Despite good intentions, this diary is very long in being up-dated. Our year in Mobile started with our usual planning week but even as we were planning for the year we were receiving new patients and caring for old ones. One man in particular stands out in our minds. Simeon was referred to us the first week in December. He was 90 years old and had advanced cancer of the prostate.

On our first visit to the home we met a very distressed patient and family. We were really challenged, as he had total obstruction from extension of the tumour. We racked our brains and came up with possible treatment. As it was a Friday, we promised to come back on Monday morning and we all went home to add our prayers to the treatment. Monday morning we entered the house with baited breath only to find Simeon sitting up and smiling. The problem had been resolved and he was now comfortable and able to converse with us. Such an interesting man.

 Over the following weeks, he continued to respond well to treatment and was able to celebrate Christmas with his family and friends. His daughter came to the office during Christmas week for a medicine refill and told me that the only problem now was that he was waking in the night hearing someone call his name. We talked about this and decided that perhaps he was hearing a call to move on. They were a very committed Christian family and very ready for death. Early on, I had encouraged his daughter to call her siblings to say good-bye and in early January a daughter came from the UK to visit.

They had a very pleasant visit and as she was about to return home, Simeon said he had 5 days remaining. We didn’t take this too seriously but his daughter changed her ticket just in case and, lo and behold, on the fifth day, Simeon died peacefully. It was really a very satisfying case for us as a team. We had all been involved caring for Simeon and talking to the family. He went so peacefully and the family was so grateful, it was very affirming. His daughter came to see us afterwards and told us how friends had come to visit and said that he should be in hospital or on I.V.s , but she said no, he wanted to be at home and he was ready to go. This is really an accomplishment here as culture demands that “everything” must be done to keep someone alive and in many cases it ends up prolonging suffering rather than prolonging life.

On an entirely different note, those of you who have followed this diary over the last year may remember Deborah. Deborah was a young girl with osteomyelitis who was referred to us last July. We arranged for her to have surgery and she made a very good recovery. However, she has multiple deformities as well and we were considering more surgery for her but have decided that perhaps this can wait. Instead, we have enrolled Deborah in school!

This is a small school out in a nearby village that was founded for children with special needs. The woman who started it had two children of her own with disabilities and saw the need for a special school for them. Because Deborah is 13 now and has never attended school this is a very exciting step for her. She was taken last week with her wheelchair and all her requirements. I am sure that she never had so many possessions in her whole life. Granny went along to see where she will be staying and both she and Deborah were delighted. We have no pictures to show you but we will get some soon so you can watch Deborah’s progress.

This is all for this month. I close with a very heartfelt "thank you" to all who have supported our work in every way.