Lost Boys of Sudan

Kathleen and I had the distinct privilege of having dinner last night with one of the lost boys of Sudan. He goes by the name of Peter – one he chose for himself from the bible. Peter is a Christian who lived in a Muslim country that has been at war with itself since 1955. It is an African country that the ruling clan wants to make Arab. The ruling clan lives in the north and all the wealth (oil, gas, minerals, salt) are in the poor southern part.

They have been killing one another since before the war started. Peter has lost just about all of his family. His dad was killed; he was separated from his mother when he was 7 and set loose to wander the desert sands of the Sudan for the next hand full of years. He was able to contact his brother last year, but not since. Peter's one desire is to go back to his homeland and find his mother.

Peter is now an American citizen. Yet, while he lives here and sees the life we live – a dramatic comparison at best – he wants to go home, into the war zone, to search for his family. There are no guarantees that he will find anything other than trouble.

Peter is a strong Christian young man. He has an amazing story and testimony of how God has directed and protected his life. I am sure this is not the last I will see or feel of Peter. Blessings on you my new friend.

I'm not sure what I am supposed to learn from the last few weeks. In and out of the hospital daily, doctor appointments, labs, blood draws, more doctors to see. What does it all mean? Yes, I have some little buggers running around where they shouldn't and they need to be destroyed. But is there a chance it is bigger than that? Was there someone in this adventure who needed me to pray for them or offer an encouraging word? Could that be part of the purpose?

I met many people over the last week – some old friends from my previous bout with this bug and I met many new friends. None of them were grouchy or seemed sad. They seemed like they really did enjoy what they did. That was good. It helped me through a tough time. But I still have to ask if there was a deeper lesson for me to learn?

The only issue that jumps up for me is that unlike my previous episode 10 weeks ago, this time it seemed to be about me. I mean, for me, it was about me and not about others. I did not remember to pray for those whom I had conversations and discussions. I didn't pray for the assistant (Julie) or the blood draw lady (Vicki). I did not pray for the nurse (Marla) nor for the doctors (can't remember their names). It just seemed to be about me. Why was I so focuses on me and not them?

That's not to say that there were not brief moments where I prayed for them – it just was not what I was focused on – and probably should have been.

Lord, forgive my selfishness.

Have you ever felt like you were being tested? Un common dreams, life events that don't seem to match up with what you were hoping they would be? There is the difficulty understanding the whys, what ifs, and most disconcerting of all, the uncertainty of what the future holds?

I am going through my second treatment for the MRSA bacteria infection in 10 weeks. It is not the treatments, they are not pleasant or fun in any way, and it is not having the actual bug that seems to get me. It is getting it back to back so quickly that is messing with my head and heart.

I have met some pretty remarkable people at the medical facility where I go for treatment. Marla, what a gentle nurse who shows all she meets compassion. Julie, the trainee – she who keeps the linens stocked in all the rooms – always has a smile. There are all four doctors who have stopped by to look in on me. Each concerned that I get well quickly. And there is Miss Vicki. She reminds me of Tiny Tim's girlfriend.

Miss Vicki has had the pleasure of inserting a tube in my arm 51 cm and making sure that it went the right way – down into my heart and not up into my brain – all without missing a beat while I am sitting there cracking jokes and, well, just being a little difficult and annoying to someone who is matter of fact, has all the pieces lined up and each piece in its proper place, almost mechanical.

I think she almost relished the opportunity to do it the second time after the little stunt I did at her expense 10 weeks earlier. She did have a somewhat sinister smile when we met in the hallway this time. However she was very nice to me again. Something I did not deserve.

With all that said, I am having difficulty with the ancillary ramifications of being laid up again. Not the actual being sick or treatment but the inability to do my job and the disruption to my daily routine. That's what is really bothering me.

I have great co-workers. They rely on me and I on them. Then when you step out of the daily routine for a week of unexpected circumstance no one has a good idea of how to deal with the phone calls and planning that needs to continue with your work. It stresses them out because they are trying to pick up small pieces and patch thing together and understand what you were trying to do. We all can look at a project and my bet is that we would all take a different path toward the end. Not that any of the paths are wrong, they are just different.

My experience is that this breeds suspicion. I think that is what I fear most.

I have a wonderful boss. He is young, has a very quick mind and can run circles around my in the sheer quantity of work he gets done. I am not sure I have met anyone quite so focused. He is a good man to work for and I am continually learning from him. So, why am I so bothered by this second bout with MRSA?

Perhaps it is my desire to not want to disappoint him. I am not sure. I have some further thinking to do before I make up my mind. All I know is that something about this is really working on me.

I updated my computer at work today. I have been using MS Office 2010 BETA for the last six to eight months. Loved the program so I purchased a final release copy yesterday. While doing my homework on installing it I read many of the horror stories others have had. Ooo, I was a little hesitant.

I did an uninstall via Windows, then used MS Windows Installer Clean Up Installation Wizard for Office 2010 and finally followed up with running CCleaner. The install went without a hitch. Up and running. It saw everything including all the network sign-in information. Oh, what relief.

I'm a happy camper.