Thursday- if PT doesn't work out- I could be a grass cutter with a machette

Thursday-
Today Carol and I went out around to 2 areas, Forest Home and Eldridge, around Hillside and worked with 3 patients.  2 of the patient are going to be part of the restorative program and we needed to re-evaluate them. And the 3rd patient is a new patient for home health, he has had a recent below the knee amputation and we are working with him at his home.  It is always neat to see the patient and family interactions and how different families are in the same villages. I am excited to be developing relationships with these patients, especially when I will potentially be coming to their homes on a weekly basis to work with them.

In the afternoon we had a lab day with Mr. James, who is responsible for the grounds care at Hillside.  We began our journey by carrying our bleach babies in the traditional Mayan way: in a Lapob!

The 3 PT students carrying our bleach babies with the Lapob

the back of me, in mid swing with the machette

side view of the bleach baby (its not correctly positioned yet!)

We walked to another one of the Hillside employee's land, a good 10-15 minute walk on rocky roads,then we were able to rest our babies on a tree branch while we learned to use a machette.
I found my second calling, it was quite fun cutting through blades of grass and little trees! I was already planning on bringing one home for Ethan, my brother, but it might be a shared gift :) After 15 mins of chopping away at things- I developed a blister and had to stop- I just needed some gloves!

My CI- don't mess with this

After everyone had their turn with the machette, we began the trek back and stopped at one of the weekend security guards houses for some coconuts.The coconut milk is amazing deliciousness!

Minus the clothes line through the middle, this is cute

Then Thursday night  the American girls, Caroline, Myself and Carley made breakfast for dinner. Pancakes, scrambled eggs and sauteed plantains- a huge hit!