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A BUSY WEEKEND - Roger

Sorry we haven't updated for a while and now I post another regurgitated post I was supposed to write for our web site..........................

Is there anything that could be labeled a “typical” day when doing mercy flights? I don’t think so, but following is a recap of my last weekend. I was just getting ready to sit down for dinner Friday evening when the first call came for a patient in Maun with a bad throat bleed that couldn’t be stopped. Since we could not make it home before the airport closed, we were planning on spending the night at Francistown. Upon landing after 10:00PM we got word that we had another flight to Ghanzi. Even though it would be a long night, at least the airport would now allow us to return home, since it was a mercy flight. Getting someone to place the portable runway lights in Ghanzi was being arranged and the fueler at Francistown had already been called, for after-hours fueling. By the time we fueled and confirmed the portable runway lights were going to be ready in Ghanzi, the two paramedics had returned from delivering the patient to the hospital. There was blood all over the aircraft and it took quite a bit to clean up, but in a short time we were on our way. Tonight the lights were spaced nicely on the runway (not always the case) and we landed, loaded up our patient, and were airborne just after 1:00AM. After “putting the aircraft to bed” and going home and getting a quick bite to eat, I crawled into bed at 4:30AM ready to crash.

Saturday the aircraft had to be fueled and prepped, but was otherwise quiet and I fortunately got a good night’s sleep and went to church. After eating lunch when I am on first call I always try to rest in the afternoon, because one never knows how long the night will be. I went to bed and read about 3 minutes when the call came for a premie born earlier that day in Maun and needing to get to Francistown. We got the paramedics, loaded the incubator, and headed to Maun. After getting the baby to the hospital at Francistown we had enough time to home, and landed at Gaborone about 15 minutes before 10:00PM, when the airport closes. I got home, got a bite to eat and again just crawled into bed at 11:40PM when the doctor from Kasane called and asked if we could do a flight that night. They had a critical patient and didn’t want to wait until morning. Why does the phone always ring just after I crawl into bed – maybe if I didn’t go to bed………? I told him I would talk to Mark and we would call him back. There were many things that had to be arranged. Airport openings at 3 airports, portable lights at Kasane arranged, fueling in the middle of the night (the aircraft got back late less than two hours ago and could not be fueled), and a decision made whether safety was not compromised because of a fatigued crew. After discussing things with Mark and talking to Ryan (the other pilot on call), we decided we would take the trip if all the arrangements could be made. Mark was having trouble getting the fuelers to answer the phone and asked if I could try to track somebody down to come in and fuel and he would work on the other arrangements. After several attempts I woke somebody up on their cell phone and they agreed to come out to fuel the aircraft. I notified Mark that Ryan and I were heading to the airport to fuel the aircraft and get ready to go while he worked on getting things organized. The paramedics were notified and on the way as well. We got the paperwork completed, flight plans filed, and the aircraft fueled and ready to go while Mark was working furiously on the arrangements – having real difficulty getting someone to put the portable runway lights out at Kasane. We were strapped in and ready to “push the button” – waiting for confirmation from Mark that there would be lights at Kasane. As soon as we got the okay, we were on the way, taking off shortly after 1:30AM. Everything was in order at Kasane when we landed and we got the patient loaded. Mark was up all night trying to make the arrangements and nothing was going very well for him. It must have been frustrating – he had the hard job that night. We wanted to land at Francistown at 5:30AM, but they wanted us to wait until 6:00AM which was the normal opening time. Again we strapped in and waited for word from Mark that somebody had agreed to come in and open the airport. After he confirmed the arrangements were finalized, we departed and landed at Francistown about 05:40, just as the sky was lightening, promising a beautiful sunrise, which we didn’t even care about this morning – we just wanted to get to bed. We dropped the patient at the hospital, and then took the ambulance to our rooms, stumbling into our beds about 6:45AM. I told Mark at what time we would be available for another mercy flight and this time I turned my cell phone off – if a call came in now there was no doubt we could not do it safely - they would have to wait or use another airplane?

A Question Often Asked - ROGER

Flying medevac fights for the Botswana Ministry of Health has been a very fulfilling and worthwhile experience. Sometimes I’m asked about the most memorable mercy flight I’ve done. That is a very difficult question to answer. Usually when a mercy flight is requested in Botswana, the patient is in critical condition. For this reason there are times when the patient dies before we even land to pick them up, or while we are enroute to the referral hospital. Those are also memorable flights, but the flights that give a real feeling of accomplishment and fulfillment, are the majority of the flights that result in a person in dire need of medical care getting to a modern hospital in time.
I still get an adrenaline rush when the call comes for a mercy flight – the challenge of “making it happen”, and getting the patient to a hospital as quickly as possible; but at the same time doing everything in a manner where safety is not compromised in any form. Getting ready to launch requires a team effort by all four crewmembers (two pilots and two paramedics), as well as the flight coordinator who is busy making sure the all the necessary arrangements are made. While the flight crew preps the aircraft and gets the flight plans and paperwork completed, the paramedics are loading the necessary equipment and making sure everything required for the patient is working properly. The flight coordinator is making sure the airports stay open, if at night, and portable lights at some airfields are placed along the runway. He will be busy with calls and flight following for the duration of the flight.
After the patient is checked and the stretcher loaded onto the aircraft we are on our way as quickly as possible. Sometimes the paramedics are busy working on the patients, at other times when everything is stable, they are more relaxed. When a patient is onboard it is always nice to look back and see things “at ease”. When the paramedics are busy working on a patient, a sense of urgency is always felt.
After landing and the patient is moved to the waiting ambulance, it is with a sense of relief that the aircraft can be put to bed, unless of course another patient is waiting somewhere, which happens more often than you might think.
I have yet to find an equivalent experience that provides one with a feeling of fulfillment and satisfaction at the end of a day, like the feeling after a day of flying mercy flights. Knowing that you were part of a process that helped save a life – that’s all it takes to make this experience in Botswana very worthwhile.

Getting Connected - JOLENE

I guess Renae just posted a blog about our trip to Moremi, and about the time our company was here, so on to other things. I’ve started to be involved in a couple of other things and am finally feeling like there might be a reason that I’m here!
One of the things I’ve been doing is going to Otse where there is a Home Based Care Center. A few years ago before ARV’s were available people with HIV/AIDS would come to this center for care, and ones in terminal stages would be there until they died. Since ARV’s are available there is not such a need for a place like this to come, but it is now a place that Home Based Care givers go out from into the village to make sure HIV/AIDS patients are taking their ARV’s and teaching nutrition, etc. It is also a place where people from the village come to work on various projects – there is a garden there, a quilting group and others make beads/jewelry. The hope is that some of the projects become income generating, but so far they haven’t really found an outlet for their crafts. I am helping another Flying Mission wife, Evelyn, with the quilting project. So far they have done some small projects and made some really neat bags, and their next big project is a quilt. Earlier they had made dolls, and did some fabric painting and made skirts. There are four women that are in the class, and are fun to work with and are doing well. For some it comes easier than for others, but they are all learning. And I am too!
Today I met another very interesting lady. Mma Mogapi is a very busy woman, but one of the things she does is have children come to her yard every Saturday morning where they play, have a bible story and singing, and are fed two good meals. She came to my house today to pick up the clothing that was brought over by Jim & Glenda, from MCC. The clothing will go to the children that come to her yard. She wanted to go through everything before Saturday to be sure there would be something for everyone, and no one would be left out. She told me all about the other work that she does – teaching nutrition, following certain children to be sure they are getting fruits & vegetables and growing properly, and also working with HIV/AIDS people to make sure they also have proper nutrition. She & her husband also do marriage counseling together. I’m sure she has other projects going also – it made me tired to hear of all the things she does!
I took her out to her house then with the clothing, where she will sort it. Then Saturday morning Renae, Katrina, and I will go with two other Flying Mission short termers to help with the children and be there when the clothing is distributed. Thanks to our small group at church, Jim & Glenda, and MCC, for making sure the clothing got here! It will certainly be put to good use.
We finally connected with our friend Maria, in Bokaa where we had done our village live-in back in 1985. It was so good to see her again and meet two of her 5 daughters, and a granddaughter. Penyo is her oldest daughter and works in Gaborone. Penyo called yesterday to try & come see us. It didn’t suit at that time, but we’re hoping to connect more with her.
It is feeling very good to have some meaningful relationships and connections with local people here. Many are working tirelessly in their communities to serve and help people, and I have nothing but respect for them and the things they are doing.

Hello to everyone again! - RENAE

So much has been happening here that I feel like I should let you all know what has been going on…
My school let out April 9 since the first term was over. The school year here is year-round and split into three terms with about a month’s break in between each term. For this break, a lot has been happening.
The first vacation I went on was to the beach with a group of 10 other missionaries here. My friend’s dad won a bid on a beach house for 10 people for 1 week down in South Africa, and so our family was invited. My dad had to work, but Katrina and I went anyway. We stayed in Ramsgate, which is about a 12 hour drive from Gaborone. It was a gorgeous place to stay. The beach was 100 m away, so we walked/drove there just about every day. It was an extremely relaxing week and a LOT of fun.
When we got back from the beach, we had one day to work and get the house/yard ready for the Evans’ and Nicole, who were coming the next day. They all got here safely and it has been great to have them here. We left right after church the Sunday after they arrived to go on safari. All 8 of us, plus our luggage, piled into our Landover, Tau, to make the 10-hour trip up to Maun. That in itself was an experience – soon after dark, it began to storm and rain like I’ve never seen (which is ironic – the Evans always bring rain whenever we go camping, but it is past the rainy season so everybody was surprised), so we were slowed down considerably. On top of that, there were cows and donkeys EVERYWHERE, not to mention potholes. We normally don’t drive on highways at night (it is too dangerous with the animals), but we just crawled along slowly and all watched out for animals. Our 10-hour trip turned into longer than that, but at least we arrived in Maun safely. We camped in Moremi for 3 nights and saw a variety of different animals. The big exciting thing we saw was a pride of 10 lions. We were extremely close to them, I could easily have touched them I if I would have been stupid enough to stick my hand out the window – which was open. We were surrounded by them – in front, behind, and on both sides. Ironically, Tau (our Landrover) means ‘lion’ in Setswana :) I thought that was cool. So the Evans’ brought the rain AND lions, both of which are good. They are amazing beasts, lions, and I could have watched them all day. It was getting dark and we needed to go back to our campsite. Wow. I still can’t believe we were that close to a pride of 10 lions. They were all lionesses, and young males. I’m still amazed at how lucky we were. Our last night of camping, we heard lions roaring all night long. It kind of puts you to sleep. They were on both sides of our tent (but not too close by). All in all, it was a great trip and I was sad to go. I definitely want to return there.
On our way home from Maun, we dropped Nicole off in Tonota, a village, where she will be staying for the next 2 ½ months. I really would like to live in a village some time, maybe when I’m out of college. It seems like a good experience, but then again, just being in Botswana is a good experience. I think Katrina, Lisa (who’s coming in a few weeks – YAY!), and I will probably take a bus up there to visit her sometime. I hope so.
The Evans’ leave on our first day of school, which is Monday. I’m not excited for school to start, this vacation has been too much fun!
Trust all is going well,
Renae

A Slower Life - Jolene

Honestly, I haven’t even read our last couple of blogs, done by Roger and maybe Renae too. Without internet it’s a bit difficult to keep up with it. So, if this is a repeat, forgive me.
In many ways, life here has settled down to the point that things seem routine, but in other ways, there is nothing routine about it! At least not routine in the sense that every day is predictable and maybe even the same. Maybe routine in the fact that nothing is routine. Anyway, my days are sometimes mundane, sometimes stretching and exciting, but never boring. (at least not with a good book in hand!). I really do love the slower pace here and therefore the conversations that can take place and the connections to people that can be made. There is so much more inviting people over for dinner that goes on, more sitting around fires, more looking at the stars. More time for personal reflection, reading, journaling.
Easter is a big deal around here, and both Friday & Monday are holidays. Many, many people go from the city to their home villages to celebrate, and it’s a time to go to the ‘lands’, or cattle post. Easter Monday we headed out to the village of Bokaa where we had done our village live-in back in 1985, and where we still have some friends. However, we didn’t have a lot of luck finding folks, as Maurice was at the cattle post, and Maria was at the lands. We did talk to Topelo though, who would have been a two year old when we arrived – we wouldn’t have recognized him, but in talking to him we did remember him, his mother and his sister. His mother was the daughter of the woman we lived with. A dam has been built just outside Bokaa so we took our lunch along and went there to eat it. It was very peaceful there with the water, birds, dragonflies and butterflies. Then we decided to go home a different way, and couldn’t have done it without our trusty Land Rover!
Sometimes after being in a village again, I wonder how that could be somehow transported to where we live, either here or in the states. I know it can’t, but I just love the getting back to basics that happens there. We saw SO many people sitting around in the shade, talking or having tea or whatever it was they were doing, but just sitting and being with people. (I’m sure, being a holiday there was more of that than usual). Maybe I’m just lazy with no ambition, but just the simpleness of it is very calming to me. I do know their lives are not simple and they do work hard – but even that has a satisfying quality to it – having to gather firewood for cooking, water for washing by hand. Maybe I’m romanticizing here (probably am), but I do love going to the village, and remember our time in Maun in the village as the best time of our experience over here. Sitting around a fire and looking at the stars at night have to rate right up there with being in heaven!

Thankfully Things Have Changed - Roger

As someone who was with Flying Mission 24 years ago (seconded by MCC), and now has returned for a short time to work with Flying Mission (although now a completely different organization); I was asked to have the devotions at the dedication of our recently purchased King Air 200, since I saw the progression of where we came from. As I was thinking about how Flying Mission is so different today than it was 24 years ago, at times I became nostalgic for the old days. I miss the following:
1. The whine made by the IO-520’s turning the prop tips close to the speed of sound, as the Cessna 206’s struggle to take flight. I still get to hear that on the ramp at Maun!
2. The intimate relationship with the vast remoteness of Botswana and the Central Kalahari Desert. As pilots we knew virtually every corner of the country and spent a lot of time in many remote villages.
3. The conversations and dialog with the doctors from all over the world as we chauffeured them throughout the country, spending many nights in beds at the clinics as we hopped from village to village – at times having to get up in the middle of the night because we often slept in the maternity room, and if a child decided to enter the world that night, well…........., there went our good night’s sleep.
4. Flying missionaries to the many places they lived and worked, and the good conversations that resulted – the nights by the campfires in their villages. We also got to go along and spend time at the exotic places where they would want to vacation – seeing many of the amazing sights throughout Southern Africa – although Victoria Falls got to feel a bit too routine.

Anytime I get nostalgic for the above I only need to allow my thoughts to take the next logical step, and remind myself:
1. I thank God the Cessna is no longer required by FM – and am thankful FM was forced to get a new vision and “go beyond” that. Now we have a King Air to transport patients. It is faster, more comfortable, safer, and has enough room for medical professionals and life-saving equipment. Now I can enjoy the snapping sound of the ignitors and the whine of the turbo-jet engine as it spools up. The only better “aviation” sound is the spool up of a jet engine.
2. I am thankful missionaries can now drive to locations all over the country because paved roads have been built at an amazing speed – shrinking the remote areas of Botswana incredibly. In addition it seems like there are fewer missionaries required – hopefully because many have “worked themselves out of a job”. It is exciting to see so many more trained and capable Batswana, and the standard of living for the local population has improved greatly. The battle now will be to not let “the rich get richer and the poor get poorer”.
3. Even though I miss the variety, I thank God that because there are now hospitals and vastly improved health care facilities with full-time doctors staffing them throughout the country, a doctor no longer needs to visit the remote communities only on a monthly basis.

Thankfully one thing feels the same – the fulfillment and satisfaction received from being a part of saving a life. After my first stint in Botswana I seriously entertained the idea of returning to study medicine. I think it would be a very fulfilling profession – however being 37 years old at the time I finally decided to let it drop. If only we had several lifetimes to do the things we want – one is just not enough!

When I worked here in the 80’s my flying was very varied and I remember discussions with the other pilots of which flights were the most fulfilling – some felt more fulfilled in transporting missionaries, but I always received the most satisfaction after finishing a mercy flight and getting a critical patient to adequate medical facilities. The feeling of losing a patient enroute feels the same as it did before, it is never fun, however the feeling of getting a critically ill patient to a facility so their life can be saved also feels the same – it feels GREAT! In the years I worked here before, I’ve had births and I’ve had deaths on the airplane. So far this time I’ve had a death, but have yet to have had a birth, although I’ve had several newborn babies.

Thankfully I don’t have to go back to the “nostalgic” times. Botswana has moved beyond that and I am thrilled to be involved with transporting patients for the Ministry of Health in the “New Botswana”.

STANDING STILL AND SINGING AT THE SAME TIME – IMPOSSIBLE (ROGER)

I forgot how much I enjoyed the singing in many of the churches in Botswana. We visited several churches when we first arrived and decided to attend a church in Old Naledi – a poor section of the city – composed of many of the original “squatter” houses that were built prior to the first time we arrived in the mid 80’s. The church has a ministry feeding “vulnerable” children from Old Naledi each week day. Jolene and the girls have been helping with that every Friday. If I have a day off during that time I also help. Renae has also been attending the youth group activities Thursday evenings.
One of the highlights of Sunday mornings for me is always the singing. There is a lot of singing and dancing throughout the morning, and it is very lively. It is so enriching to see the people caught up with the music. Since there is no electricity, and no song books or musical instruments the singing is all A cappella. Songs are all started with somebody singing the first phrase, and then the group joining in. Even though there are not that many people in the building, the plain walls and cement floor make for incredible acoustics, and the room is filled with incredibly rich harmony. The special “African” rhythm, accented by the loud clapping, along with the slurring of notes in unison and the rise and fall in volume, and the occasional shrill, high-pitched undulating warble of the old women, is truly a thing of beauty, and a part of the service I very much enjoy. Every time there is singing, and there is much of it throughout the service, everyone jumps to their feet and gets fully involved. There is dancing and enthusiastic clapping and I am convinced it would be impossible for this group to stand still while singing. Sometimes some of the older women move into the aisles and dance while singing, and it is truly a time of worship for them. The expressions on their faces show their enthusiasm and joy. I wonder sometimes what would be going through their minds if they came to my church in the US for a song service. It is just as hard to find somebody at my home church move when they sing, as it is to find somebody in our church in Botswana stand still when they sing. Before you get too concerned let me assure you, Jolene, Renae and I are not completely still when we sing here, but we look pretty lethargic compared to the rest of the congregation. Just a word of warning however, if you sit beside us on the pew when we return, we may sway into you just a bit when we sing the first couple Sundays. Hopefully we’ll remember not to jump up when we first start singing – because that is another thing that happens here – after all how can one sing while sitting down – it just does not work.

OLD NALEDI - RENAE

Every Friday, Katrina and I get picked up at 12, an hour early than school ends, to go to a feeding program in a part of town called Old Naledi. It is where orphans and vulnerable children are given a free lunch. I’m not 100% sure if this is right or not, but I think that a lot of the kids that go there are living with a relative because their parents have AIDS. Since the relatives don’t have enough money to care for them, they get free meals to take the stress off the relative’s family. Old Naledi is also the very poor part of town, kind of like the slums of Gaborone. This past week was our third time there. The first week, Katrina and I were pulled into helping a lady with some computer work, but the computer shut off twice while we were trying to type up the data she gave us, and then the printer wasn’t working, and we had several other technical difficulties. It took the entire time so we didn’t get to help out with cooking or playing with the kids. The second time we got there later than usual and just gave the kids the food, but there was plenty of help in the kitchen and I just felt in the way. This past time was an adventure…
We got there earlier than before, and the kids had just started coming. They’re from all ages, I’m guessing from 3 to 12. I went over to some kids hanging out under a tree, and at first they were really shy, but when more kids came it was like a mob attacked me. They would all run up to me and either hold their hands up to be held, climb on my back, or ask me to spin them. I was a human jungle gym. Some of them weren’t that little, either, but they wanted constant attention. They would fight to get on my back. It was a little overwhelming, but it was also fun. They found my headband very entertaining and it got passed around a lot. They also liked to play with my hair, since it’s so different from theirs. Two older girls tried to teach me a hand-clapping game but I still don’t get it. It’s a bit hard to communicate, since a lot of them only speak Setswana, and if they do speak English it is with a very thick accent.
Before they eat, some of the other short-termers lead singing and act out a bible story. Then they all get in a line and have water poured over their hands, get their food, and sit down to eat. Usually it is either rice or mealie-meal with goat or beef on top. I would guess that there is about 30-40 kids that come, but not all of them eat, some just come after school to have fun. It is a good program and I’m excited to keep going there even though it sure is tiring.

HARD DECISIONS AND MEMORIES OF ANOTHER MERCY FLIGHT - ROGER

Since I got my paperwork sorted out I have been very busy flying, one flight even called out at night to one of the few places we can fly into at night – arriving back at 3:00AM. The mercy flights seem to come in waves, and right now we are riding a high one. I have had numerous car accident victims, a few maternity cases, at least one assault victim, a donkey cart accident, and a few newborn babies as patients. This is all in the last two weeks. Three of the patients have been completely paralyzed from the neck down, with little hope for a recovery. Two of those patients were transported to South Africa, but the rest of the flights have all been from a smaller referral hospital to one of the two better equipped hospitals in the country. When we lived here in the 80’s and 90’s many of our mercy flights went to South Africa, but today almost all of the patients can be treated in Botswana. The health care in the country is vastly improved and doctors are stationed throughout the country and can treat many patients in the new hospitals. It is great to see the improvement. The last time I was here the most frequent mercy flight was for maternity cases. Today vehicle accidents seem to be the major cause.

The last three days some difficult decisions had to be made by the paramedics onboard. Last night we got a call late for a mercy flight from the hospital a little over an hour’s flight away to go to South Africa. They decided it could wait until morning, so we left early today for the flight. While the paramedics were at the hospital preparing the patient for transport we got a call of a very critical patient in Maun, and it was decided since the patient for South Africa was fairly stable we should go for the other patient at Maun. That is over an hour away as well, and while loading the patient we got another call for a pre-mature baby at Hukuntsi. Since we did not have enough duty time to do both remaining flights the doctors and the paramedics had to discuss which one we should do. It was decided we would go to South Africa and the baby would have to be transported by road, but it was very likely the baby would not survive.

Two days ago we also had a situation where a decision had to be made quickly. We had to go to Ghanzi to pick up a three day old baby in critical condition – a 1.5 hour flight. When we arrived they decided to send another cancer patient along. About 30 minutes after takeoff the cancer patient stopped breathing and the paramedics were frantically trying to resuscitate him. While they were trying to revive him the baby’s mother told them her baby was blue and was not breathing. Decisions, decisions! Which one do they try to revive with their limited equipment? Which one was more likely to survive? They decided on the baby, and did get her revived, but the other patient did not make it. It was a stressful day for the paramedics, and made me appreciate some of the life and death decisions medical personnel are called to make at times.

We had to dodge thunderstorms the last part of the trip, and I couldn’t help but think of the last time I had a 3 day old baby on board dodging thunderstorms across the Central Kalahari Desert, with a doctor frantically trying to keep her breathing. The mother that night handed her baby over to the doctor, not wanting to have her baby die in her arms. At least this time I had weather detection equipment, and I had not lost my alternator as well as communications and all electrics. That long 2 ½ flight, over 19 years ago, was the most stressful flight of my career. I prayed that the child in the back struggling to breathe would also grow up to be a beautiful healthy young woman, just like the other baby I flew 19 years ago – our daughter Lisa.

Standing in Line and a Stolen Bag - Jolene

Last Friday I decided it was time for me to get my Botswana driver’s license. Basically we’re getting it because if you have an accident after you’ve been here three months and don’t have a Botswana license, insurance won’t pay. So, now was as good a time as any, right? Roger had gotten his earlier in the week and it was fairly painless, although he also had to wait, just not as long as I did!
I arrived at the driver license center about 7:30 am, which I realized as soon as I got there, wasn’t nearly early enough since there was a very long line already and the doors weren’t even going to open for another 15 minutes. Finally the line started moving into the building and I got my number – I was #75! After that line, I stood in another line to get my eyes tested, and then another line to make sure I had all the papers that I needed (thankfully I did), and then it was a matter of waiting until they called my number – which they did five hours later! I did leave for a couple of hours and came back later, so that part wasn’t SO bad. I had everything I needed the first time and got my license!
When we came out of the building, our tire was completely flat, so Roger put air in it, and we went to a place where they could fix the tire. We backed up into the garage and a guy started working on it right away. When we were getting back into the truck to leave I noticed right away my bag was nowhere to be found. Roger, Renae & I were right outside the vehicle the whole time, but someone had stolen my bag right out of the vehicle in broad daylight with people all around. We’re sure we know who did it, and in looking back he was suspicious looking, but we weren’t thinking of anything at the time. The main thing that was missing was my passport (which I needed to get my driver’s license or I wouldn’t have had it with me), my brand new license that I had waited 5 hrs to get, a credit card, my wallet, my sunglasses and various & sundry other small things. Thankfully my cell phone was not in the purse, nor much money at all, only a couple of dollars. Normally when purses are stolen it’s cash and a cell phone they’re after, and neither of those were in it. SO, we went to the police station and filed a report, and then decided that since I had just gotten my license that day maybe I could go back & they could issue another one for me right away. So, I went back to the person I had seen before and told her the story. She said that she could help me after she had helped everyone else that was still waiting. So I sat down and waited for close to two more hours, and when everyone else was finished I again went up to her window, but now she said, no she can’t help me today, I’ll have to come back Monday, that there is another form I need to fill out for the duplicate license and I’ll have to re-test my eyes. Needless to say, I was not very happy. All in all, it was NOT a very good day!
BUT, there is a silver lining in this cloud! Two days later, I got a call on my cell phone from a guy that said he found my bag! So Roger met him and indeed he did have my bag. It had my passport in it and some other cards that are worthless here, but not my U.S. or Botswana license, credit card, sun glasses, etc. But I was very thankful to have my passport, which was the main loss and the hardest to replace. Hopefully I learned a lesson through this – I can’t be too careful – there are some very clever thieves out there just waiting for an unsuspecting person. In thinking about it later, we think it was an inside job, and the guy that was fixing the tire and the thief were working together, although of course the guy working on the tire insisted he didn’t know the man or anything.