While being here in Africa I have seen so many people and learned so many things. One of the common threads that have been demonstrated over and over again is the amount of strength that the African people have. Mai Ania has been a prime example of that in many ways over the past two weeks. Throughout the week between the first and second team, I was so blessed to be able to spend time with this Grandma doing her exercises. There were times that she would smile and even chuckle despite her pain. Once the second team arrived, we began the next step of her physio and actually got her sitting in a chair to do her exercises. It is hard to describe the first time that she actually sat in the chair and enjoyed the sunshine. I have never seen her smile so big and as she practiced taking deep breaths and doing her stretches, she said to me that she was feeling happy. What a joy to hear that.
We were also blessed with the opportunity to give Ania an audio bible in her native language that had been donated from someone months prior. God continued to give us opportunites to share His love for Ania over and over, which makes sense now as we are ending this week. Although Mai Ania seemed to be getting better, and it really looked like we may be able to help her start moving again, things changed drastically. As we went for our usual visit, we found a decline in her overall health, although she was so determined to continue with the exercises, the team could just see her weaken. As we began searching for what was causing the illness, it was like God gently showed the team that her time was ending. There was no sign of infection, no fever, but the pain worsened by the day and her energy just seemed to leave her.
At first, we struggled with trying to treat what was happening, but then God again gently lead us through a conversation with Ania. We were sitting in her hut in the evening with Pastor Rick and were talking about God when Ania shared that she had been sick for so long and that she was tired of being sick. She looked at us and said that she wanted to rest, and in my heart I knew that it wasn’t only her body that needed to rest, but also her spirit. We told Ania about how to find peace in Jesus, and continued to support her as the days continued.
Watching a person suffer is never easy, and depending on how you look at it, it can be very horrifying. For Ania, the suffering has been going on for decades in her life and has continued up until this very day. Even though we tried to give all we could in the way of nursing care, Ania body has been through so much and in a country where the life expectancy is 34, she being over 60 is quite remarkable. It is a difficult call to know when to stop rehabilitation and start palliative care, but for Ania, the need for that change was very clear. Over the past few days, she has gone from being able to sit up and talk with us and working through her physio to now being semi-conscious.
And even though my heart is so sad for this Grandma who I have grown to love very much, it hurts me even more to see her lying on a hard mat, in a cold hut, alone, and in pain. I miss her greeting us as we enter the tent already, but her spirit is no longer in the body that has failed her. This afternoon, as we prayed with her and our hands felt her cold limbs, I knew that the end was very near, and despite the sadness, there was relief. I know that God is present in that hut; I knew that even though the pain continued, that God’s mercies were stronger. When I think of my friend, this Grandma who has lived her life in Africa, strength resonates through my mind so loudly. She has taught me so many things through her example, and I feel so honored for the time I have had to know her. I will grieve with her family when she passes, but I will also rejoice knowing that she will no longer be in pain, and will no longer be suffering. Our thoughts and prayers are with our dear Grandma tonight and with her family.