Today it is late January and tomorrow will be my birthday :)

Today I will celebrate it already with a few Dutch friends from the ship. We will eat a pastry on the beach. In the Netherlands that would be too cold to sit outside.

Tomorrow Daniel and I will celebrate my Birthday and also that we are engaged for one year.

We are busy making plans for the summer, but you hear more about that in a few months or so.

The month of January was a special month because not only our ship was in the port of Tamatave. But the Logos Hope's the largest bookstore ship of the world was here also for four weeks. It was special have both ships here. And share our experiences with each other. Logos Hope has a large book store with Christian literature but also other books. There are a lot of young people on the ship it was nice to get to know them a little more.

The people from the Netherlands on the ship are well represented. It is pleasant to drink tea together and talk Dutch. There are around 25 to 30 Dutch at this time onboard. And this week, there has also a Frisian lady arrived on board. We joke that we will soon take over the ship from the Americans ;).

The work is going well and we have a lot of patients who we could help this month. It is special how God leads our team always to the right people who need our help the most.

Because we meet so many people as we drive through town we often meet special cases.

The story of Jimmy, a young man of 28 years, is a special case I would like to share this with you and ask for prayer. Jimmy arrived three weeks ago at the screening site. We often get a referral from them because they know that the patient cannot be helped by us. Normally, we cannot operate patients with open wounds because it is too much risk of infection to other patients here in the hospital. Jimmy is the exception to the rule.

Jimmy has a wonderful smile and at first glance, a cheerful character, when you see him you will be happy. And give many smiles back to him. But when you hear Jimmy’s story your heart breaks.

Jimmy has not had an easy childhood he had a stepmother who did not like him very much.

By a punishment that she and his father gave his feet were burned when he was 13 years. Because of the burn his toes have contractures and he is not able to walk to well.

Jimmy is disowned by his family and lives on the street. In the night he guards a small furniture store on the market not far from the ship. In the day, he cannot be there because he has a large open wound for six years on his right leg which has been inflamed and infected. Because Jimmy's life condition is so bad and the wound is present for six years, the wound cannot heal in a natural way; the only possibility to help Jimmy is to amputate his leg. That is a very heavy operation for this young man. And in my heart I find it difficult to accept that this is his only salvation to continue to live.

But Jimmy is happy. When we could tell Jimmy that we could give him an operation, he was so happy and asked three times when the date of the operation would be.

Monday February 1st is his day. Then he will stay for quite a while on the ship. And we will give him all the love and care that we can give. We will help him with rehabilitation so that he will be able to walk on crutches.

For those who are praying, would you pray that Jimmy will receive not only physical healing but also special healing for his broken heart. And that after his rehabilitation we can find a place for him that he can live and have purpose in life again.

Thanks for all the encouraging messages on my last blog it is so nice to know that there are so many people who help me to keep doing this work.

Love from Yfke