A Moment That’s Haunted Me

It was one of those moments that has continued to haunt me for a long, long time.

It’s Friday November 21, 2014 and we’re about half way through a pretty grueling 8-plus hour non-stop day of treating patients – mostly children and the elderly – in the village of St. Michel.  JT comes over to where we’re working, and tells us that there’s a 20 year old girl from a nearby church that’s been sick with a fever for several days.  She’s too sick to make it to where we’ve set up the clinic, but JT wants to take some medication to her.  Mike Billings makes a recommendation for an antibiotic and a fever reducer, and I package up the meds for JT in a manila envelope.

About an hour later I happen to catch out of the corner of my eye that JT has returned, and I see him moving slowly through the crowded room, making his way back up to where we’re working.  I’m anxious to find out what happened – and then my stomach turns a bit and I get this sick, sinking feeling…he’s still got the manila envelope in his hand.  I think I heard the words before they even came out of his mouth.  “She died before I could get there,” he says quietly, frowning and shaking his head.

And of course my mind’s immediately racing through all the “what ifs.”  What if we had been able to get to her a day sooner?  Or even an hour sooner?

Of course, you can do that ‘til it drives you nuts, and you still can’t go back and change a single moment of it.  But that day was one of those gut wrenching reminders of the reality of everyday life for the people in these remote areas, and how quickly a fever can turn deadly when there is no access to adequate medical care.

On a side note:  JT said a lot of people in that area have been dying, and he thinks it’s the water – he thinks their only source of water has become contaminated, and is no longer safe to drink.  Again, I’m struck by the contrast between my everyday reality and their everyday reality.  It’s absolutely mind-bending.  When was the last time I had to worry about whether the only water that I have access to might kill me?  And whether the only water that I have for my children might kill them?

Well, you know the answer to that.  It’s the same as your answer:  Never.

As I sit here writing this, I’m reminded of Jesus words in Mt. 25:41-43:  “And then the King will say to those on his left, ‘I was thirsty, and you gave me nothing to drink…’ ”