Today's tutorials for doctors at the hospital were very interesting. First, there was the Norwegian orthopedic surgeon who works in the busiest pediatric hospital in Stockholm and reported that this small hospital in Tansen, Nepal sees four times as many arm fractures as the one in Stockholm. Are there any orthopedic surgeons out there looking for a very fulfilling experience?
Then, there was a very interesting presentation on snake bites. This is the season when the snakes come out of hibernation and are hungry and in a foul mood. We've already seen the first snake in our yard. It was as long as Nate is tall and as thick as Jake's arm. Thankfully, it was as afraid of us as we were of it, and it quickly slithered away. There are thousands of deaths in Nepal every year from snake bites, but as I learned today, it is death related to local "treatment" as often as it is from envenomation.
The final lecture was about changing demographics in Nepal. When we started working in Nepal, average life expectancy was in the 50s. It has now moved up to 62 years. And currently, 6% of the population is over 60. At home, my mom died at 65 years old and many said that was so early. So, this changing demographic data sounds encouraging, doesn't it? Well possibly, but following are the sad facts. Just making it into your 60s doesn't mean that life is good. Social support from the government is almost non-existent. There are no doctors who specialize in geriatric medicine. There are no special facilities for aging people. And here is the worst...many elderly people are suffering alone in villages. Under the current conditions in the country, many working-age people leave Nepal looking for work. The youth flock to cities in search of more "western and modern" life. And the elderly stay in their villages, often with nobody to look after them, sometimes slowly starving to death. My heart breaks, yet again.
Anybody feeling motivated to be thankful for family, for government, for the Biblical concept of looking after those in need? You know, giving up living here in Nepal for eight years to go home and care for my mom until we handed her off to the Lord Jesus may have been a witness to the caretaking that Christ calls us to, more than I ever realized before. I am so thankful for the guiding principles of the Bible and for the day by day guidance of the Holy Spirit. His ways are wonderful and so different from the natural ways of man. Please empower us, Lord Jesus, to show your good ways...wherever we are.
Thankful for ALL of you whom I call "family,"
Kimberly
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