited him to the clinic again. Hopefully he will be able to come. 
    Our other days are filled with Spanish lessons, meeting with our teammates, and the mundane activities of daily life.  Life is much slower here, and we set our expectations on getting one task done per day.  Thank you for your prayers and emails.  We miss all our friends and family terribly, but we are glad to be working with such a great team.