Isaiah 60:1
“You can’t get there from here.”
Actually, you can get to Kudjip, but it takes a while.
There are no roads to the capital because of the mountains and rough terrain.
The Kudjip Mission Station sits in a valley between mountains to the north and south.
Mt. Hagen is the nearest town with an airport, 45-minutes to the west.
The mountains which make travel so difficult are very beautiful.
The hills are covered with a carpet of green rainforests.
And the tops of the mountains surrounding the mission are decorated each day with a new combination of white clouds. And when they burn off, even higher mountains are seen behind them.
It’s over a mile high and the weather is pleasantly cool.
You can see the afternoon rain clouds coming in from a long way off.
The tropical skies are expressive and ever-changing.
Painted metal and concrete
The buildings on the mission station are either painted metal or concrete cinder-block; no brick anywhere. Like most mission hospitals, all the staff live nearby on the mission station.
In 1957, the government of Papua New Guinea (PNG) government leased land to the Nazarene Church as a way of keeping 2 hostile tribes apart. In 1967, the Kudjip Nazarene Hospital was born.
Kudjip is a very good place.
The hospital is supported by a combination of the generous Church of the Nazarene, the PNG government and building projects through Australian Aid. 4 shipping containers come each year to the hospital through the northeastern port of Lea. Equipment at the hospital is quite good. Everything is recycled until it wears out. Cloth drapes and gowns are the standard.
I’m particularly impressed by the hospital staff. They’re dedicated, hard-working and very good. There is a special esprit de corps and culture. Everyone does their part and helps each other. At 7:30 each morning, the nursing staff have prayer devotionals at their nursing stations. I don’t see that everywhere. Kudjip Hospital is a very good place!
Kudjip’s missionary children
Despite being rural and somewhat isolated, it doesn’t feel that way.
The Kudjip mission station is the home of a very wonderful group of missionaries: young couples and their many children. Kudjip’s children create a wonderfully warm atmosphere which brings everyone together. Besides several full-time schoolteachers, all the parents at some point take a turn at teaching different subjects, including playing basketball or soccer.
The children inspire frequent mission station events. In November, there was the annual Olympic ‘field day’, when all the children competed in running and throwing events, with admiring parents and non-parents cheering them on. In December, there was a Christmas pageant complete with cute costumes and small voices reading scripture passages.
On station, there are small playgrounds, which include a grounded small airplane for them to climb on.
The People and the Market
The Marketplace in the center of Kudjip town at the end of the hospital road is always an active during the day. There’s plenty going on there every day. Men and women spread their vegetables and produce on plastic mats on the ground to sell. There are 3 small stores where you can buy carbonated beverages, flour and toiletries. They all sell the same items. There’s always a crowd around the row of outdoor dart boards, testing their skill. Maybe it is a small-town thing, but it is customary to smile and greet people as we pass each other on the streets. Despite the obvious poverty, I’ve never seen anyone beg for money.
Kira the Cat
Kira the Cat is a ‘group project’ at the mission station. She was temporarily left behind by a soon to be returning missionary. She “talks” and “meows” more than any cat I’ve ever seen. She gets at least one can of tuna from me each day, plus a little bread. When she’s not on the prowl, she’s got a place to get out of the rain. I do love cats.
“Watch-Men and Watch-Marys”
Developing world hospitals follow a similar pattern. All patients have family members staying in the hospital helping to take care of their loved ones. Malawi calls them “Guardians”.
The PNG Medical Community: ‘Everybody knows everybody’
There’s one medical school in PNG. It follows that the national medical community knows one another well, either by immediate contact or by history.
Bush Knives and Betel Nuts
Bush knives are long sword-like agricultural tools used to cut down vegetation.
They are quite common because PNG is an agricultural economy.
They are also the local weapon of choice. The injuries they cause are devastating. Both men and women are affected. Incomplete amputations of the legs or severe hand tendon and nerve injuries are very common. We call them “chop injuries”.
Betel nuts are green and the size of walnuts. They are sold everywhere in the local markets. People chew them and then spit out the rest. There must be something to them, but I’ll never try them. They are cause cancer of the mouth and tongue.
The medical missionary network
I’ve found that the mission world is a small one.
Every place I’ve been, there’s always someone who knows someone else.
For instance, the Caire family in Kenya knows the Brockington family in Malawi.
The Hodge family in Malawi knows the Crouch family in Papua New Guinea. Kudjip.
“World Medical Missions’ Physician Post-Graduate program” is very effective in bringing young medical missionaries to overseas missions. Plus, I’ve run across several graduates from the Family Medicine program in Tulsa, Oklahoma, called “In His Image”.
Kudjip is a good place and I hope to return someday.
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