Mosiah 2:17 And behold, I tell you these things that ye may learn wisdom, that ye may learn that when ye are in the service of your fellow beings ye are only in the service of your God.

Wisdom and Service, I've never thought of these two things of going  hand in hand as I have the past couple of weeks.  When we gain wisdom, the kind of wisdom the Lord would have us learn, our service becomes more genuine, and more selfless.  We serve for the right reasons and that is to truly help, regardless of what the natural man thinks.
The last couple of weeks have been filled with busy days, eye opening experiences and moving forward the work that we were sent here to do.
We spent one whole day looking for timers for the HBB training the following week.  Nobody knew what a digital timer was, finally we found some at a medical supply place but they cost us 800 rps a piece, which is way too much to pay for a timer but we had not other choice.  The timers are used in training to make sure the nurses and doctors resuscitate a baby that is not breathing within one minute,better known as the GOLDEN minute.  See how smart I'm getting already!
The next day we had to go to the Maternity Hospital to get signatures on some appreciation letters that will be handed out at the closing ceremony, after the training is completed.  We also get a call from the Social Welfare Council for an important meeting regarding disaster relief.  Fourteen INGO's (International Non-Government Organizations) that work in Nepal were called, we met with Rabindra Kumar Member Secretary to the Social Welfare Committee.  Nepal has been unusually cold this year and many people are dying from the cold, they live in the Terai or the lowlands where it is usually warm and so they are not prepared for the cold.  Before we went to the meeting, Elder Rempp, he is the country director, called the area presidency in Hong Kong to see what kind of a commitment LDSC will make.  He was told that whatever they needed the Church would supply.  We got to the meeting, there are about 30 people there, and we were asked if we could help with one blanket per household.  The four of us are looking at each other, thinking you've got to be kidding, one blanket per family.  Greg told the member secretary and those in attendance that our organization was willing and ready to help with anything they might need.  He asked how many blankets they would need, no one had an answer, he asked when will they be ready to deliver the blankets, no one has an answer.  By the time the meeting ended we had no answers and they told us they would get back to us.  By the end of he day, Greg had found where we can buy all the wool blankets that would be needed.  That was two weeks ago today, we're still waiting for more information.
We all talked to Rakesh about our frustration, we told him that we could make one call to Salt Lake and within 2 days a container load of blankets would be delivered straight to the Terai.  He then went on to explain the bureaucratic red tape that it takes to get anything done in Nepal.  Not only do they need and want blankets, they will tax us 33% if and when it happens.  See what I'm learning about Nepal, but I'm also learning to put those frustrations aside and continue to serve.
On Saturday it was our YM/YW fireside, Kent prepared the lesson I prepared the food.  I decided to totally have an American light dinner, grilled cheese sandwiches, Pringles, Fanta, and Moon Pies for dessert.  It was a hit, but then I don't think there is anything these Nepali kids won't eat.

YM/YW Fireside








The next two days were spent looking for some kind of thank-you souvenir for those that are helping with the HBB training.  We've received a couple of souvenirs, nothing that are really nice, in fact one is a wooden trophy that says Souvenir on it.   I want to find something either memorable or at least usable.

This souvenir actually looks better here than in real life.


We found some nice heavy winter scarves for the men and for the women we bought Pashmina scarves and then Kent designed a nice certificate for each of them.  The certificates are very important here, when they go to apply for a job they show their certificates which lends credibility of their knowledge and skills.

The next couple of days we were making final arrangements for the doctors from the Church and the Public Affairs couple from India who will be following us around for the next five days.

On the 17th we've been personally invited, meaning we received our own invitation with our names printed on it, to another neighbors wedding.  The wedding started at 2:00 and we had to be to the airport to pick up Dr. Clark and Dr. Bell at 3:15.  So we hurried over to the wedding and said hello, and of course had to have our pictures taken  and explained why we couldn't stay.

The brides parents

The bride and groom among all the minutia of a Hindu wedding.  Neither one of them look too excited or very much in love for that matter, especially the bride.

We picked up the doctors and went to the Maternity Hospital to make sure that everything was ready for the beginning of the two day training.  We then took them to Nina's for a bite to eat and a discussion on the plans for the week.   Friday morning we headed over to the hospital bright and early.  This is a long day of HBB training.

Notice our banner we had made, it says "donated by" in Nepali and then Latter-Day Saint Charities.  

Dr. Ashish K.C, and Doctors Bell and Clark

Dr. Clark giving instruction

On Saturday, we picked up the doctors for Church.  They've asked Dr. Clark if he would speak, we did tell him the night before.  He gave a great talk on service and how all of us can serve the Lord in a variety of ways.  We just need to take the opportunities that are before us and act.  Great talk!  After church Elder Rempp went to the airport to pick up the Black's, the public affairs couple, Dr. Clark went to the Rempp's to help assemble humanitarian kits and then to hook up with an old friend from the branch.  We took Dr. Bell on a sightseeing adventure for a couple of hours.  He had been here a year before but was very, very ill and did not have the opportunity to see Nepal.
We first took him up the street to the Budanilkanta temple (Sleeping God).  It was a busy day with lots of people worshiping.

Budanilkanta (Sleeping God)

We then went to Swayambhu or the Monkey Temple

We bought some coins, for good luck, to throw into this pond, if you could throw into the copper bowl below the statue, you would receive more good luck.  I was the only one who got the coin in the pot.  Must be all that basketball practice when I was young.

Swayambhunath a the famous place for Buddhist worship

You can walk around this "temple square" where it is lined with prayer rolls.  Buddhists walk around and spin the prayer rolls - that is the way they pray

A very large prayer roll in the monastery

Monkeys

More Monkeys

And even more monkeys - thus the name, Monkey Temple

Kent and Dr. Bell, Kathmandu in the background

A sleeping Buddha

After we finished our sight seeing, we picked up Dr. Clark and took the doctors to a short dinner reception for the two of them with Dr. Ashish.  We took Rakesh, Mahendra (our van driver for the week) to KFC for a bite to eat.  We picked up the doctors and headed over to meet a very influential eye doctor in Nepal.  We had a very nice visit and he talked about the political climate in Nepal, which is so disappointing to him.  He is a past member of the Nepali Congress, only because it was disbanded in May 2012 for lack of progress,  he talked about  the influence the Maoists have had on Nepal.  He talked about the American Constitution and how we've made it work and how people somehow figure out how to work together, very much unlike Nepal.  He told us that with all the natural resources that Nepal has, it should be one of the richest countries in the world, but he told us that the Maoists are preventing that from happening.  A very insightful discussion.  He also talked with us about a good way for us to proceed with HBB in the outlying districts and areas of Nepal.  We then went to Dr. Rita Singh's home, we're hoping that we will have another HBB training in the spring and her hospital will be the venue for the training.  Wow!  It's been a very long, busy day.  We dropped the doctors at their hotel and meet the Black's and made plans for the next day.

We then went home to bed.

The next morning we picked up the doctors, the Black's and headed over to the Maternity Hospital for the last day of training.  Whenever we have a project there has to be a closing ceremony, in which government officials and other higher ups are invited to speak.  We presented certificates to all the participants and handed out our gifts and certificates to the trainers.  We went and picked up the Rempps and drove to Thamal for dinner at the Roadhouse Cafe.  Another long day.

We started the next day bright and early with breakfast at the Radisson with Dr. Clark, Blacks, Rakesh, and Dr. Thapa, who is going to be our hospital monitor for this HBB project.  When we do a project we want to make sure that training continues, that the Master Trainers go back to their hospitals and train their staff, so Dr Thapa will check and make sure this is happening.  In the meantime, Dr. Bell had gone to the Maternity Hospital, remember this is the hospital that delivers 24,000 - 26,000 babies a year or about 75 a day.  He has offered to work in the NICU for the morning.  He wanted to teach them how to use their CPAP machine that has been sitting in the corner, when he got there he found out the CPAP is broken, no one knows how to fix it, so they sent me with Dr. Sam Topham, another doctor that lives here for six months of every year to have him look at the machine.  He is a bio-med doctor.  He works on hospital equipment, teaches them how to maintain their equipment.  The machine needs more work and he tells us he will figure out whats wrong and maybe LDSCharities can pay to have it repaired.  Here are a few pictures of Dr. Bell helping with the babies in the NICU.  

Dr. Sam checking out the CPAP machine

Dr. Sam Topham and Dr. Richard Bell

They are getting ready to put a trach tube into this little four pound baby who is having a hard time breathing.  Dr. Topham worries that they are not using the CPAP machine, and using a ventilator instead.  He told me that when a newborn is on a ventilator using 100% oxygen, it frequently causes blindness.  I hope we can get the CPAP machine fixed for them.

Some of the babies in the NICU

Kent, Greg and Rakesh have gone to immigration to get our new visas.  They had an 11:00 appointment, but whoever was supposed to meet them didn't show up so Rakesh brought Kent to the hospital, Greg stayed at immigration because he's not leaving until he get his new visas.  Our visas expired on the 7th of January so it's pretty important that this get done soon.  I wait for Kent because Sam is supposed to be at another hospital at 12:00 and we need to pick up Dr. Clark and the Blacks for an appointment at another hospital.  Are you following all this?  I was going crazy not knowing where everyone was and where we were supposed to be next.  But somehow it all got done.

Blacks, Dr. Bell,  Dr. Rita Singh, Dr Clark and Kent and I

 On the evening of January 21st we had a dinner meeting with some very important government people and doctors.  Kent called it our show and tell with the doctors.  The most important person to come to this meeting was the Minister of Health ( he holds a position equivalent to what  Mike Leavitt held when he was over Health in the Bush administration) a very important person.  When we hear he is on his way Rakesh gets Kent, Elder Black and the doctors to walk downstairs to meet him.  He told Sister Black and I we can tag along but that we need to stay off to the side.  

  

Dr. Clark, Rakesh, Dr. Bell, Elder Black, and Kent waiting for the Minister of Health

Minister of Health arrives with his security and body guards

Elder and Sister Black with Ravi from the Maternity Hospital, notice he wearing his new scarf we gave him

Dr. Bell explaining HBB

Kent, presenting a  picture of a newborn baby in palm of a hand with an LDS Charitites  plaque on it.

Whew that is over!  We feel like that went very well and should make implementing HBB projects into Nepal a little easier.  The next day we meet altogether again for more visits to other INGO's, such as Save the Children, UNICEF, CARE and visit a few more hospitals.
Dr. Clark's sweet wife Ann sent with him with over 100 leper bandages and fabric for READ Nepal leprosy clinic and Rakesh's sewing centers.  So.. on the road again, we headed over to READ Nepal.   Our power just went out and I've lost my pictures on my camera, I had a great picture of all the leprosy bandages, oh well, such is life in Nepal.  I'll have to borrow Kent's pictures.

This is one of the patients at the clinic, Goma the nurse assistant, is putting on one of the new bandages at Ann sent with Dr.Clark

Dr. Bell in front of READ Nepal

from Read Nepal is a short walk to Pashupatinath Temple (पशुपतिनाथ मन्दिर), this is the place where the Hindus burn the bodies, I had some pretty good pictures.

They are burning a body down below on the steps and you can tell that there is lots of smoke from other bodies being cremated.

Sister Black with one of the Holy Men around Pashupatinath Temple, (पशुपतिनाथ मन्दिर) - you have to pay these guys if you want a picture with them.

Then we're off to Thamal to do a little shopping. Dr. Clark wants to pick up a few things for his grandchildren.

The doctors don't leave until about midnight so we decide upon a Nepali experience at the Nepali Chulo.

Dr. Rita, and her husband, Rakesh and Sunila, Blacks, Dr. Bell and Dr. Clark, notice the tika on Dr. Clarks forehead.

Everyone wants money, even the peacock

We get the doctors back to the hospital so they can get the shuttle to the airport and the rest of us head home to bed for a much needed nights rest.

The Blacks are still with us for part of the day, so we picked them up and took them into Thamal for breakfast at Kilroy's, steak and eggs for the men, omelettes for the women and then we meet Rakesh so he can show them some of the projects that he does with us, computer training for the disabled and blind, wheelchairs, sewing and knitting project also for the disabled.

Presenting some of the fabric from Sister Ann to Rakesh's sewing center

The blind leading the sighted

Sagum on the left is very visually impaired due to a motorcycle accident a few years ago.  He is teaching this fully sighted young woman how to Skype, using the JAWS program which is an audio program that helps the blind use computers.

 Amazing!

This young man has just been measured and evaluated and is receiving his first wheelchair.  He had an accident not long ago and has a spinal injury and is paralyzed.

We took the Black's to the airport.  Now everyone has gone back home and we get to write reports about the week and write up our new projects that we hope takes place in the next couple of months. 

Yesterday we got a phone call  asking Kent and I to go to the Social Welfare Council for another meeting, this time from the Ministry of Women and Children.  We got there and pretty soon there were about 100 people that had been invited to the meeting from other INGO's.  What it turned out to be, in our opinion, was the Maoists party doing damage control.  They told us not to believe what has been written in the papers lately, that they are trying to make sure elections and a new constitution happens soon and that they are trying to work with INGO's in a more efficient way so that we don't have to jump through so many hoops.  We'll see if that happens.  The Minister asked for questions but before anyone could ask any, he got up and left with his body guards and security, it must have been quitting time.  It was interesting.  I never could have imagined what it would have been like here, it's one of those things you have to experience it to believe it.  

As we serve we sometimes have opportunities to explain LDS Charities, we tell them we are here by choice  and that we don't get paid, that we pay our own way, and we are doing this because we want to help the people of Nepal.  I'd love to explain that we do this because the Lord has blessed us so much and we want to show our gratitude to Him, we do this because we love our brothers and sisters in all parts of the world.  We do this because the Lord continues to bless our lives and we want to follow His example.  

I had two great pictures, one of women at the well and the other of men at the well, every time we go by a well where mostly women are gathered, washing, getting water for the day or just socializing one with another I can't help but think about the story of the woman at the well and of the living water that Christ gives to each of us.   John 4  Now Jacob's well was there, Jesus therefore, being wearied with his journey, sat thus on the well.... 4:13 Jesus answered and said unto her, Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again;  4:14 But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst  but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life. That's why we really do what we do, we look forward the those blessings the Lord has waiting for each of us as we drink of the living water, as we follow his example as we find joy in every day living the Gospel.  I am grateful for this experience, I am truly gaining wisdom as I learn what it means to serve my brothers and sisters in Nepal.