Plane tickets booked...No turning back

I sat at the travel agent while my payment was being processed and it suddenly got very real to me (also cause that's the most amount of money I have ever spent in one sitting). I decided to only book my international flights through a travel agent and do the domestic flights myself as I get discount with Discovery and Kulula. It turned out that my domestic flights came to R922 and I had R972 in Discovery Miles so got my domestic flights for free, God is so good. 

I leave for my big adventure on the 27th November 2015 and will go spend the day and night with my amazing cousin Lauren and her fandamily. I decided to do this as to not take any chances with missing flights, sleeping in airports etc. My flight to Madagascar leaves the next day at 10:00 am and is only a 4 hour flight which is great for people like me who seem to get sick on every international flight. My whole trip will be just over 3 months in length and I will arrive back on South African shores on the 29th February 2016 (will only be back on the 1st March in Durban though)

I had an sms that came through the other day with a donation of R1500 into my account. I just want to say a huge thank you to this person and everyone else that has donated. I am truly so blessed to have so many people that believe in me.

I have been putting them off but next blog will be about the infamous injections...

Destination: Mercy Ships

So I have decided to start blogging again as I have been accepted to go onto an incredible adventure: MERCY SHIPS :) :) :)

My journey to Mercy Ships

I have always had the sense of adventure in me from a young age. This sense of adventure never left me and during my community service year last year, it was revived again with me working in the community and being away from home. I had the desire to travel somewhere new and help those in need, while gaining valuable life experience.

I started my new job at the beginning of this year and enjoyed the work, met amazing people and got such incredible experience. I still had this need inside of me to go on an adventure, but had no idea to where and to do what. I had been praying to God for a while about it and stumbled upon Mercy Ships while scrolling Facebook one day. The excitement that brewed up inside of me while looking through the photos and reading the success stories was immeasurable. While on holiday in PE my cousin was praying for me and confirmed that this was the right direction for me to go in. The whole process to applying for the ship took some time, as it required a full medical examination, in-depth application process, references and paperwork. It took me about a month to get it all together and at the end I started having doubts as to if I should go.  I submitted my application anyway and hoped for the best. A turning point in the whole process was when I sat down with my mom, sister in law and friend who drilled into me the desire that God had put inside of my heart and challenged me not to doubt it, as it is His plan and so I should not fear.

On the 1^st July I was officially accepted onto the ship - the joy that exploded upon hearing the news, was amazing. God is so good. I start my service on the 29^th November and finish on the 27^th February 2016.

What is Mercy Ships?

Mercy Ships is an American based organisation that has a ship “Africa Mercy” that has a fully equipped hospital on the ship that provides first-rate medical professionals, state-of-the-art medical and surgical facilities and health-care training to communities in West Africa, that lack those critical services. The ship is currently in Madagascar, which is where they will be for the next year and therefore where I will be placed. Please take a look at the following links for more information and to see some of the amazing pictures and stories that touched my heart.

Website: http://www.mercyships.org.za/home.html

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MercyShips?fref=ts

Instagram: mercyships

What will I be doing on the ship?

I have been accepted as the hand therapist during my stay on the Africa Mercy. This requires me to provide a specialist rehabilitation service for post-operative plastic surgery patients following burns, contracture release and correction of congenital deformities.

While on the ship I will be living in a multi-berth (6-10 beds) in a cabin which has no windows or a porthole.I will be sharing the space with other women working on the ship. Storage space is limited to a small closet and one small drawer. This is all going to be quite an adjustment as I am used to living on my own and having all the clothes that I need available. My parents were kind enough to buy me an early christmas present of a Kway duffel bag that they advised we used instead of a suitcase because it is easier to store away. 

My early Christmas present from my parents 

Mercy ships relies on a team of volunteer crew members who pay their own room and board, travel and personal expenses while serving. This allows the general Mercy Ships donations to be used for direct patient care, community development programs and other costs associated with its field service initiatives. 

I want to thank the following people who have donated or pledged to my adventure so far:

• Fawn and Nigel Jopson
• Christie and Steve Roberts
• Dave and Tracey Mclearie
• Craig Mannheim
• Tina Chetty
• Errol Wills 
• Gabi and Brad Wills
• Dan and Rachel Smither
• Lauren and Paul Henning
• Lorin Ash
• Coral and Alan Wills 
• Hayley and Ryan Braun

Please contact me on kaylzwilz@gmail.com if you would like to be involved in some way.

My next part of my journey is booking my flights and getting around 8 injections so watch this space to hear more...