Report on Skye through Mom Chambless

Many people have contacted me to say they are following Skye through her blog. I recently met Hannah and her friends who attend high school in North Carolina. They found out what Skye is doing and wanted to help support her volunteer work and have organized a fundraiser for Skye. Another young woman who heard about Skye has read all her blogs and is totally interested. I know that most of you reading this blog know Skye and love her. Thanks, from Mom, for keeping her in your prayers and thoughts.

Since Skye will have trouble updating her blog, I told her I would make reports when I hear from her. Her last contact was good and bad news. She was well and feeling good. But, she had spent a week recuperating from a bad stomach bug and dehydration. She guesses she is coming in contact with bacteria that is foreign to her system and so she will expect some of this. The sisters took her immediately into their care to get her well. She says she had 6 new mothers "all tough as nails" and "who treat her like a precious daughter". They fixed her every meal, did all her laundry, saw to her every need, and made her feel very loved.

Skye has worked in the men's, women's, and children's ward at Wamba Hospital and they are all short handed. She is mostly training and observing at this point. She talked a bit about some of the types of injuries and needs being met. Some were: snake bites, an elephant attack (that is different from home), HIV, TB, malaria, and bacterial infections. On a daily basis she helps the patients by bathing them, changing their bedding, dressing their wounds, and giving medications. She has truly enjoyed her work and is eager to get back after her illness.

Skye enjoys spending time with her neightbors who all work at the nursing school. They play volleyball everyday at 5:30. They share meals together. The young children spend a lot of time at Skye's house where she keeps crayons and coloring books for them. They are her best teachers of Swahili.

What we take for granted. After speaking with Skye about her difficult water situation, I am reminded how easy it is to take something so essential to our existence for granted. Water. We can't live without it, yet, we, Americans, have it so easily. All we have to do is twist on the faucet and out comes clean, clear, delicious water for drinking and bathing. Skye says most Samburu women and men must search for low lying places and dig for water. The hospital is lucky to have a well. It operates 3 hours per day at which time, everyone in the community must collect the water in containers to be used as needed. The water is so full of hard minerals that everything gets covered in crust and that she must filter the larva and silt out. Then she must boil is twice in order to consume it. She says bathing leaves her feeling like she just got out of the salty ocean. She has not complained one bit and is very thankful for the water she does have. I am just saying, because of her experience, I am more thankful for the amazing water we have each day.