SHE'S ALIVE

The doctor told Eileen that if she was not better by this last week, following her latest round of antibiotics, that she should come back to see him.  Reluctantly, with some coaxing from me, she did so on Tuesday. The internist referred her to a pulmonologist, also in the same clinic.  Eileen was prescribed another antibiotic and continuation of some other medications she has been taking.  This would have been her third oral antibiotic, in addition to some IV antibiotics given while in the hospital. Feeling a bit frustrated that she was not getting better after more than a month, Eileen called the AMA (the Philippines Area Medical Advisor, a doctor from the U.S.) that she as the mission nurse consults with on difficult cases.  He questioned if she was being over-medicated.  Eileen decided to forgo the new antibiotic and stop the other things she was taking and within a day was coughing much less and feeling better!  I have wondered if she was having a bad reaction to one or a combination of the medications she was on.  On both Thursday and Friday Eileen returned to the office for portions of the days.  Both of us realized just how long it had been that she had been house bound when Eileen commented on how bad the traffic had become on our way to the office.  The traffic has not changed.

I (Russell) have been going to a gym across the street most mornings when it opens at 7:00 AM.  Yesterday as I was looking out at the street from the treadmill, the traffic was almost at a standstill for quite a while.  First a fire truck and then an ambulance came.  I could tell that it was close but could not actually see what had happened.  It turns out that just after I had crossed the street (a major road here - three lanes each direction), a jeepney lost it’s breaks and hit a number of pedestrians in front of WalterMart; killing two and injuring several other, one of which was a new security guard at our apartment complex.  The government is trying to get the jeepneys off the roads within a couple years.  Given what I have seen of them it is a wise course of action.

This week the Philippines Area Presidency sent out a letter to the 23 missions here regarding the coronavirus.  This letter was then shared with parents of the young missionaries.  In it, they instructed the missionaries to no longer shake hands, fist or elbow bump, or hug others.  This is something Eileen has been advocating for a while.  Yesterday it was reported in the news that three more cases (total of six) were diagnosed in the Philippines.  Two of those are a couple in their early 60’s who live in Cainta, a city within our mission just a few miles west of our apartment.  We are fortunate to not have the number of cases that those in Japan or Korea are facing.  Asking that the spread of the virus be contained and that those affected may be comforted and protected has become a regular part of my daily prayers.

Eileen took this photo in a bathroom of a nice restaurant. Quite often when she uses the restroom, or comfort room as they call it here, there are foot prints on the toilet seat. I guess there are a lot of women who sit like frogs out there.