Cruzin the Amazing Amazon: Mission Brazil

As many of you know I have a love for travel and medicine.This year since it had been a while, I decided it was time to go back to South America so I signed up  to go to the central part of Brazil and work in some small villages, which of course I always love. I had always wanted to go to Brazil, but I will admit I was a little disappointed to find that our area would be no where near the Amazon which had always been my childhood dream. However, as time progressed for some reason things changed and literally 2 days before I left I got a crazy call that we had been reassigned to the Amazon! Kinda really crazy, but you can imagine my excitement!!

To get there I had to fly on a ridiculously long redeye flight to Miami and then we took another night flight to Manaus, Brazil. From there we hopped on a bus and at literally 3 am climbed onto this random boat we would call home for the next 9 days. This boat consisted of 3 decks all out doors except for some showers and toilets on the second floor. It also had little laundry place on the bottom and a little kitchen on the top. In addition, it had a ton of hammocks that were super close together. While most of us were in a little bit of shock that this was where we would be sleeping, since it was 3 am we all basically said OK and found a spot.

Surprisingly sleeping in a hammock wasn’t too bad, but it was a little difficult because we were packed in like sardines and whenever you would move you’d hit the next person, it was like a domino effect. There was this one time when we were going and the ship stopped and we all swag back and forth like one of those little ball things you find on an office desk. It was good quick bonding experience for us I suppose, lol.

Each day of the trip we would get up, eat breakfast made by our lovely Brazilian cooks, then travel to our destination, and get to work. The Amazon itself was an amazing place, it was soo peaceful with tons of birds and plants.

There were areas that made it feel like it was a lake lake and others areas that were small and narrow that looked like swamps. We saw a few monkeys, iguanas, and parrots but not a ton of animals surprisingly and luckily not many crazy bugs or snakes!! One of my favorite things ever was the sunsets!! I have been to a lot of places in the world but I will have to say IDK what it is but the sunsets every single night were unbelievable! Despite the fact that was when the bugs came, lol.

During our clinics we saw lots of things, me being a peds person of course I got to see kids. I saw the usual ear infection, skin infections, tons of diarrhea, parasites, weird rashes, of course lots of coughs/runny noses. One little boy I saw came to me with severely burned feet that his family was trying to treat by putting this weird powder on it. Apparently his friend pushed him into some burning garbage. Needless to say cleaning skin off of a little boys feet is not my most favorite things because it hurts but I am happy we got him fixed up so he could get better!

Most of the people on the Amazon lived in little shacks and some seemed to have electricity. However, most areas did not have many, if any doctors and many of the villages had been or where flooded. One village we came to everyone had to come by boat and it made me sad as most of them were living in flooded homes and their children would walk or play in the same water that would put their sewage in. As a result, they had a lot of diarrhea and skin infections. We tried to educate them but its difficult when that is literally what they were living in.

 

Good news is most the people were very happy, friendly, and didn’t seem to mind their harsh circumstances. I guess to them that was part of life and they were learning to adapt, but when I got home and sat in my comfy house with all my stuff it defiantly made me think.

Besides the clinic our team also did an awesome job with community education. It’s amazing how many of the people don’t know little things like how to brush their teeth and wash their hands properly. We also taught them how to boil or clean their water so it was good for drinking. In addition, we had our chiropractor and she was awesome!! As one of the major complaints is back pain and joint pain she taught them all sorts of stretches and helped educate them in amazing ways, it was fun to watch.

On our off time it was fun to interact with the villages. One night we played games in a village and another night went to a really fun festival where the kids dressed up and did all sorts of dancing. It was cute to see the little kids do a dance performance and it reminded me of when we had those little “musical” performances in elementary schools.

We also got to go alligator hunting at night, which was kinda scary cool. They would shine a large spotlight and you could see all these red eyes staring at you and then they caught one for us to hold. I was kinda freaked out until they taped his mouth shut ;). We also stopped at a random spot on our way back from a village one evening and ya know went swimming in our scrubs. At first I wasn’t going to do it cuz it’s the Amazon!! But then I realized it was Amazon!! and did it. It may have been for only like 2 minutes but I did it, lol.

Over all the entire trip was unbelievable, the team was as always amazing. It never ceases to amaze me how wonderful some people are and I always feel soo completely blessed that I get to meet and work with them. The Amazon really was a special place full of such special people. It always blows my mind that people live the way they do in this world but seeing their smiles reminds me that God is looking out for them. As we drove back to the airport we randomly drove by the brand new Manaus temple and I felt so grateful to know that our Heavenly Father love them soo much and has blessed them with the gospel of Christ in their lives. That regardless of their trials they can feel of his love and the joy that it brings.

As I reflect on that experience and the experiences that happened in the 3 weeks after including the marriage of my sister and the death of a very close friend, I cannot help be full of gratitude for my Savior and the plan of happiness that he has given use. It made me realize that all that really matters in this life is the relationship we have with God and those around us. That how we serve and help others through life is what it is all about. It makes me want to be better and a greater fighter for the good and be more of a light in a world that is continues to grow darker. I am grateful that I know God lives and loves all of us. I know He is all around us more than we realize, and I know he is looking out for all of his children including those in Brazil, Africa, you, and me. I just pray we can all live our lives a little better so we can see it.