Some Changes

Ahhh... finally sitting down to write. Believe it or not, writing--on our blog, an email update, a task list for tomorrow, or pretty much anything--is one of my favorite ways of relaxing. I process when I write things out and I think that’s why I like writing; it serves as a bit of a debrief for the day. {I also debrief/process when I’m cleaning. But it takes about five minutes flat to clean up our cabin and I haven’t figured out how to process the day that fast.} 

So I have really been missing writing on the blog. {The blog? Our blog? I think it’s safe to call it my blog--maybe a bit of selfish ownership will convince Jordan that he can’t claim it until he adds to the mix! I’m a little doubtful though.} Enough with the rabbit trails.

I have really been missing writing on here but there has been a good reason for the silence. I was asked to take a new job and I said yes! I’m still in hospitality, but my boss had to go home very unexpectedly due to some health issues her mother was having. She was already planning to return home in June and so made the decision to bump up her departure date. I was asked to take her place and I accepted! I’m very thankful that  she was able to give me some training before she left and the changeover started during the Christmas holidays when we weren’t bus so I had some time to catch my breath. 

My official title is now Head Hostess/Hospitality Manager and I am absolutely loving it! There is so much about this job that lines up with my interests and skills and I am so grateful for the chance to be put in a position that I honestly look forward to every day. I feel a bit vain saying that--but I firmly believe that God has put talents in each of us and we find joy and refreshment most readily when we do what He made us to like doing! 

Most of my job is making sure that the things I wrote about in my job post (here) get done. That involves a lot of scheduling {Thing I Love To Do #1}. I get an email about each new crew member that arrives. We figure out what day their bunk space will be empty by checking our arrivals list against the departures list--on average, four people arrive each day to replace the four people that left the day before and sometimes the hour before! We notify that cabin that there is a new crew mate coming in and what day we’ll be in to make the bed up. We also give disembarkation paperwork to departing crew members. A lot of that is just scheduling when to do to what--which I really enjoy. I am TERRIBLE with remembering names; something Jordan just does not understand. But dates just interest me and I remember them--something Jordan is not good at at all! So we work well together. But the fact that scheduling is a big part of my job makes me happy. :) I also make a monthly schedule for the five hostesses that work with me. Each day there is an Duty Hostess, as well as each weekend. The Duty Hostess is responsible for processing arrivals (a lot of time is involved in those two words) and giving tours, among lots of other random things. 

There’s also a new side of the job--computer work! {Thing I Love To Do #2.} There’s lots of little things that have to be done on the computer, but the big thing is the guest calendar. I’m in charge of the guest calendar, as well as processing guests into our system. I reserve cabins and get information from arriving guests to get to the purser so that they can help with immigration. Guests can be personal guests of crew members, business guests, visiting staff, VIPs, media teams, etc. That boils down to lots and lots of emails between lots and lots of different people who have lots and lots of patience with me as I learn how this all works. :)

There’s other little things too but those are the big things that I’ve been getting the hang of for the past month. I knew when I started that I would love it -- but also that I would love it even more when the first month was done. That was definitely the case. There was {and is still} a lot to learn but I feel like I’m finally getting the hang of it and my desk isn’t such a crazy mess at the end of each day. 

I can’t say enough good about the other hostesses that are with me. The pictures in this post are already “old”--one of the girls is gone and there are two more now! But ALL of the ladies I’ve worked with have been just fabulous. They are so patient with me as I learn how to do this and are willing to do whatever--help me learn or work out scheduling or give ideas or whatever! They have also been incredibly encouraging when I’ve been doubting myself. I’ve been blessed to work with them! In fact, I’ve gotten tons of encouragement from all over the ship. It’s been a great community to take a {potentially} scary step in. :) 

Lovely ladies. :) 

By this point the wind was blowing
our hair every which way! 

Arguably my favorite accidental photo.
 

At your service. :) 

So there you have it! Thank you for your prayers--we do feel them every day. And please do pray as I continue to settle into this position. I want His Joy to radiate. 

Katie 

Thierno

Happy Monday!! 

This has definitely been the longest lapse of time between posts. Life has been extra crazy the last 3 weeks--there is a good reason for that though. I'm hoping I'll be able to write a post in the next week or so and update you a bit on why. 

But for today, I wanted to share this story that the Marketing & Communications staff brought to us. This story is about a man named Thierno (pronounced: "chair-no") from Guinea. So he's actually a patient from last year but his story was just uploaded for us to read. I read it a few weeks ago and was so touched--his name is a Fula name, which is my tribe. He is from northern Guinea, which is Fula territory and where I grew up. So this hit very close to home for me. 

But I think it's more than that--his gratefulness for the work of Mercy Ships (and above all: God's grace!) is so evident. Read on and enjoy!--and know that YOU are no less a part of this because you are an ocean away. It takes all kinds to make this work: skillful hands, serving hearts, praying words, joyful givers, and a caring God.  

~~~~~

My name is Thierno. I am Guinean. There is a story I would like to tell you -- it is a story of a man, a football player. This man was young and strong and fit. He played for his hometown’s soccer team as a defender. Then he was struck with tragedy and had no means for healing. Each word that I write today is proof of a happy ending, but I will never forget the five years of unhappy beginning. This man was me . . . 

Thierno, during his football career in northern Guinea. 

The tumor began small on my face. As it grew, I began to feel more and more pain. Within a few months, my health began to decline to the point that I could no longer play football. My mother stopped everything to care for me. She took me to many doctors who were tradition healers, and we tried to find a treatment -- but nothing worked. My mother became exhaustd with worry for her only son. With each month, the tumor grew larger. The creases on her face grew deeper. From behind my deformity, I watched her lose all hope. Then Mercy Ships arrived and said they could help. 

Thierno waiting to be seen at Guinea's screening day in 2013.

The atmosphere onboard the Africa Mercy was friendly and loving -- the doctors and nurses took such good care of me. Each day, I was happy and comforted in my hospital bed. 

Thierno and his mother, Djenabou, before his surgery. 

I cannot say anything -- I do not have the words. I am speechless because I am grateful to God for the doctors that were so competent and able to remove something so dangerous. Because God brought them together, this operation was possible. I will never forget Mercy Ships, and I know that today I find myself in good health by the grace of God.

After surgery and getting some air on Deck 7. Any patients that are able to
spend an hour each day up on this deck to look out at the sea and get a change
of scenery. 

I am so pleased that the government negotiated the arrival of the ship. I am not the only Guinean who has been blessed by it. There have been many Guineans who were sick and have found their health because of Mercy Ships.

For my part, I do not know what to say, any word, to Mercy Ships. The humanitarian support that the ship carries for us is unimaginable and inexplicable. I wish I could thank all of the staff of the ship, every single person, especially Dr. Gary, who put all of his effort into my surgery.

A letter Thierno wrote: "I am speechless." 

Over the next few months, Thierno's swelling
will go down and his scars will become less visible. "I think
he'll be back on the soccer field," Dr. Gary Parker says. 

May God protect Mercy Ships and bless Guinea and all Guineans! Amen!