Baveel's Heart Surgery
Wednesday,
February 6, 2008 Off To Begin His New Life Filed
by I
took Baveel and his mother to the airport today. I met them at
the bus station last night and I was so glad to see Baveel RUNNING and
playing. What a change from the way he tired quickly before his
surgery. I went to get my car to bring it to the taxi and Baveel
ran up behind me and grabbed my hand. He was even helping with
the suitcases. At the airport his mother was thanking us and
thanking God and said "wa ktiir ktiir shukran" (many, many thanks) to
everyone in Israel.
Jean Calvani hosted Baveel and Mom last night and adds her report:
At
around 10:30pm on Tuesday, Baveel and his mother finally reached Amman
after the long drive from the border. They were so grateful to be
welcomed into the warm flat where they spent the night before flying
home. Even though it was already late, Baveel was still full of energy.
I could see the excitement on his face as we discussed the travel plans
for the next morning. As we sat on the couch chatting, his mother
explained how he really missed his father. They also shared with me
some of the Hebrew they picked up while in Israel! After eating a
shwarma, Baveel changed into some cozy pajamas and headed straight for
bed. Jody was coming at 9 the next morning to drive him and his mother
to the airport. After being in Israel for a little over a month,
they're finally on their way home!
So concludes the story of Baveel's journey to Israel for a new heart;
you may click here to help another child experience the same blessing.
Tuesday,
February 4, 2008 Onward to Jordan Filed
by Baveel said
a last farewell this morning to his buddy Asher, oldest son of our
Jerusalem staffer Martha Berg.
Then we set
off up the Jordan Valley, and Baveel and mother got on the bus to cross
the Jordan River and leave Israel at about 540 pm and were on the next
leg of the journey home to Iraq. They are glad to be headed home and so
very much thankful for the kindness and generosity they were shown here
in Israel. If all goes well they should get to Amman by about 9:30 pm.
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Monday,
February 4, 2008 Sporting a New Hairdo...
and
a Scar Filed
by Baveel
has received the green light to head back home to Iraq. Not only does
he sport a new hair style, but also an eight-inch scar on his chest,
which he is proud to share
with anyone who is willing to take a good look. With bags packed and
goodbyes in order, many of the other mothers and children at the Save A
Child's Heart house tagged along to load up the van. Some of the other
children got into the van and cried when they realized Baveel would
make this trip alone.
The attachment with the moms
and children
one to another is community at its best; each senses the joy
and
loss when a mother and child leaves for the last time.
I
believe with all my heart that God is doing a supernatural work mending
hearts and lives together for a kingdom work yet to be revealed. Can
Kurdistan ever be the same with so much of God's handiwork?
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Monday,
January
21, 2008 Would you Believe He Was in
the OR 8 Days Ago? Filed
by Baveel amazed everyone by leaving the
hospital on Thursday, just four days after his surgery.
Today, on post-surgery day eight, he returned to the hospital
for an echo exam, and I caught up with him in the waiting room sitting
under the aquarium with his
buddy Aras. One thing
led to another, and soon it was time to show off battle scars:
The
echo report today was "very good," and Baveel was looking noticeably
better than before his surgery, though still quite thin. He's
not
eating well, but his mother says that's always been true of her beloved
son.
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 Tuesday
January
15, 2008 Lightning Recovery Filed
by
Baveel is a laid-back young man who was
always comfortable coming up to me and speaking a paragraph or two of
Kurdish (of which I did not understand one word). Typically I
responded with a paragraph or two of my own in English, which meant
nothing to him. Both of us would shrug our shoulders, laugh,
and be on our way.
I went looking for him today in
the ICU only to discover that he had already been transferred to the
ward. That's just two days after surgery! His mother
explained that there was not room in the intermediate ICU so they saw
fit to move him to the regular ward. The young man I
encountered has not eaten anything but soup and was experiencing some
pain in his chest. The old antics of speaking to each other at
length in indiscernible languages were gone.
The newest patient, Rebar, even tried to offer him
kids' favorite salty snack, potato chips. He shrugged them
off. (Click the arrow below to watch a video clip.)
Though
Baveel is obviously having difficulty recovering, his progress is still
one of the most rapid I have encountered.
Friends,
please pray that Baveel would start eating soon, the pain in his chest
would subside, and that we would once again enjoy our long
conversations about nothing.
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Sunday,
January 13, 2008 "Thank you for not giving
up on my son." Filed
by
He was in surgery for
just over
four hours, which seemed like an eternity for Baveel's mother. We
talked, we went for walks, I prayed for her and she tried to tell me
how she felt. It is not difficult to understand a mother's distress in
any language. She received possibly 40 phone calls from family in Iraq,
checking up on Baveel's condition during the afternoon. Sometimes the
calls were helpful to calm her, but when her husband started to cry on
the phone, she was very upset. Mustafa's
mother helped a lot to prepare her for what lies ahead. She explained
many practical things to her. Today is just the beginning of a recovery
process for Baveel. Mustafa's mother continued to encourage her that
God is good and reminded her how sick Mustafa was, but that now he was
recovering.
Baveel's mother told me during the
afternoon that
not a single hospital was willing to take Baveel until he came to
Israel. She had been turned down in three other Middle Eastern
countries. She is sincerely grateful to the surgeons at the Wolfson
Medical Centre for not giving up on her son.
Baveel
was in ICU
for over an hour before we were allowed in to see him. He had woken
quickly after surgery, but the doctors sedated him again, so that he
doesn't move or experience pain after such a major procedure.
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 Thursday, January 10, 2008 Cath Shows Baveel is
Operable Filed
by
Baveel's
catheterization yesterday revealed the wonderful news that he is
operable - thank God!! Both Baveel and Dr. Tamir talked about being
thankful for this, and Baveel is "excited" about his surgery. His
mother is grateful and looking forward to this life-saving,
life-changing opportunity for her son. His surgery is scheduled for
Sunday around mid-day, Dr. Tamir said. Baveel will remain hospitalized
until then.
When we arrived at the
hospital today, he
was standing with Dr. Tamir in the hall as the doctor spoke with
several others, and Baveel seems to have a real affection for this
special doctor. Later l found Baveel walking around the ward visiting Hardi, Juliana,
and Mustafa,
as well as Diyar
and Hussein
who had come for another echo. He was smiling and telling everyone
about how many needles he had in his arms, etc. as if it was rather
awe-inspiring.
 Please
pray for Baveel and his mother as the date and time approach. He is a
sweet boy who makes friends easily and cares about others. We look
forward to seeing him healed to grow into the man God created him to
be.
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Wednesday,
January 9, 2008 Expressive and IntelligentFiled
by Baveel
had his catheterisation today and by the time I saw him, he was getting
very impatient with the wires on his arms. When it was explained to him
by Mustafa's
mother what was
happening, he seemed more content. He was even happier when a nurse
came by and took the blood pressure cuff of his arm. Later he enjoyed a
long drink of Pepsi. He chatted on the phone to a relative, and was
very obviously describing what had happened to him in great detail. He
is a very expressive and intelligent little boy and wants to know
everything about what is happening to him.
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Tuesday,
January 8, 2008 Catheterization TomorrowFiled
by When the Wolfson Medical Centre called
this morning, it was good news for Baveel and Juliana.
It was now their to go for their catheterizations in the morning.
Baveel was very excited. Suddenly the mothers were in a frenzy of
packing and cooking, as they wanted to take food for the other mothers
at the hospital.
Baveel chatted happily all the way
to Tel Aviv, trying to teach me Kurdish and showing me how his watch
worked.
On arrival, the children's ward was a
flurry of activity as two children, Aras and Dilshad
were being discharged to the Save a Child's Heart house, and the new
children were arriving, and other Iraqi mothers joined in for news of
each other's children. Baveel had his bed allocated whilst he and Juliana
were undergoing the first few medical procedures which involved sticky
cream on the hands. Neither of them were very impressed by this. But
Baveel was happy to see his friends Dilshad and Aras dressed and ready
to leave the hospital. He also told the hospital clowns that he was
from Kurdistan. They seemed suitably impressed. 
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Wednesday,
January 2, 2008 Catheterization Needed
ImmediatelyFiled
by 
Baveel was very wiggly on the exam table,
yet afterwards
fell asleep on a toy table outside the echo rooms. He clearly does not
have energy for long periods of activity, but Dr. Tamir said even the
cath itself will make him feel better.
Join
us in
praying for Baveel. The doctors knew when they invited him that Baveel
is a "borderline" case, and it is possible the catheterization will
show that Baveel is inoperable. These doctors, however, like to take
the cases other doctors might not take to give a child a chance to
live... and I praise God for every one which is now living because of
this. His mother began making many calls after hearing the doctor's
report.
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Tuesday, January 1, 2008
Brave Boy with a Sweet Heart
Filed
by It
has been fun to get to know Baveel today. He is both brave and yet a
little boy of only nine years who hates needles enough to refuse to
have to deal with them twice in one day. He understands alot of the
challenging medical conversation around him in Arabic, and English
besides his native Kurdish, but would rather be playing. He acts as big
as the older boys, but still has the sweetness of heart to gently wipe
the crumbs from Arya's face after dinner. He loves the fish in the big
aquarium, and has already given names to his favorites - naming them
after those of us who he knows!
And
he is already asking when he will have his surgery, even while
explaining to his friend Hardi's mother that only the doctor can decide
the timing. He is active, but tires out quickly due to his heart
condition, and is old enough to understand that this surgery will help
solve that problem for him.
I
believe the best way to pray for Baveel is to ask God to give him His
understanding of how very much He loves him, and has a special and
wonderful plan for His life. I look forward to spending more
time
with him in the coming weeks as he waits for and then undergoes the
surgery he needs.
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Monday,
December 31, 2007
Baveel and Friends Reach
Israel as
Year Turns
Filed
by  After
a very long day of riding and waiting, these dear children and their
mothers arrived in Israel at about 8:30 this evening. I was able to
meet them in the Jordan terminal and ride back into Israel with them to
ease the crossing process. When we entered the Israeli terminal, a long
passport control session was necessary for all 9 of us, and we happily
exited into the main terminal about an hour later. We posed for a group
picture before climbing into our waiting "chariot" to go to Jerusalem;
you can see between Alex and I, from L to R, Hardi, Arya, Baveel, and
Juliana, and their moms. Please pray for all of them to get a good
night's rest. We will leave early in the morning for their first visit
to the hospital for initial check-ups. Pray as well for each family as
they enter this season of intensity in their lives while they have
their hopes realized, even while their fears peak, when their
respective children undergo surgery. We will entrust each one to God
for His care to be evident throughout the process.
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