Sorani dialect for Donna, Keleigh, and Mary thanking them and making sure they knew they would be missed. Last night they even invited Donna to share one last meal with them before preparing to leave.
As we waited for the final report from Dr. Tamir, we took time for a little snack outside as the moms talked excitedly about their journey home. There was still a bit of a 'dark cloud' on Rezhin's countenance however as she was due to head to the dental surgeon this evening. The antibiotic prescribed for Rezhin by the dentist last week did fast work at knocking out the pain from her toothache caused by a bad cavity. This improvement gave her mother pause for considering whether they might wait until their return to Iraq to have the tooth treated, and she began indicating this choice to me yesterday. But before contacting the dentist to cancel the appointment, we wanted to be sure that her mother understood that the treatment here could save the tooth, and we were not certain if a dentist in their city could do so. After getting this news translated for Um Rezhin, her decision remained the same, and since the choice is hers to make, I contacted the dental surgeon to let him know we wouldn't be coming. Only then did Rezhin become full of smiles, and she hasn't stopped smiling through the evening.
Please remember Rezhin's need for this dental procedure as you pray. She is a fearful girl, and reacts very strongly to even the thought of something being painful happening to her. Yet we've made sure her mother understands the importance of having the tooth treated and the implications on her heart if she doesn't. Pray too that Rezhin will begin to realize what a precious girl she is in God's eyes so that she is no longer fearful and fretful, but instead is joyful and fulfilled in the knowledge of this love.
to have her ECG, one of the volunteers mentioned that she had been a dentist before retiring, so I asked her to look at Rezhin's tooth. It was clear there is a bad cavity there, but Rezhin misunderstood what was happening, and thought this volunteer was about to pull her tooth when she subsequently asked her to get on the examining table for the ECG. She began to cry and did not want to get on the table until we could convince her that this had only to do with her heart and not her tooth. Please pray that we can find a good dentist who can take Rezhin quickly and get this tooth out of the way so the new one can come in, and the possibility for infection will be gone. We are hoping to have someone donate their services for this need.
Rezhin had her surgery today around 12:30 p.m. She had an ASD and her surgery lasted until around 3:00. Her mother was anxious, as was expected. It was good that Tarza's mother was there too, and Ali's father so he could translate for them. This takes away a lot of the tension during the long wait. When Rezhin came out of surgery, her mom had to wait awhile before she could go see her.
I asked the surgeon how Tarza had done and he said, "Excellent. She's doing wonderfully." To me, that's the best report you can get.
Thanks again! Another one of God's children has been given a new heart because of your prayers and support.
We received a surprise telephone call this evening from Wolfson Medical Center telling us to bring Rezhin and Tarza up to the hospital, and that they would have surgery tomorrow.
Please pray for them. Pray that the Lord will give them and their moms peace. Also pray that the surgeries will go well, and that God will give the doctors wisdom and guide their hands.
The mothers speak only Kurdish but Ali's father is there to help with the translation. His calmness and attention helps them to have a peace they might not have if he weren't there.
We took Rezhin to Wolfson to get her echo this morning along with Tarza. They both had to get their blood work done and an x-ray first. Rezhin was naturally scared and it upset her when they took her blood, but with the help of Ali's father translating to her and her mother, it didn't take long before she was comforted and then she had to go for her DPT shot. After this we took to girls to get their echo. After hers was done, Dr. Alona had to leave to do an echo for an emergency surgery, so we had to wait for Tarza to get her echo.
We went down for lunch and returned for the echo and still had a long wait. During the wait everyone was getting restless and our volunteer couple, Marty and Shirley, decided to pass the time away by setting up a plastic bowling game they had there. Soon Rezhin and the rest of us joined in. Communication had been a little difficult until this and all of a sudden there seemed to be a break in the barrier. We were all having fun.
The report we got back was good. They found out Rezhin has ASD which should be simple and they hope to do her surgery soon. Pray that God will give these two girls and their mom's peace and comfort for these surgeries. We can tell the mothers are worried and I know that God cares for and will comfort these families.
Thank you all so much for your prayers and support.
Late this afternoon we arrived at the Israeli border to welcome Rezhin and her mother, along with Tarza and her mother, into Israel. We'd hoped to receive them Sunday evening but needed to wait until today. They were happy but tired, and after a little snack in the van rested as we drove up to Jerusalem.
Once here at the house, we were all thankful to have Sara's father to help us communicate with one another. Neither of these mothers speak Arabic or English, so one of our major prayer requests is for translation to be available for all of us during their stay here. We all hope that Sara and her dad will be able to leave quickly after her echo next Monday, but in the meantime are thanking God for his help to introduce the new moms and daughters to being with us.
Tonight at the house the three little girls (Rezhin, Tarza and Sara) are all feeling shy, and therefore have not yet begun to play together. Since Rezhin will not have her first echo until Thursday, we're hoping that they will enjoy playing with one another in the morning after a good night's sleep.
Please pray for this little one to be able to receive her surgery soon, and that her heart will be made new in every way while she is with us. Begin to pray for peace for her mother as they approach the initial exam here, and the healing process for Rezhin begins.
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