Time to put on my running shoes!

I wrapped up my last night shift on Thursday night, complete with a farewell potluck thrown by the other nurses for me. I was so delighted and full of the warm fuzzies, and not because of our recent heat wave. (Believe me, I'd rather NOT have those kind of warm fuzzies!) It's with mixed emotions that I leave the life of a night owl and prepare to wake up at o'dark-thirty.

God has certainly blessed me with some very rich friendships on the night shift; I'm going to miss those 2am coffee breaks, the breakfast for dinner Christmas party, dancing with Tam in the hallway while our patients slept, getting yummy dinner from fellow Pinoy coworkers, gleefully handing out the sleeping pills to patients, etc... There are quite a few Filipinos on the night shift and I'll really miss that.

But, switching to the day shift (on the same unit) is something I've wanted for a good 6 months. It's very hard to raise support and speak at churches and other meetings when I'm constantly recovering from working a night shift. I've felt like I'm always apologizing for an ill-timed yawn or the bags under my eyes. However, there's a good reason why the day shift crew is pretty young. There's so much more activity and running around on days. Doctors, physical therapists, occupational therapists, case managers, dietitians, and the unit manager all jockey for the patient's attention, leaving little time for the nurse to do her job. I've already been told to bring my running shoes! (My favorite being New Balance 442! ------->)

I'd love your prayers for me as I adjust to a new body clock, new coworkers, more activity, and a busier life in general. I also start my two classes tomorrow which throws a whole new dimension to support-raising.

Choosing joy!

Your words were found, and I ate them, and your words became to me a joy and the delight of my heart, for I am called by your name, O Lord, God of hosts. - Jer. 15:16, ESV

Sweet Gift!

Remember this post? I mentioned some ways that people could give of their time, treasure, and talent without having to put a check in the mail. I had mentioned that I would love to bring a digital camera back to the birthing clinic so that we could take good photos of the new families.

Well, someone read that blog and God moved! I have been given a beautiful, brand-new point-and-shoot camera for ministry use. What makes it even sweeter is that the givers are a group of youth from a supporting church who have visited the Philippines on a short term trip. It was instigated by a young man who saw the clinic and wished to give something that the moms would treasure.

Right now the clinic has a 35mm camera and photos are taken of each new family before they go home after the birth of the baby. (For most of the kiddos, it’s the only baby picture they’ll ever have!) Because it’s an older model, there’s no way to preview the pictures and make sure that the photo is clear and the lighting is adequate. With a digital camera, we can only develop the great photos by previewing them first! I’m so excited about putting this camera to use! I also hope to post pictures frequently to this blog so that you all can visually follow along with the ministry. I just have to get there first. J

Since this “wish list” was so successful, I’m going to put together a permanent list of items that can be donated to the clinic. Because there are so many Filipinos here in the USA, it’s easy to ship boxes to the Philippines. It’s usually only $60-65 to send an 18x18x25” box with no weight restrictions that arrives in 6-8 weeks. ACTION has done this for years and found it to be the cheapest, most reliable way to get things into the country. I plan to send several boxes over of my personal stuff (read “junk”) when I move instead of paying exorbitant checked luggage fees.

Enjoy your weekend, my faithful friends. I plan to add some “rest” to my to-do list and hope you can get a little R&R as well!