A sad goodbye.

As we end our week here in Cave Valley, emotions are running high. Knowing that we will not see our new friends again, for at least a year, is hard for us all to swallow. My friend, Tashawna skipped school today to be with us all day. It is truly amazing how these people who are so culturally different from us has touched our hearts so deeply. At the beginning of the week, so many return volunteers told us newbie’s that we will be rewarded ten fold for what we are giving. They were so right! I am so extremely thankful to have had the chance to come to Jamaica on this project. Sharing this with my two best friends has been priceless. We have grown individually and together in a way that is indescribable. Unable to use our cell phones all week, we realized how much time is wasted with technology, and relationships are superficial when conducted over electronic devices. Nothing compares to a smile, a touch, and a hug. Brett and I had a patient today who was a seventy year old blind man who farms for a living. John was a wonderfully kind and trusting man. His wife stood by his side, while we surgically extracted three teeth. John had high blood pressure, and lost a lot of blood during the surgery. I went over the post-op instructions with his wife two or three times. I kept telling her to be sure John took it easy today, make sure he drinks lots of fluids and rested. John and his wife lived about five miles down the road, and of course, had to walk to the clinic. A couple of hours after his appointment, a child came into our room and told Mrs. Wright that John had passed out and fell. By the time the child got to our clinic, John was sitting in bed and talking, but we were so worried about him. On our way home, we asked our bus driver to stop at his house. Brett and I got off the bus and went into his home, he was sleeping and said he felt fine. He woke up to give us a hug and thank us for helping him. As we were leaving, his wife rushed up to us and gave us a hug, with tears streaming down her face, she thanked us over and over. She asked God to bless us, as she has been blessed by us.

Packing up our equipment at the end of our day, there is a sense of relief mixed with sadness. Our little friends wondered around behind us as we hustled around the clinic assuring we didn’t leave anything behind. There will be another group of volunteers arriving next Monday, and we want the clinic to be ready for them to operate. The kids are quiet today, and their eyes speak volumes. With the arrival of our bus, we all finally stop to realize we are leaving. Tears begin to flow as we say our goodbye’s to these wonderful giving people. Holding the babies for the last time, I felt panic at leaving them. We truly felt like we were abandoning our family. As our bus was readying to leave, the kids hung on our windows and cried while holding our hands and blowing kisses.

At the beginning of the trip, I said I wouldn’t bring my kids to Jamaica, because I didn’t feel safe. Pulling out of Cave Valley, I realized I couldn’t wait to bring my kids to meet these people. I know that we are all family at this point, and all of the people in the community would protect me and mine to the death if the need arose. With sad hearts, we leave Jamaica, with the promise to come back next year. As the plane takes off, we look down behind us, and know that a piece of our hearts is still there, high in the mountains, encased within those that touched us.