The Mercy Ships journey to come

As I type this it's past 2:00 am and I'm sitting alone in our apartment's wifi lounge listening to my Hans Zimmer pandora channel. My husband is at work, my dog passed out hours ago: such is the life of a night shifter. I will tell you, working nights is one of the more isolating but also liberating experiences I've had. There is this abundance of alone time, which can feel quite suffocating. But on the other hand, you're able to fill that time with all the right stuff, if you have the willpower. And one of the biggest thoughts filling my time right now is Mercy Ships.

Mercy Ships...once this far off thing that could maybe happen someday is now this fast-approaching reality that we will join in just four short months. I've been looking forward to this for years, but I would be lying if I said I wasn't freaking out a little bit, lol. I had promised more details about this endeavor, and I believe now is that time. 

Back in nursing school days, I heard one of the gals from Whitworth mention an organization called Mercy Ships. She said it was a global charity that provided free healthcare to the poor in places like Africa via cruise ships turned hospitals. They performed surgeries, mended congenital deformities and the wounds inflicted by war. And everyone onboard these ships, from doctors to janitors, not only does their job for free, they actually PAY to be there.

What?? 

I had never heard of anything like this. At the time, I knew that I had picked nursing for more than just a future paycheck. I wanted to do something meaningful, to touch people's lives. And I had already been bitten by the travel bug. So I was fascinated by these extraordinary people who would give their time and money to be part of such a worthy cause so very far from home. "Someday," I told myself, "I will do that..."

Flash forward some six years. Since graduating from college I have moved more than half a dozen times, worked in four excellent hospitals, and married the husband I never thought I would, to my great delight!! And through all these changes, Mercy Ships has never been far from my thoughts. But it wasn't until Pat came along that it felt like a tangible dream. Here was the person I had been waiting for, the someone who could come alongside me and do this adventure with me! What a beautiful gift.

And now it comes to it. The plane tickets are purchased. In four months, we will actually go. What a strange feeling; to be on the brink of something you've only imagined for so long. And with this shift from imagined to realized comes the real life preparation - the vaccines, the insurance, the goodbyes you know you'll say, albeit hopefully just temporarily. And the finances - Lord knows this in itself is a sizable mental adjustment. Saying you'll do your job for free for three months and actually doing it are two very different things. 

So after much thought and prayer, Patrick and I are doing something we never do (writing letters) to ask our family and friends for something we never ask for (money). It may sound silly, but this is one of the most intimidating things I've ever done. I'm a grown adult. I pride myself on being self-sufficient. So it takes a significant amount of humility for me to ask others for help, no matter how awesome the cause.

I've never been one for fear. I find it to be an unreliable emotion; quick to betray you, make you imagine the worst. But if I'm honest, I'm afraid that we will come up short here. That somehow this will all fall thru and we won't be able to go after all. But, a dear friend of mine once told me that fear is just unbelief. Do I believe that we are meant to do this? Do I believe that God will take care of us? The answer must be yes. And if that's the case, then there's really nothing to be afraid of at all. He's already got it covered :)

-Emily

PS: If you'd like to come alongside us, please visit our donor website!

http://mercyships-us.donorpages.com/crewmates/mchenryp/