I am still alive and still in Malawi, despite the silence. I struggle at times over which thoughts to post and which to hold back, this struggle combined with the undulating swells of fatigue and procrastination leads to no blogging for weeks and weeks. Sorry. I’m back now and want to begin with the story of a c-section from early October.
A 24-year-old woman with her first pregnancy was sent to theatre because her baby wanted to emerge bottom first. (All primips with breech babies are sectioned at Bottom; multips with breeches are allowed to deliver vaginally.) After the anesthetist placed the spinal the woman began an involved monologue clearly captivating the scrub nurse, anesthetist and clinical officer. They added laughter and an occasional short question but only that. A smattering of words filtered though the dullness of my Chichewa speaking mind but still hardly enough to compile a satisfactory picture. When I asked what she was saying, the scrub nurse responded that when the anesthetist placed the spinal he told her the medicine would work as they chatted so clearly she interpreted that to mean that chatting was an essential component for pain relief. “She’s just telling stories from her life; she’s a farmer, she’s talking about her farm.” I wanted more substance but clearly no one wanted to waste time translating for me and miss part of her story.
Following another stretch of narrative, the small audience released a trickle of laughter and the clinical officer casually remarked, “She’s one in a hundred.” The scrub nurse then turned to me to translate the amusing comment made by the patient, which was simply that her husband loved her very much. Personally surprised more by their reaction, than by her statement I asked for clarification. The clinical officer said bluntly, “It is very rare that a woman can say outright that her husband loves her.” At once I felt charmed by this sweet beloved woman who chatted her way to a good outcome and deeply sad for the 99 women who live everyday with and for an unloving partner.
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I am setting up this blog to chronicle my adventures of babycatching in Africa. This site is for all of you who have loved, encouraged, and supported me over the past 29 years. This is my evolving story of stepping out into the unknown and meeting life as it first makes its way into the world.
1 comment:
Wow!
How blessed I am to be where I am with my husband. One in 100 huh? I know I am loved, no doubt. It's nearly expected here. At least one in 50 in America.
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