Today I Was A Triage Nurse!!!

Today started bright and early at 7:00am. We traveled on a bus driven by "Rudy" to a small village in Corozal called Louisville. We set up our Village clinic in a school house. It was a very run down building even though it was less than 5 years old. I got to work as a triage nurse. Julie Hall from River Hills, taught me how to take blood pressures and glucose readings. One lady I was working with denied having Diabetes, but when I checked her glucose, it was over 600. She was sent immediately to the hospital for treatment. How amazing to be a part of someone's in that way. People walked or rode their bikes from all over to see us. I got to hold lots of beautiful Belizean babies and met so many sweet children from the village. Some local ladies made us a homemade lunch of Tamales. It was great to experience more of their culture. We saw 172 patients today. Can you imagine? I can't begin to tell you how amazing this all is. On our way home we traveled to St.Victor which is where our construction team is building two houses. These people are so gracious for what they are getting, which is a rectangle box. There is of course, no indoor plumbing. Their kitchen is a separate area in the back and they cook over an open fire. The love chatting with us. The children love to have their picture taken and when you show them the digital picture they are amazed to see themselves. Everywhere you go, animals wander around. Dogs, Cows, Donkeys. We even had a cow chase our van today. We nearly ran over some goats. Just so different from Ohio.

This is Sugar Cane Harvest season here. Sugar Cane is the biggest source of income here. There are fields everywhere. They burn them from the outside to chase the snakes out before they cut the sugar cane down. There is smoke everywhere. They pile the trucks so high with the cut sugar cane and it is quite scary to see them coming toward you on a very narrow road that is not paved.

I have made so many friends. I can't even begin to tell you. I hope to carry them with me once I get back to Cincy.

I love you all. Thanks for being so supportive.

Talk to you tomorrow!
Chelis