I am a character in the Muppets Treasure Island.

Ooph, it has been some week so far, and it's only Wednesday. 

Dave Hasz, an old teacher of mine, whom I admire greatly, once said, "an optimist gets thrown into a barn full of horse manure, and starts looking for the horse." 

WHERE IS THIS FREAKIN HORSE?!?!

I am standing in a pile of manure right now searching for the dang horse. 

I have been stretched and tried so much in the last days, I feel like Gonzo in the Muppets Treasure Island, when they put him in the torture machine where they stretch him out and twist his body, except I didn't get tall and skinny afterward. 

I have been feeling really sick the past few weeks, and so fatigued. I find my mind racing all night, unable to sleep and then I am so exhausted all day. 

I finally went to the hospital today to figure out if anything is wrong. I had to have a bunch of tests done and have blood taken. The lab tech couldn't find veins on either of my arms (after some unsuccessful jabbing and poking unnecessarily with needles), so he had to take it out of my hand, which REALLY hurt.

As it turns out, nothing is really wrong with me, I just have a cough and cold from the kids, and I'm so fatigued because my immune system is having a really hard time keeping up with all my snot covered students. So I spent 45,000 Shillings and got brutally stabbed with needles to find out I just need to sleep more and drink more water.

On Monday, I took Rosie to the hospital to meet with the doctors from Germany. We left at 7am and I didn't get home until 5:30pm. It was a LONG day. After waiting around for hours and hours, she met with the doctors and they told her that surgery would not be necessary, they will be able to fix her legs with splints and casts, which is awesome! What is not awesome, is that she has malaria. She will be staying in the hospital until Friday, because her mom needs help taking care of her and administering the meds. Rosie puked on me twice. I love her, but I really wish she wouldn't vomit on me, it's gross. I had to deal with the Tanzanian doctor and pharmacist who didn't speak English and asked me to speak Kiswahili to them. Ummmm... I can bargain cab rides and teach numbers, letters, body parts, and days of the week, and hold a pretty decent conversation, but I know nothing about how to speak of medicine in Swahili. To top everything off, I don't really want to get into it, but I felt that Rosie's mother was trying to get a lot of money out of me (which I don't have) and trying to take advantage of me. Since I was a little kid, people have often tried to take advantage of me. It really upsets me, because I would give anything to anyone if I was able. I came home and sat down and just cried, because it was just such a long day and I was so emotionally drained.

Rosie had to get tested for malaria, which just requires them to take a little blood, but she was SCREAMING. That was so hard for me to watch. I am not her mother, but my heart was breaking. She was in so much pain, and I had to help inflict the pain on her, because it was for her own good. It gives me a whole new respect for my mom and all the other moms I know. You know your baby is in pain, and it's partially your fault, but you're doing it to help them. It hurt me so badly to see her hurting and not be able to do anything.

Okay, I'm done complaining. 

The point of this is that this has been a rough week.

But in the midst of all this manure, there is a horse.

I don't have any infectious diseases, it's just a side-effect of spending time with my awesome kids, which is completely worth it.

Rosie is in the care of awesome doctors, and she won't need surgery.

The horrible incident of the needle-poking-rosie-screaming resulted in her finding out she has malaria and being able to treat it.

Vomit washes off.

I am learning to be grateful in the midst of trials.

Adversity makes me stronger.

And maybe, like Gonzo, these trials will make me stand a little taller.

I am Braver than I Believe.