News from Pokhara

Dear Friends,

These last few weeks have been eventful hence the lateness of this e-mail. I’ve been in Kathmandu, Nepalgunj, Surkhet and Jumla all within the last 12days. As a result Fiona has been left with the burden of clearing the house and selling off our various possessions, in addition to her normal work.

As many of you will know we have struggled at Green Pastures to provide good care for paraplegic patients after they leave the hospital. In many respects what happens within the four walls of the hospital is straightforward, but it’s providing patients with a place to live and with a sustainable way of making a living where we have experienced major difficulties. I heard a couple of weeks back that Ram Dhani, a young patient from the Nepalgunj area, with whom we had worked for the last 2years, had died at home, probably by taking his own life. Last week, another young male patient who lived locally, died suddenly and again we suspect he may have committed suicide. This week we are participating in a meeting with our community rehabilitation colleagues to look for a way forward, looking at re-settling patients and providing some form of employment that can raise standards of living beyond mere subsistence.

One bright ray on the horizon has been Sita KC. Sita is paraplegic and works as a counsellor here at Green Pastures. She works on the front line in the ward trying to encourage patients that they should not give up hope, particularly in the first few weeks after injury. Pokhara is one of the best places in the world to paraglide and when it came up in a conversation, Sita said she would love to try. The hospital contacted a local paragliding company and they arranged to fly Sita from the top of a local hill accompanied by a former Swiss paragliding champion. We bused all the patients from Green Pastures to the top of the hill to watch, and I’m glad to say she landed safely. It was a great encouragement to the other patients and Sita was quite overcome by the experience.

Give thanks for:

• Safe travelling by road and plane
• Sita’s paragliding trip

• The community rehab meetings this week

Please pray for:

• A breakthrough in the care after discharge of paraplegic patients
• Sita KC combining her Christian faith and her practical experiences with patients at GP
• Our final 4weeks finishing work and closing up the house

Iain & Fiona