Project Mattress

i've just hopped online again for a little cyber-stint and i'm sending a big fat thank you hug to all of you sweet folks for sending such kind words and thoughts. i'm feeling much more accustomed to the realities of this place now and i'm getting a slow grasp on some perspective.

the realities on-the-ground can feel really overwhelming and hopeless, but i think the bigger picture holds much hope. i think about the individuals that may benefit from some of our donations or midwifery care and i know we can make a world of difference for at least some people's reality. if we all work that way, there's a possibility for profound change...

so i type this post with complete joy this morning, as i report on an exciting project that has been brought to you by the tin of change! it was inspired by the sadness i felt several times a day when i would have to hunt around the maternity ward for a bed in which a woman and her newborn could rest after giving birth. imagine having come to the hospital from who knows how far, labouring for days in the heat, giving birth in less-than-comfortable surroundings, then being escorted to rest on a metal sheet of springs in a bed frame or a square of concrete on the less-than-clean floor. all women deserve a little bit of comfort after completing the planet's wild life-giving process!

there is an NGO from Denmark that is joining with the tin-of-change to produce 10 new mattresses for the maternity ward at the masaka hospital. three local seamstresses are making vinyl covers to protect the mattress and support some cleanliness with the beds. best of all, since many supplies around the hospital mysteriously disappear, i'm happy to provide some donations that will benefit many women and babies for a long time... there is even talk of the mattress project continuing into upcoming years if future midwifery students from UBC are interested in helping with the fundraising!

nothing like a hopeful project to make everything feel a little lighter...

the tin of change also helped buy a pinard horn (for hearing the fetal heartbeat), some soap and gloves for a 92 year old traditional birth attendant in masaka who had all of her midwifery equipment stolen recently. i will post photos when i'm able...

i'm in kampala now, starting my last two weeks of work at the big public hospital here. feeling confident in what i'm doing and much more comfortable supporting women with our available means!

love love...
a-m