Hey friends,
My experience in the DR has certainly broken any expectations I had. Starting on Tuesday last week, I came down with a bacterial infection which led to me developing bronchitis. Thus, much of my time here has been spent sick in bed with a nasty cough.
This led to frustration and disappointment as I was hoping for a more interactive experience here. Even as I write this, I feel the burden of illness. When I wasn’t sleeping and I had enough energy to focus, I spent a lot of trying to understand God’s plan in this. I am still trying to discern exactly what God is trying to teach me but I think that it has forced God to be on my mind a lot more than He otherwise would have. I am thankful to know that my faith is in a good God whom I can trust. I am also thankful to be a part of a Joshua class that is so kind and caring. I have felt supported by my peers and loved by them.
Today, in particular, was exciting despite the circumstances. After breakfast, I got to talk with Dr. Fernando (the doctor who runs the medical site), who wrote me orders for a blood draw and a chest X-ray. Later that morning, I got to experience the efficiency of the Dominican healthcare system. I was in and out of the medical clinic in under an hour with the X-ray and blood draw completed. It was an interesting experience being in the care of people with whom I couldn’t communicate verbally. By 11am I had my results looked at and an antibiotic in hand. I must say that this experience was likely the most authentic experience I have had here. It was really cool to see how, despite their small budget and limited resources, their healthcare system is efficient.
I look forward to getting healthy soon. The word is that by Thursday evening I should be feeling substantially better and the infection should be on the decline. I’m looking forward to a few normal days at my work site at the end of this week and hanging out with everyone, blessed with health once again.
Best,
-Elijah Esparza (Current Student)