Trip Three: Weeks Twelve & Thirteen! September 7-20

 Veloma (goodbye), Madagascar! 

I am writing this trip's final update from the comfort of my parents' couch in Michigan! I landed in North Carolina on Monday, September 21 and then flew to Michigan the next day to spend time with my family for a few days. It has been a busy transition back to the States, but I am thankful for the supportive family and friends surrounding me. 

It was also a busy finish to my 13 weeks onboard the AFM (hence the delayed update). The final two weeks of life on the ship were filled with busy days of surgery, weekend adventures, and trying to fit in as much time with friends as possible. 

Here are some of the highlights of the last two weeks onboard :) 


After work one evening, there was a surprise celebration for Julie before she departed the ship that weekend. She plans to get married in April near her home in South Korea. The evening was filled with lots of laughs and celebrating her upcoming wedding! 


My last run of this trip was a bit underwhelming. I just ran around the port since I was on-call on my only available day to run. I did a quick two miles around the parking lot (a route I had taken many many times over the past few months). 


I had to say goodbye to quite a few friends the weekend of September 11. Freiya and Tara were my OG thyroid team nurses and we survived many long, tough cases together. We had to say goodbye before they returned to New Zealand and Colorado. 

About 80% of the OR crew left over that weekend (some pictured below). One last funky Friday photo with this group! 

And funky Friday twinning!

We enjoyed a delicious dinner out at a local Indian restaurant on Friday night. This week marked the end of the cleft repair and thyroid surgery blocks, so we were also celebrating the past 4-6 weeks of some complicated and busy cases. 

On Sunday, I attended a local church with Fabrice and Liz! It was an absolutely lovely Sunday and it was so special being back in a church environment. The service was spoken in French with some English translation. The worship songs were mostly familiar to me, and I sang along with the English words I knew. I was brought to tears by the presence of the Holy Spirit and the beauty of worshipping with believers from all over the world. I was sad that I had not attended this church until my last Sunday, but I definitely plan to return when I am back in Madagascar at the end of November. After church, the three of us went to lunch at Marina Beach Hotel near the church. It was a special day with great conversations and memorable moments. 




My final week in Madagascar really flew by. Thankfully, it was a slightly less busy week in the OR for me. I overlapped with the incoming General Team Lead for this one week before she took over for the following three weeks. I spent some time on Monday and Tuesday handing over to her, but for the most part I was able to function as a standard OR nurse. 

In my last week on the ship, I tried to spend a lot of sweet time with special friends. With a delicious dinner on Tuesday, karaoke on Thursday, and dinner out on Friday, I am so grateful for the friendships that made this time on the ship so lovely and intentional... and thankful that quite a few of these people will still be on the ship when I return in November! 





My departure from the ship on Saturday evening was filled with bittersweet goodbyes. My three and a half months onboard were so challenging, yet wonderful and filled with so many memories. The friends I made and experiences I shared made this trip my most memorable yet. I am blessed to have the opportunity to return to the ship in a couple months, and that these "see you laters" have a known "later" date! 


After departing the ship with nine other Mercy Shippers, we flew out of the Tamatave airport and arrived in the capital Antananarivo "Tana" around 10:00pm on Saturday. In the morning, I was able to connect with the Malagasy friends who I spent time with at the beginning of the trip! They picked me up from the hotel and we went to church, had lunch, and then spent time together playing games and going for a walk before I returned to the hotel. It was a great, full-circle moment seeing them again after 3.5 months! In many ways, it felt like it had only been a few weeks, but so much life had really been lived by all of us. Back at the hotel on Sunday evening, I had a delicious dinner before showering and preparing for my late night international flight. 




I am grateful that everything with my travels went as smoothly as possible. All the flights were on time and my luggage arrived safely. I landed in Raleigh on Monday at around 4pm, roughly 47 hours after disembarking the ship on Saturday evening. Praising God for safe travels and a healthy body! 

It is hard to find the words to express what the past 3.5 months were truly like. I was stretched and challenged in ways I was not expecting, but was also surprised and blessed with wonderful friendships and relationships. The Lord taught me so much during this season and I am eager to continue learning more about myself and Him in the trips to come. 

I ask that you please pray for me as I transition home. Even though I am so thankful to be home and to see family and friends, it is difficult to try and process everything I've experienced the past 3.5 months while also trying to jump right back into the routine of life here. Please pray that I give myself grace in the moments of "homesickness" for the ship and Madagascar, and that the Lord would give me peace about where He currently has me. Thank you to those who have prayed with and for me over the past few months. Participating in the work of the Kingdom of God is possible through the power of prayer. 


OR Recap
Unfortunately, I have since lost access to the onboard information after leaving the ship and did not have the foresight to record the surgical cases that were performed during my last two weeks onboard. However, I will share what I can! The week of September 7th wrapped up the final weeks of the cleft block (6 weeks) and the thyroid block (4 weeks) - woo hoo! The week of September 14th resumed MaxFax cases, adult general, and continued with pediatric general specialties. 



I am thankful to have had the opportunity to meet and care for so many Malagasy patients during my time on the ship. It is an honor to be entrusted with this kind of work and it is such a blessing serving in this way. 


All glory to God! Until next time!  

























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