I am a mariner. . .

   All of us who live on board the Africa Mercy are mariners.   Interesting rules apply to those who live on a ship.  For one thing, we have fire drills every 2 weeks and when the alarm is sounded  while we are in  port every single person must exit the ship and check in at their muster station (except for the hospital patients and staff caring for them).  Once we leave port and have fire drills we will muster on deck 7.  Every fire drill is a simulated situation so we will know how to respond for potential emergencies. There are 400+ crew on board the ship so it is quite impressive to watch the procession down the gangway.
   I love living on board the ship. Since I live on deck 3 which has no portholes I spend some time every evening on deck 7 or 8 which provide a starboard (right) side view of the dock and city activity or a port (left) side view of the ocean and a few islands in the distance. The sun sets around 7:15 pm.  We are beginning the rainy season so it has started to rain at night a few times a week but so far there has not been any rain during the day.  It is humid and in the 90's most days. We are beginning to prepare for the sail as it is called when we leave Guinea and head for the Canary Islands. I am told we might see dolphins as we sail!.
   It's hard to believe this field service is nearing the end.  I have only been here 2+1/2 months of this 10 month field service but the time has flown by. My heart belongs to Africa. I am so blessed to be here.

                                                           Storm clouds gathering. . .