SHELLY OPENED HER eyes. She lay in pitch black darkness, except for a soft orange light filtering into her dark world from the opening to the hut. The smell of smoke rose into the air from the cooking fires. As the pain from her injuries returned, she closed her eyes in answer to it. Soft voices could be heard talking outside.
Well, if I’m not going to get any more rest, I might as well get up. She was stiff, sore, her arm ached, and her head started throbbing in pain again, but she was alive and able to move.
That’s a blessing in itself, isn’t it.
Slowly she walked to the entrance of the hut. As she stood there, she observed that the voices belonged to Benjamin, Sironka and a few other men from the village. It was early morning and the sun was just peeking above a hazy, smoky horizon. It glowed through the haze in a vibrant red hue. She smelled a denser, more acrid smoke outside. The raging fires from yesterday’s battle must still be burning in the hills and grass lands around them, filling the air with a sooty smog.
Then she watched a tall Maasai run into the village and stop in front of her Boma to talk to the small group of men. He talked excitedly, in a soft voice while breathing heavily from his running. After the runner left, Benjamin noticed her nearby and walked over to her.
“We have to leave soon,” he said. “The runner, Abashi, is one of several scouts that the village sent out to watch the fighting and alert us to danger. He just informed us that the militant army is still moving north. They have destroyed everything around Chomboni and are heading toward Kyemundu. It’s probably only a matter of time before they reach here and eventually Enguli and the clinic,” he said worriedly.
“I’ll get the children ready,” was all that she said as she turned to wake them up.
They ate a quick breakfast of cornmeal porridge with fresh goat’s milk and drank a strong, sweet tea with more milk. The whole village was in chaos as they prepared to leave, gathering their livestock and packing their few possessions. An air of anxiety and distress covered the preparations. The Maasai were a nomadic people, used to going from one place to another, but not in war, not in such a hurry, and not without knowing where to go. Shelly ached for them and their future. She knew Sironka, and the rest of the elders, would look out for their people to the best of their ability. She just hoped it would be enough to keep them safe.
The little trio thanked their quiet and gentle hostess. Shelly expressed her desire for Nalangu’s safety and the safety of her whole family. In fact, in Shelly’s heart, she desired that the whole village would find a safe place to go, but she was afraid for them. She was afraid for herself and those that she loved and was coming to love. How could she bear it if something happened to Tom or Faith now? Her eyes filled with tears and her heart ached with the impossible, uncertain answers.
Shelly refocused on the task at hand, and calmed herself as she continued getting ready to go. Do we have everything we had with us yesterday? She went over the items in her mind. Yes, we’re ready, she thought as she sat on the bench with Faith next to her and Tom nearby.
Using the sling again, for speed, they left a few moments later. Tom rode on the back of Jumbawai, one of the warriors, with Faith happy in the arms of Sironka, this time. Benjamin, Sironka and a few of his fellow warriors had agreed to help them reach the Enguli Compound as soon as possible. Benjamin was in a hurry to get back to the clinic and the Maasai were eager to return to their families.
Shelly was carried through the tall grass and past an occasional acacia tree with quick, long strides. The cool morning turned warm with the rising of the sun. Benjamin walked quickly on one side of Shelly, while Sironka carried his little “dhahabu mtoto”, Swahili for golden child, on the other.
Just before noon, the compound came into view. Benjamin was relieved to see it unchanged. Sironka turned to Benjamin and spoke to him quickly, as he put Faith down.
“This is as far as they will go,” Benjamin told Shelly. “They need to leave now.” Shelly got out of the sling. The men recovered the fabric and spears, quickly said goodbye and broke into a long, looping run that ate up the ground. In seconds the Maasai disappeared into the grass lands of Kenya. To what fate they ran, only God knew.
The four turned as one and headed toward the structures. Shelly noticed the compound consisted of three rectangular buildings placed in a “U” formation, with whitewashed clay walls, and metal roofs. Wooden shutters were secured in the open position onto the dusty walls, leaving the glassless windows open. The largest building in the center turned out to be the clinic, with the two smaller ones, on either side, the school and living quarters.
“Normally, there would be Maasai children everywhere,” Benjamin said. “They come from miles around to be taught here, but the war has changed all of that,” he said sadly. “The Maasai and I were coming from a village of burned out bomas when we found you. There was nothing we could do for the people there. If they didn’t escape, they were murdered,” he said miserably. “Ethnic cleansing, or any type of prejudice, is such a horrible disease. It destroys for no other reason than hate!” he said in anguish. “It’s such a waste of life.”
As they neared the clinic, they heard weeping and crying coming from inside. Two men, wearing blooded bandages, stood by the entrance. They gave way as the small group entered the structure. In the room that served as a reception area, a young woman lay on a makeshift stretcher, burned and disfigured. A small bundle lay next to her that must have been a child that no longer lived, for Shelly could see a small hand visible in the cloth. It appeared that the young woman had just died, as a nurse was pulling a sheet over her unseeing face. Crying in grief by her side were those that loved her.
Sitting and leaning against the walls of the room were wounded and traumatized individuals, mostly women and children. They were waiting for help from the few nurses in the room. Shelly’s heart cringed at the sight. Tears formed in her eyes as she listened to the heart-breaking sound of anguish and pain.
She strongly desired to help them, but what could she do? Nothing, but pray. But, how could she pray to a God that would continue to let this happen to the weak and innocent? To children! Oh, how she ached to take the little ones into her arms. Why didn’t His heart ache for them like hers did? He was God. He had the power to stop this. He had the authority to never let it happen in the first place. Where was He in all of this? Shelly ached with the crushing doubt that was building against the God she thought she knew and worshiped. She closed her eyes and said a silent prayer for help and understanding. She wanted so much to understand why.
A nurse looked up from bandaging an arm and gave a broad smile of relief when Shelly’s group entered the room. She ran over to Benjamin and threw her arms around his neck.
“This is my wife, Blessing,” he said to Shelly and the children, as she clung to him.
“Blessing, why are you still here? Why haven’t you left for Nairobi? Did Dr. Emery get away all right?” he asked his wife, as he placed her on her feet.
“The Jeep and van were taken the night you left and the hospital bus hasn’t returned. Dr. Emery cannot leave! We cannot leave! We are stranded here,” she said fearfully. “We tried to call the main office for help, but the phone lines don’t work. We can’t find help anywhere. Everyone has fled or lay dying here,” she said with a hiccup in her voice.
Benjamin hugged her tight and said softly into her hair, “It’ll be all right. Take a deep breath. I’m here. God is here. God will provide, you know He always has,” he said reassuringly. “Since Dr. Emery is still here, we need him to look at Mrs. Ferguson. She was hurt during an explosion and her left arm is broken. These two children should be checked out, as well. This is Tom and this is Faith,” he said as he pointed the children out. “Is he in the back?” Benjamin inquired.
“He is in ward ‘C’ operating on a patient with gunshot wounds. Mrs. Kimaru is due anytime. And we have two new patients with broken bones and burns in ward ‘A’ that need attending to, and then there are these…�
�� she said with apprehension and exhaustion, as she pointed out those waiting along the wall.
“Don’t worry funny face,” he said affectionately as he reached down and gave her a kiss on the check. “I’ll get Mrs. Ferguson and the children settled and come back to help.”
The pretty little nurse smiled broadly at the loving term and said, “I’m so glad you’re back and safe!”
Shelly interrupted them and said to Benjamin, “I can take the children and find a place to get out of your way. I’m doing fine right now and I don’t need immediate help. Just point me toward the kitchen. I’ll get the children something to eat and we can stay there for now.”
“No, I don’t think that’s a good idea,” he responded gently. “I want to take a few x-rays of your injuries and a head injury is nothing to play with.”
He turned to Blessing and asked, “Where’s Momma Blessing? Can she watch the children, while I get Mrs. Ferguson taken care of?”
“I last saw Momma in the kitchen,” she answered as she gave him another hug and swiftly walked back to her patient. “You know she would love to watch the children,” she said as she knelt down to continue her treatment.
Benjamin picked up his backpack and guided his charges down the hall between the wards. He found an empty bed in one of the rooms and directed Shelly to sit there and wait for him. He would be right back.
He then took the children out the back door of the clinic, along a dirt path lined with white painted stones, to a small building standing in the dust by itself. It looked like the other buildings, except it was the size of a large shed. Inside this one-room building stood a wood stove, tables, chairs, and benches. Cupboards hung on the walls holding various goods and supplies. A large metal sink was set in a wooden counter at the back of the room. The open window above it, indeed all the open windows allowed a small breeze to move through the room, while flies buzzed, here and there.
Momma Blessing worked over the hot stove preparing a meal for the compound. She looked up as the little group entered her dominion. She smiled a large warm smile when she saw the children. She loved all humans, but children were her special favorites.
She was a large, elderly woman of ample girth. Her perspiring face had laugh lines and plump cheeks, but her eyes were her most striking feature, they sparkled. You could see happiness and a vibrancy shining through her eyes that was startling and exciting at the same time. Benjamin introduced her to the children and they took to her immediately. He left them there in her tender care and returned to the clinic.
“How are you feeling,” he asked Shelly as he entered the ward.
Shelly was lying down on a bed, her eyes closed. “I do hurt a little… still,” she responded quietly. He could tell she was in pain. She looked pale and drawn. He took her blood pressure and pulse, and then he asked her to change into a hospital gown.
As Shelly disrobed, she noticed the cross still hanging over her heart. She wrapped it in the palm of her hand and closed her eyes, remembering Jim and all that had happened. Then she realized that if she hadn’t forgotten it, she would have been with the other women and children placed in that truck. It could have been her lying dead on the ground, if she had tried to get to her husband.
At least I’m not a prisoner or hostage. She said a prayer, took a deep breath, and put on the dressing gown.
As Benjamin developed the x-rays, he asked a nurse to give Mrs. Ferguson a sponge bath. Thoroughly cleaned, her head wound redressed, she lay quietly until Benjamin returned and said the break in her arm was a clean one and all they had to do was put it into a cast. While he was plastering her arm, he told her the children were being fed and in the care of Blessing’s mother. They would be well looked after. He put her to bed, gave her a sedative, and left her to rest.
Benjamin had no idea how much time they had before they would be exposed to the war again. It could be a matter of hours or maybe days, no one knew. But he knew she needed to sleep. Everyone needed to rest, but there just wasn’t enough time for some of them. The hurt and dying were waiting for him. So many people needed his help. So many lives were being destroyed. At least one person would be able to rest.
Benjamin prayed for rescue and then entered the clinic’s reception room, joining his wife in triage.
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A Tale Of Choice Page 15
