The Baby Miracle.

I am SO HAPPY!!

Last night I found this poor little hummingbird inside.

Lying flat on the floor. 

He was dead for sure... I thought.

But... 

... just in case he revived... 

I placed him in the flower box with some sugar water and prayed for a miracle.

This morning he was still lying there on his side not moving at all.

I was very sad and went inside to prepare his little funeral.

BUT THEN... 

I went outside a second time.

And there he was sitting up and breathing!!!!! 

WOW!!!

Seven drops of sugar water and a couple blinks of his teeny tiny eyes.

And off he flew into the tree pictured below.

A MIRACLE, PRAISE JESUS!!!

Are not two sparrows sold for a penny?

But not a single sparrow can fall to the ground without our Father God knowing it.

Matthew 10.29 

Remembering...

As I prepare to journey back to Africa, I cannot help looking back for a moment and remembering.

It seems like only yesterday when I was leaving Sierra Leone. On that day I wrote in my journal the following words...

March 18th, 11

My time with Mercy Ships has been one wave of change after another, literally. The time has flown by. Yet it feels like a lifetime ago when I was stepping gingerly off the plane back there in Durban, South Africa, wondering what on earth I was doing. And yet, here I am three months later and it's almost over. Too many goodbyes today! Oh, what a sad day. So very hard saying goodbye to those who have come to mean so much. The crew are like family, and how exactly does one say goodbye to family? During the boat ride to the airport I watched as the Africa Mercy faded into a lone, tiny twinkle of light on the horizon. A tear slipped down my face as one of the leaving crew members began to softly sing, "This Little Light of Mine".

God has led, He is leading and will continue to do so. 

No ocean is too large to foil His purposes for our lives. 

I can trust His heart to do the perfect thing in mine.

But will I ever travel again? 

If so, where will I go? 

And with whom? 

Today is May 5, 2012. 

In less than two weeks I'll be boarding another plane for Africa. God has opened up another radically life-changing door for me and I'm eager to step through. Of course, there are many unknowns on the other side, but I am so happy, full of hope, so wanting to follow Jesus wherever He leads me. 

In reflecting back on my time with Mercy Ships, and all the things that have taken place since my return from Sierra Leone - all the situations I know so well and those I still don't understand, one thing is certain - I am humbled and so incredibly awed by just how faithful my God has been.

Thank You Jesus!!  

Flying Things.



The morning sunshine.



It's been far too long since I've updated this blog; faulty connections are my excuse, but for the most part reality remains quite the same around here. Yesterday we crossed over the equator in the four mile deep ocean with sea water as warm as bathwater (29C). Upon crossing the line we all felt the bump and the captain told us that it's all downhill from here. Haha, not really. In fact an incredible atmosphere of anticipation is surfacing as the days pass swiftly by, excitement among the crew is visibly rising. I think we're all ready to appreciate the land again and prayerfully start the mission this ship is all about. Nevertheless, no matter how hard I peer onto the horizon it remains the same, certainly no land anywhere in sight. Occasionally we pass ships, I saw one a few days ago in fact... just a pinpoint on the horizon, so small I lost sight of it a couple times!!! It was so, so far away!! A friendly sight all the same. 

Talking of friendly sights, flying fish. I met one the other week. I was out on the bow watching the waves when a very intriguing spectacle caught my attention. So intriguing in fact that I could barely believe my own eyes!!!!!!... There flying about ten inches above the waves was this tiny bird, looking very much like a hummingbird darting here and there. I immediately found myself in astounded disbelief, wondering how on earth this tiny little bird could be so far out in the ocean and apparently doing quite well. Quite well I thought, until to my horror and shock he flew lower and lower and all at once crashed ungracefully into a very steep and dangerous wave, at once vanishing into a white cloud of salty spray. I was almost ready to jump in for the grand rescue (jk) when thankfully a whole flock of  these curious 'birds' appeared. A few cautious questions later that day and I found to my delight that there really are such things as flying fish!! Now, I absolutely love looking out for them... sometimes one or two at a time and sometimes a fleet of fifty or more. Just incredible. Big ones, tiny ones. They always crash so ungracefully, sometimes the splash can be heard. Unfortunately, capturing on camera one of these fish has been most impossible, but here's a photo I found online that displays exactly what they look like. :)

I have just come in from being outside for the past couple hours. Pondering the beauty of the sun as it settled down and slipped silently from view. Such beauty I cannot begin to describe, and will never tire of. It was also a time spent praising God with music. I tried to join in with the others (I say 'tried' because the wind and I were at disagreeable odds as to who was going to play my flute).  Nevertheless, it was a lovely and blessed evening. As we were filling the air with notes, our attention was drawn to the waves. There in the distance was a large pod of bottlenose dolphins. Swimming south they must have seen us, or perhaps heard our music :) Whatever the case, all at once they changed direction and started flying (not really flying, only fish do that remember) in our direction. Jumping, flipping, gliding, spinning in the air, and racing with the waves. They came so close -- close enough for us to look straight down and see them smile, hear them laugh. Leaning over the railing we watched in fascination as they contented themselves with dancing and playing at the bow of the ship.

"And God said, 'Let the water teem with living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the vault of the sky.' So God created the great creatures of the sea and every living thing with which the water teems, and that moves about in it, acording to their kinds - And God saw that it was good!" Genesis 1:20-21

Cape Town.

Though fleetingly brief, our 24 hour stop in Cape Town was an incredible gift! We sailed around the Cape of Good Hope in quiet seas and by daybreak Sunday we could faintly see tiny mountains etched against the blue horizon. The closer we came to land everyone's excitement onboard increased dramatically. The views of Table Mountain and Lion's Head were breathtakingly awesome. Two tugboats came out to meet us and the pilot also came out to board, but by boat this time instead of helicopter. It took some time pulling into port, we backed in. I climbed with many others up to the back of deck 8 and from my vantage point waved furiously at all the people watching us from the dock -- I have no idea who anyone was but it was exciting all the same. We docked right by the downtown waterfront, a very touristy area. Once tied to the dock and told we were aloud off the ship we flooded down the gangway and onto surprisingly "swaying" solid ground. It's a strange thing to feel the ocean beneath when you're obviously on land.

A group of us had our agenda all planned out hours before reaching Cape Town... a hike up Table Mountain. The moment we were allowed off ship, we caught a taxi and rode to the trailhead. Hiking up the mountain of switch-backs took us almost two hours, but it was well worth every painfully treacherous last step!!!

Monday I had to be back in the galley by two, we were to leave that evening and of course the eating never stops. Knowing my time onshore was coming to a rapid end I made certain to enjoy a lovely morning wandering around the waterfront, listening to the many talented street musicians and finding myself thoroughly enthralled with all the African art and crafts. When asking what a good thing to do for a day in Cape Town we were told to take a tour out on the sea in a boat... but nah, not this time. 

An hour back into the ocean and we were traveling so fast, only it was side to side fast. Some were on their beds trying to avoid the inevitable, others were picking up the pieces that kept crashing to the floor and the then amid lots of laughter, some of the kids were rolling like logs in the middle of the ship, decks 5 and 6 (the place we call Midships). It was a long and eventful evening.  

"Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows." James 1:17

A Galley Like No Other.

Just said goodbye to my first day in the galley while floating out here somewhere at sea. It was an interesting day to say the least. I think I mentioned already that our galley has no windows and a very low ceiling -- this, combined with the room constantly swaying back and forth, then side to side causes for many interesting situations.

It takes awhile to adjust to a swaying kitchen, and my first moments were cautiously unsure ones. Especially as the tangy smells of cheese combined with those of bread dough, lettuce and dish soap. I found myself facing a rather daunting task of battling my stomach. I had to steel my mind against giving in to the nauseous feelings welling up inside. It didn't take long for my mind to have plenty else to think about though, as we soon were busy preparing the meal. Nevertheless, while I might have warded off sea-sickness this time our the day wasn't without its share of mishap. We had a tray of hot rice come sliding out of the oven and spill all over the floor. And then of course there were the ocassional avalanches of dirty dishes (or clean ones) which would come crashing off a bench, and bang their way across the tiles.

My personal trauma came when trying to place a large tray of freshly cracked eggs into the fridge -- as I pushed the tray into the fridge a big wave pushed us up and those slimy raw eggs started pouring all down the back of the fridge. Horrified, I pulled the tray out quickly only to find that now the room was tipping the other way and a slop of sticky eggs came flying over the other edge of the pan, down the front of the fridge and all the way to the floor.

Let me tell you, all there is to do in a such an intriguing situation like this one I'm finding myself in... is to laugh and keep cleaning up the messes. Carmen assured me not to worry about a thing as today was a fairly calm day after all. Oh yes, we're going to have some fun fun fun in the galley, I can tell that already!!

Of Leaving Port And Finding Sea-legs.

A tug boat getting ready to tug.

One view from deck 8.

Yesterday the M/V Africa Mercy and her crew said goodbye to the port of Durban, SA. Cherishing our last fleeting steps on terra firma, we waved farewell to many friends onshore, and set off into the great big ocean. Our final destination will be Sierra Leone, West Africa. This is where the ship will spend the next ten months of field service providing free surgeries, health screenings and other practical, life-changing ministries that will bring hope and healing to some of the world's poorest people.   


Our long voyage has just begun... 


It was an exciting day. Our galley team was up and about cooking breakfast at five am. one last hot breakfast for the crew. A bit later in the morning, I was thinking of all the day's adventure when I heard a page for the gangway crew to lift the gangway. It dawned on me that our room's rubbish still needed emptying. Grabbing the bags I took off and raced down to the dumpster. All I could hear behind me were anxious shouts of "Run, run, hurry, run, HURRY Bobbi!!" So I ran and I hurried, and made it back just in time. Phew. (Haha, I think my previous garbage-taking-out experiences gave me the needed speed and courage this time). Our transition out of Durban harbor and into the open sea went really well, with the help of two tiny yet strong tug boats. 

The bridge.

Though awakened at times by mysterious crashing items, reminding me of all the things that should have been tied down, I made it through the first night at sea fairly well, just like a baby. Literally; tipping back and forth in my little cradle of a top bunk. So far, seasickness seems to be graciously absent, and for this I am truly truly grateful. 


They meant what they said about this ship not being a smooth ride!! It isn't! But while our sailing might not be smooth, the lack thereof sure provides for some interesting situations!! Almost weightless we float down the narrow hallways and up/down stairs, stumbling from side to side like a boatload of tipsy sailors. I was told to expect walking into walls. Well, I don't merely walk into the walls, I run into them with unplanned, unreserved vigor. 

A snapshot of a quieter time in harbor.

These are the two tug boats that pulled us out to sea.

I was absently drinking a cup of water in my cabin this morning when the ship keeled to one side and I received a face-load of cold water and a messy wet floor to clean up (Certainly provides one way to wake up in the morning). 


This is the calm sea too... hmm, I do wonder what the next few weeks have in store. But so far, I'm just enjoying the ride while continually being in awe over the impressiveness of the ocean, the rippling rainbows in the ocean spray and all the happy dolphins which love to swim at the bow of our ship!! 


"Who is like You, Lord God Almighty? You, Lord, are mighty, and Your faithfulness surrounds You. You rule over the surging sea; when its waves mount up, You still them." ~ Ps 89.8-9 

Ushaka Beach, Durban

With the days of shore access fast diminishing (nonexistent), a few of us took the opportunity to enjoy the beach one last time a couple afternoons ago, and of course we had a brilliant time.

The vehicles are all loaded up so we phoned for a taxi to drive us to Ushaka beach which sits right below downtown Durban, South Africa.  

Found this fishhook lying in the sand and fortunately not with my bare feet.

A group of lifeguards in training.

Beautiful sunny day, a great day for the beach!!

I can barely remember the last time I swam in the waves!! 

A cruise ship leaving port... this ship is WAY bigger than the Mercy Ship!!  This one, though huge compared to ours, was many times smaller than the Queen Mary 2 (the largest cruise ship in the world!!), which by random events is in port here as of a few days ago!! ...and just so you know, the view above is right where we'll head out of too!! :]

This morning another load of food stores arrived on the dock, and so I joined a long human chain spanning all the way down to deck two. I can't believe we'll go through so many pounds of cheese!! Incredible thought!!