week 1!

Hello Everyone!!
Sorry for the longer delay in posting. I was having a little trouble getting on here. Today marks 1 week that I have been here. The homesickness was pretty bad at first, but the last few days have been better. I've been finding a lot of encouragement from the Psalms. In chapel every morning they say the verse in English, so I am able to follow along. It is a good way to participate, since I don't understand the songs or sermon. Today was my second day in the hospital. I am getting better with my Bengali, they are helping to teach me some words. There are so many names to remember, I feel bad when I get them mixed up. The hospital consists of  the labor and delivery, maternity, childrens, and eye clinic. So far I have gotten to watch 3 c-sections in the operation theatre, today there were twins. They let me carry one back to the nursery, and in the hallway, all the relatives wanted to see the babies gender. Two little boys. One of the nurses showed me around again, I think I am able to find my way around now. It is a fairly small hospital. The cut/wrap the bandages and make cotton swabs used here, and then they steralize them. They let me make a few, but mine weren't quite as nice as theirs. After that I spent some time with the nursing students in the nursery. I went to one of their classes, it was mostly reading/recitation. They were studying infant illnesses, and it was good because I was able to recall what I learned about it too. It was all in Bengali, but the names are English based, so I knew what they topics were.

My family knows I'm not a big eater, and here they expect me to eat a lot. I am always being offered tea, fruit, or cookies. It's hard to be rude and refuse, so I'm never hungry! Every day I have rice, mango, fried papaya, fish, vegetables, and bread. At breakfast they give me toast, egg, and cereal. I know it's western food, and normally I would love to eat the local food all the time. But, sadly, I enjoy my eggs and cereal. I'm still adjusting to the difference here.

Every few days the Alberts take me to see something. So far we have gone to a historical site, that was very interesting to me. The fort was made of brick, and was partially covered with grass. Today we went to a golf course. It is part of a military base, so if I want to play, I must fill out a form. I don't think I will though, I would have a terrible time hitting the ball as far as it needs to go. I've really enjoyed the driveing. Once we are out of the main part of the city, you can see mud houses, haystacks, cows and goats lying by/ on the road, and lots of people walking. There are a lot of rickshaws, and autorickshaws. I love how all the big trucks have artwork painted on their tailgates. It's like an artshow driving down the road. I've been trying to get pictures, but with traffic moving it is difficult. Once I get back to the States, I'm going to have a hard time staying in my lane. ;)

Today I got my sari's and apron to work in. I think they will be tricky to learn to wear. But they have pockets, something I've been missing in the hospital. I am starting to really enjoy working there, so long as they don't make me start an IV! Jutica, one of the nurses was ordering me to start one, and I told her I didn't know how yet. She wants to teach me. I wonder if she thinks what kind of nurses they have in America if they can't even start IV's. I brought my little RN Notes book with me, and I am loving it. It has all the information I need/forget, and it has been so helpful.

If you would please keep praying for safety in the hospital and from getting any food/water bourne illness, I would so appreciate it. So far, so good. Also pray that I can continue to understand the people and finish adjusting to the time change. And for meaningful times reading the Bible. I realize just how close God is during these times, maybe more than I did at home. Love you all! Sarah

ps- If you want to get my emails, which probably have a little different stories, my email is sarah.m.maughan@gmail.com Just let me know and I'll add you to the list! :)

I'm here!

I made it! It was a very long trip, but I'm here at last. I actually got here yesterday morning to Dhaka, but we stayed the morning at Dr. Albert's brothers, where I met his wife and children. I too a nap, and then after lunch we got on the road to Bogra. It was a 6 hour drive, and it was very interesting driving. You aren't even supposed to stay in your lane! I got to see rickshaws, brick factories, and an accident. There were times where we were heading strait towards an oncoming bus before we/they swerved back. We got into Bogra at night then, so I wasn't able to see much of the city I've been trying to catch up to the time difference, but it's hard. I'm pretty tired right now. The food has been good, nothing too spicy just yet. I got to walk around the compound and see everything. I found out the church is over 100 years old. They have a school here too with 250 students that come. Last night was the first time I've slept under a mosquito net. I've always wanted a canopy bed! I woke up and could here all the traffic going by, lots of honking. I think that's all for now, I am pretty tired. Thanks for praying for me, it helped me get here! I was happy I made all my connections. I can write more when I am more alert and with it. :)

1 day or 22 hours to go

This last week has been crazy busy getting packed, buying last minute items, and wrapping up everything here at home for 3 months. I never thought there would be this much to do. It was sad saying good bye to everyone in church today, thinking I won't be seeing you all again for a long time! My first flight is 1:30 pm from Harrisburg to JFK in New York with a switch in DC. I fly out of NY at 11 pm and get into Abu Dhabi International airport (I was confused about the Dubai part, sorry!) on the 19th at 8pm. From there I get into Dhaka, Bangladesh at 4 am on the 20th. Dr. Albert will meet me there and then we drive north to Bogra, where I'll be staying. It is strange to think that in 24 hours I'll in the air, and 24 hours after that I'll be half way around the world trying to stay awake for my first day there! I'm both really excited and looking forward to it, and nervous at the same time. Here goes! See you on the other side of the world!

10 days and counting!

10 days and 33 things to do before I leave. My list keeps getting longer and longer, not shorter!
Let me share a little bit about how this trip came about. To go way back, I once read a book about Clara Barton and decided that nursing was what I wanted to do with my life. As I grew older and read more missionary biographies, I imagined myself being a missionary nurse to India. I've gone on a lot (I think 9) mission trips with our youth group, and I've always wanted to take a longer trip overseas as a nurse. Last summer I decided after I graduated from nursing school at Lancaster General would be the ideal time to take my trip, so I started looking at different mission groups. None of them had the 3 month, 1 person, nursing trip to live in peoples homes like I wanted. I eventually discovered that the Churches of God have a mission hospital over in Bangladesh and they were willing to have me come over, so it just went from there. Lots of questions, emails, and prayers went into finalizing my decision to go. I remember praying one night as I worked. "God, I think this would be a great trip, I think you could use me there, and I want to go. So I'm going. If you don't want that to happen, please slam the door." After that, I just started making preparations. It amazes me just how much there is to do before you leave the country for a while. I think the thing I least looked forward to was the support raising, but that has actually turned out to be the biggest blessing. I am so thankful and amazed at how many people have been so willing to help me. You guys are incredible. I have been so blessed through this experience. So that's how this trip has come about. My dad played a big part in encouraging me to go. He's helped me through time times when I've wondered,"What did I just get myself into?" Even now, I still don't know exactly what I'm in for. I'm not going so much because I think I have a lot to offer them. I really want to join with what they are doing where I can, learn from them, and experience their culture with them. So, here goes!