Egypt Tops the List!

Since I have limited myself from posting controversial articles on Facebook, I'll continue to do so here. Many people claim that Copts in Egypt are exaggerating the oppression we get from the majority. Alas, here is a worldwide study that lists Egypt (and my beloved, Bangladesh) as one of the worst places for religious minorities. Congratulations, Egypt and God have mercy on us all.

http://www.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/asiapcf/12/17/religious.restrictions/index.html

This is what Happens when You Hike

On the right is the tick that will latch on to your sweet skin and then it will begin sucking on your blood...until it grows to be the size of the one on the left. If I EVER found anything close to this on me, I would ask the doctor to start the IV morphine and let me pass on....

Sorry, I had to share. "He who increaseth in wisdom, increaseth in sorrow." (Ecclesiastes, dont have time to look up the verse though...)

Letting the Love of Christ Touch Your Heart

There are many reasons why I absolutely love St. Nicholas' Church and today, on the feast day of St. Nicholas, I was reminded of them. No one can deny that our Church is blessed with lots of kids, both newborns and little toddlers running all over the place. After attending the funerals of two amazing fathers in the last two weeks (one 77 year old, one 26 year old), and after Father Robert's sermon a couple weeks ago about letting the presence of a child be a source of love to you, its hard to not completely fall in love with these children of God. For me, the Eritrean kids have been that source of God's presence. These kids are like little angels--their eyes are innocent, they have the most precious smiles and they take care of each other. (For those of you unfamiliar, we've had many Eritrean refugee families recently settle in a city not far away from St. Nick's.) Watching them venerate the icons, hold the candles during the Gospel readings and receive Communion brought tears to my eyes today at Liturgy. Something stirred within me and gave me a most pure, warm feeling. I felt like we were one and the same. I had this urge to pick the little girl who was looking at me but fought it off by fixing my head scarf and breathing away tears.

I had the chance to catch up with Father Robert today. He was asking how school was going, etc. After chatting a while, I asked him to pray for me--for upcoming exams and of course, the Boards in a few months. He nodded in a peaceful smile and said, "You are already on our prayer list but today especially as we commemorate St. Nicholas--the healer of hearts, we pray to God that He will bless your work as well and let you use the sciences to also be a healer of hearts."

On this day, I thank God for hearing the prayers of those who regularly keep me in their prayers and (something I got from John's memorial service), for protecting me. I know that Jesus is the Christ. I know that God loves me very much and that He is my Protector. I know that He cares about me more than I ever will understand. And I am fortunate to know what His holy, loving, perfect Presence feels like.

Diarrhea, etc.

A few thoughts that came to mind when studying Microbio:

What does diarrhea with mucus look like? (I can't find a good picture online)

Daycare centers = third-world countries: incidence of infectious disease is too similar...so maybe doctors who usually have their children in daycare centers shouldn't be too concerned about their kids getting sick abroad...

The thought of fecal-oral transmission really disgusts me. Like seriously, wash your hands...after you use the bathroom, after you change diapers, after every patient you touch. Ukh. And teach your kids to not poop in the pool.

On a mostly unrelated note, today I got very sad news that my yoga teacher will not be teaching next semester...at a time when I need the most zen I can get (haha!) ...it will be unavailable to me. *sigh*