Day 4 – Second Surgery Day
It’s not often I can eat breakfast on a patio overlooking and listening to blasts from an active volcano. Today was another such day. What an incredible way to wake up. Something I will miss when I go back to my daily life in Houston.
Dr. Boutros once again reminded us of the simple message he relays to his kids each day – Be kind. Be courageous. Love each other. Love Jesus. Today’s devotional focused on being courageous. Dr. Boutros pointed out that being courageous is not to be confused with being foolish. We need to apply some common sense and use the brain God gave us when assessing our next steps. However, we are never alone and we should find courage in knowing that God is our shield and our armor and always at our side. Lewin, Dalfina and Marlene led us in song with Amazing Grace followed by Open up the Heavens. My late father, Bob, who helped put this group of singers and musicians together was surely singing and strumming along with them. From there we did the cobblestone-laden walk through the quaint city center to the hospital for a busy day of surgery.
After passing the long line of Guatemalans outside of the hospital that came from near and far, I started the day with a walk through recovery where yesterday’s patients seemed to be doing very well. I felt a sense of gratitude, relief and optimism in the air and I saw it on their faces as doctors and their teams checked on patients and answered questions with the help of interpreters.
Then I went to the operating rooms where I quickly learned from this talented team that it is important to have a plan but that even the best plans need backups and backups to backups. Evaluating someone on the outside based on physical appearance and even internal looks with sophisticated imaging do not always paint a clear picture as to what lies beneath the surface of the skin. And that is where experience and talent and having back up plans come in to play. It felt like none of the teams today had it easy and they drew on those resources to get the job done.
Team Boutros was in five operating rooms and carried out gall bladder removals, spinal fusions, a jaw realignment, mass removals both on and beneath the surface, and so many more procedures. I can’t even imagine how exhausted each team member gets by the end of the day. It exhausted me just watching them. So much talent. So much stamina. So much coordination. It was truly impressive to observe.
I also found it quite remarkable to see firsthand how healthy parts of the body can be repurposed to help out another part in need of repair, whether that is a relatively straightforward skin graft or removal of a rib to help create a bone graft for a spinal fusion.
This is my final blog for the week. I will be leaving things in my colleague Marcus’s capable hands. I will close by saying that I feel incredibly blessed to have been a tiny part of this amazing team that is carrying out the Faith in Practice mission with such humility, self-sacrifice and commitment. It has been truly eye opening and life-changing experience for me to have had this opportunity to walk in my late father’s shoes and see firsthand why he had such a passion to support of this mission and the people of Guatemala.
Blessings to all and praying for wisdom, strength and courage for each member of Team Boutros as they exercise kindness in seeking to love their Guatemalan neighbors for the rest of this mission trip.
Matt Malinsky
photographer/blogger
