Introducing KUDJIP

What follows are my journal notes from when we first came to Kudjip. For those of you who have been following, I wanted to provide you my initial impressions of the area and Station, before diving into the many stories which have already accumulated during my first week working in the hospital. Thank you all for reading/following, for all your encouragement, and for your prayers - which we dearly appreciate. 

We have arrived at Kudjip Nazarene Hospital, our residence and place of service for the next year. At over 4’000 feet elevation, the air is cool, crisp and clean - cut through by intense rays of the equator sun. Burning brighter still is the Lord’s Love shining through His servants, the staff of Kudjip Station, who have rolled out the red carpet of hospitality.

Our welcoming team, and mentors for the year, are Jeff and Susan Myers, who have served as Nazarene missionaries at Kudjip Hospital for many years. Throughout the bustle of getting us settled, we have truly appreciated their savvy expertise in navigating the local area and culture.  

After arriving in Mount Hagen Airport, the Myers loaded us into their Land Cruiser and we set off for Kudjip Station. During the 45 minute ride into the Waghi Valley, Rachel and I received priceless pearls of insight regarding the local culture, and how things work “around here”.  Similar to most ex-colonial countries, we drove in the left lane…except here in PNG, it’s not always the left. Potholes are plentiful, even on the “major” roadways, so drivers use whatever good road there is…even if it’s on the wrong side. This might not be such a big deal, except most vehicles travel quite quickly here, and often two converging drivers choose the same space of road to occupy...which makes for further swerving and bumping. (I should clarify - Jeff Myers is a fantastic driver, and in no way put our lives in danger… :-)  

I think what concerned me more than the risk of vehicles colliding was the proximity of speeding/swerving vehicles to the MANY road pedestrians. Being that most nationals do not own a vehicle, let alone a bicycle, they either take a local bus (PMV) or walk (more often the case). So, whether wandering along the edge of the road, or stepping out to wave down a PMV, my heart twinged each time we missed a national by inches. 

In truth though, I doubt the locals are ever unaware of each vehicles’ proximity. It seems the roadways here are very much a part of the social scene. Not only does the road provide the quickest avenue through the bush, but since so many gather for this purpose, the lifestyle of long walkabouts bears opportunities in connecting with other members of a given “wantok” (village) or “lain” (family/clan). It almost has a parade feel:  passing groups of jostling youths in a variety of school uniforms trying to make out the passengers of every vehicle, women of every age burdened with woven bags slung from crown to buttock, or men stopping to warmly greet one-another and share long conversation. It is also quite common to see men to hold hands while walking together – purely a symbol of camaraderie and trust.  

In addition to the social aspect, it seems where there are crowds, there is marketable opportunity - and during this drive, it occurred no less than every 10-50 feet along the road.  The usual suspect is a middle-aged women, sitting under an umbrella shielding from sun and rain, with the produce of her garden displayed before her on a piece of plastic in neat rows:  kaukau (sweet potatoes), taro root, greens, peanuts, bananas, oranges, beans, papaya, etc. Other examples were stacks of fencing posts, pigs or goats tied to trees, coolers with baggies of Tang, and full cooking fires with veggies or meat sizzling in large pans.


The backdrop to this roadway circus is “the bus” (bush or jungle), scattered with brown patches around thatch huts, winding muddy streams, plots of black earth gardens neatly sectioned with rows carrying every form of vegetation, and the land always rising into steep mountains which disappear in cloud. The Myers named a few areas we passed through and pointed out a larger river as one of the boarders for our hospital's "catchment area" (a designated area around the hospital from which any resident may come at low cost to be seen - those across the boarder are expected to go to whatever hospital covers their area, or they can pay more to be seen at Kudjip).

After roughly 45 minutes, we reached our destination. Kudjip Station is just off the main road, and seems to be a popular spot to gather – enough so that there is an official PMV stop, and the Kudjip “market” (a busy collection of umbrellas promising fresh produce and pick pockets). Turning up the Kudjip driveway, I noted tall trees planted over 50 years ago providing shade for a few more roadside salesmen, and we slowed for the gated entrance – opened quickly by a smiling security guard in black garb. Everywhere within the station, bursts of colorful flowers greet the eye, and trees of every kind sway in a near constant breeze. Turning past the main hospital, the gravel drive took us past a basketball/tennis court, and down toward a collection of newer houses – the first of which bears a red tin roof. A welcome party was assembled, and missionary children carrying flowers ran around the yard and vehicle heralding our arrival. They had decorated our front door and porch with bright flowers and a marvelous welcome sign. 

In the bustle of unloading our luggage and greeting those gathered, I took a moment to peak inside our new home - and then picked up my jaw from where it had landed on the floor. Wow!  When we accepted the call to serve in the rugged Highlands of Papua New Guinea, we had signed on for thatch hut living and creepy crawlies galore. THIS, was nothing like it! Can I get an AMEN?! :-)

View from our Kitchen window.

We barely had a moment to start unpacking before we were summoned for our tour of the Station, gleefully provided by a number of the “MKs” (Missionary Kids). As we walked back up the gravel lane towards the hospital, I appreciated a pleasant view of the valley to the West, and again noted a brilliant array of flower gardens. Our tour revealed a moderate campus of houses and dormitories (for School of Nursing students) surrounding the central hospital area. We were shown the very small “mail room” building (which is also chock full of sports equipment and a small library of books and movies), and Rachel met a pet tree kangaroo. On our way home, we were provided an umbrella for a surprise rain shower - apparently not much of a surprise to everyone else. But hey, this is after all "The Land of the Unexpected".

In reflection, the road ahead will be strewn with discomfort and challenges to our way of thinking. That we not fall away, nor stumble, we ask for your prayers – to walk by HIS power, our path lit by His Spirit’s wisdom, our eyes opened to His perspective, our hearts filled and overflowing with His Love, Grace, and Joy. Please partner with us in our transformation, and in our thanksgiving! 

His Kingdom come, 

His Will be done, 

here in Kudjip as it is in Heaven. 

Amen!

Aerial View of Kudjip Station