First Doctor Visit

So Thursday this week was fun!  I woke up, we studied, I felt great and was ready to work and we get on the bus, and all of the sudden I think I'm gonna pass out.  I sit on the floor of the bus because there weren't any seats.  People are staring at the crazy American and I'm just trying not to die.  We get to our investigator's house and teach a lesson to Juan Carlos Reynaga.  My head is just spinning!  I´m not sure if I said anything intelligible in Spanish or not.  Then ... they give us ice cream ... and I can't say no to people and so I eat it.  No bueno!!

We left to eat lunch with the Abarca family.  I sit at the table and the smell of food makes me want to vomit, then my vision goes spotty.  Hermana Abarca leads me to their couch and I crash for like an hour.  My companion asks me if I want to call Hermana Camarillo (the wife of the mission president).  I have pride problems and so I say no that I'm good. Then I throw up in their bathroom, but afterward I feel better and so I say well I'm good now ... Let's go work!  This is about the time Dad is thinking I'm pulling a Mom and need to ask for help!

I bought a Sprite on the way to the bus.  About halfway to our next appointment, I'm seriously thinking death is coming and it is seriously angry .. spotty vision, my head is killing me, stomach cramping.  Hermana Valdez tells me I'm super pale and that we're going home. To go home, we catch a taxi. I'm doing okay, window down, breathing deep ... then he hits a patch of speed bumps.  Needless to say, the taxi stops, and I can't open the door fast enough, and then I'm literally throwing up gallons of water all over the inside of the taxi.  I was soaking wet!  It was so nasty and there wasn't anything I could do to help the cab driver.  Hermana Camarillo called us and told us to go straight to the doctor. 

Long and really disgusting story short .. he said I had gastroenteritis and dehydration.  He gave me some drugs and told me I had to stay down for three days days, and that I can't eat anything but white bread, white rice with nothing on it and ham.  No idea how that combination works!  I'm chuckling as we leave the office .. three days .. good luck with that! 

Turns out my body had other ideas. I slept literally all day on Friday. I was trying to study, but I could not stay away for anything.  Saturday was the same thing!  I just felt weak and nasty!  You know how Satan likes to creep on in during your weak moments?  I started thinking about how if I was home mom would make me noodles and dirty water and rub my head.  It was weird, but I just got so homesick .. on top of being really sick .. I just wanted y'all bad!  But then, I started reading my yellow service book. I read some old letters and I remembered how important my call is.  I remembered that the last person I'm here for is myself.  

I had to say some pretty heartfelt prayers about getting my mind on track.  I started to feel that this is my special time with the Lord. I'm never going to have this time again.  He has given everything for me, I think I can man up and give Him everything I have for 18 months .. and a little sickness is not going to bring me down!  I know that I can serve more, love more, be a better companion, all of these things. I just want Him to be proud of me.  

I'm all healed now, so no worries!  There's a couple of Hermanas that ended up in the hospital with the same kind of stuff, so it could be way worse!