I am writing from the comfort of home. There wasn’t any time at all in the last 2 days to sit and write.
We did our last village trip on Thursday, going to Battal town itself. The destruction there was massive. I think I mentioned before that we saw innumerable houses on all the slopes and up to as far as the eye can see up the peaks. And many of them are either flattened are half rubble. The place we setup clinic was one such home whose wall had fallen off. I ran my ‘open concept clinic’ with a chilly draft blowing in! Imagine the countless homeless, already living in sub-zero temperatures now. Many have tents but not all have insulation sheets (the blue sheets you see on some of the tents).
I mustered the courage to pray for a few patients on that last day, and am I glad I did. The people are entirely open to prayer and will say ‘Amin’ with us at the end. And I’ve not felt God's presence in praying for a sick person so strongly like I did up there.
We were all euphoric at the end of that day, and drove back with an overflowing sense of joy and relief, mixed with some sadness for leaving the people behind us. But we remember that the little we’ve done, though it feels like salt in the sea, were our 2 loaves and fishes for God to use. I spent the entire night going through all our medications, classifiying them, boxing them up for the next team to use.
Friday morning we slept in late. We could breathe again and not worry about getting enough sleep, buying drugs, and getting out in time to make it to the mountains and back by nightfall. It was a much needed time for us all to relax and share our stories. Bonds that have formed between team members, Malaysian, Pakistani, British and African are deep and forever. Joan and I both reflected on how we’ve left halve our hearts in Pakistan, and we’ll never be the same again after what we’ve seen and done. We got to see a bit of Abbottabad town and did some shopping. I got a whole bag of every variety of tea from Afghanistan to Kashmir, so anyone who comes visit us can have a cup or even a bag of tea while stocks last.
We reached the airport on time and found the bag we had lost on the first day at Karachi. This time, we got hell in the airports (Islamabad and Karachi.) Two of our team members’ confirmation had mysteriously ‘disappeared’ and they had to be put on standby! We were given the runaround all over the airport for a mistake of their ticketing office’s. Then again and again we were harassed by airport officials and security, wanting to go through our things, body search us, detain us at security posts, etc. It was highly frustrating and disappointing. Even when we produced embassy letters and credentials, they continued to harass us – where are your names on the letter?, where is your official tag? It was a sad day for Pakistan. Then our flight was delayed another two hours. We took off at about 130am (430am Malaysian.)
Thank God though the 4-seater middle aisle seats were mostly empty and we each grabbed a row each to sleep. I took some time to finish my reports and reflections from Islamabad to Karachi, and slept all the way back from Karachi to KL. All my suppressed anxiety about getting home surfaced in nightmares! In one – I dreamt we landed in a dark, musty place, and when I left the airport, there was a solitary neon sign that read – ‘Abbotabad’. I woke up in cold sweat. The second – again, we arrived in strange airport, though in day time, with brick and clay shops. And then a bearded man and scarved woman approaches me and asks ‘Do you want chay (tea)?’. I almost died.
What a relief it was for us to reach KLIA. I could’ve kissed the ground we were walking on. Joan meeting us at the airport was a sight for sore eyes. And she brought me coffee! I am home.
Our hearts and minds have been stretched beyond our wildest imagination. We have been inspired, moved and humbled by the love, hospitality and passion of people we have met there. We have learnt and been blessed far more than we have ever given. We will never see life the same way again. We pray this small step we’ve made is a first in a new direction that God wants to take us on our spiritual journey, and there is no looking back.
To anyone reading this and wondering, ‘I wish I could do something like that’, I have to say – you can, and you should. There is no regretting it. But when the time comes when you just ‘have to do it’, you will know. And if you wonder if you have what it takes, I must absolutely say, no, none of us do, and yes, what you are is what God will use. It is our inadequacy that makes us instruments for God’s grace and power to shine through.
Thank you all for following us on this journey. For praying for us so faithfully. We would never have survived the many dangers, trials and challenges without you.
Please keep praying for the peoples and volunteers in Pakistan. They are still homeless and cold. The race against time is getting closer and workers are still breaking their backs out there on the treacherous slopes. Every little bit we can do will count. I will update you in time on how you can help.
Kuthan Apko Berkat De (God Bless You).
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