Hit the ground running would be an understatement for our first week back. Multiple end of the year presentations, exams, and projects welcomed us home. I keep finding myself twisting assignments to include something I learned or experienced in Honduras. How can I correlate the use of hyperbaric treatments for ischemic wounds AND our experiences in Honduras within the same assignment? Oh I’ve tried, and I am thankful for this blog as it is currently serves as my personal outlet of expression.
I am writing from my front porch, suspended in my new hammock, fresh from Honduras. A SmartCar just drove past, a family is going for an afternoon stroll, the manicured lawns are green and kids are walking home from school carrying Dora the Explorer and Princess backpacks. It feels like a different world. Sometimes we forget what is outside of our little sphere. For the first time, ever, I am thankful for student loans. I can’t fathom education not being an option; in fact I am beginning to wonder if I am becoming a glutton for school as I ponder MSN programs. The blessing of education and options has challenged me. I was just in another country caring for families where the children would be lucky to reach the 6th grade, meanwhile I was in fact learning from Duke’s best. So not only am I privileged to attend school, but I am blessed with phenomenal instructors. Speaking of phenomenal instructors, we realize that our experience during these two weeks and the preparation which preceded them only took place because of the leaders who orchestrated every last detail, including the flexible ones.
Dennis, Penny, Rey and Bob. Your dedication to this community is difficult to describe. I couldn’t begin to understand the weight of your investments in Las Mercedes until I felt it.
Thank you Dennis, for supplying an absurd amount of insight, into everything. I now know how fast a mosquito can fly, the amount the temperature changes with every 1000 feet of elevation, and I can differentiate between staph and strep skin infections. You run a tight clinic, even while sick, with a smile on your face. 
Rey. What can you even say to Rey? You have a unique way, with patients and life. Thank you for the laughs, for sharing yourself, and taking time with each of us. We are all better for knowing you.
Rey. What can you even say to Rey? You have a unique way, with patients and life. Thank you for the laughs, for sharing yourself, and taking time with each of us. We are all better for knowing you. 
To Penny, thank you for being so intentional in your teaching. You challenged us clinically and personally. Your transparency in sharing your experiences was a great encouragement, thanks for investing in us. 
Rosa, we loved seeing you outside of the classroom and working with patients. You earned patient trust in the midst of complicated situations, you are sensitive and compassionate beyond words. And of course, a big thank you for being patient with all of our Spanglish.
Rosa, we loved seeing you outside of the classroom and working with patients. You earned patient trust in the midst of complicated situations, you are sensitive and compassionate beyond words. And of course, a big thank you for being patient with all of our Spanglish. 
Bob, while you were physically with us for half the trip, we felt your presence the entire time. We could see your hands all over the pharmacy and enjoyed ‘Bob stories’ from previous years. Thank you for developing a seamless system.
And to the PT, Dawn. Thank you for breaking things down for us, what you saw instantly took some of us 20 minutes of explanation to sort of understand. Your humility in teaching makes you all the more effective. Thank you. (The dance lessons were also appreciated).
And to the PT, Dawn. Thank you for breaking things down for us, what you saw instantly took some of us 20 minutes of explanation to sort of understand. Your humility in teaching makes you all the more effective. Thank you. (The dance lessons were also appreciated).
I could write more on my own behalf and that of my friends, but please know that we are grateful to you for your investment in all of us, we will use it well.