Getting to Charapillo, Peru was an adventure. We flew to Lima, then took a flight to Tarapoto. From there we took a two-hour van ride to Alianza. Then an hour ride on motocars (a cross between a motorcycle, a rickshaw and a tricycle) to Alfonso Ugarte where we served for two days. Then the trip on to Charapillo began with another 45 minute motorcar ride to the trailhead. Then two and a half hours hiking through mud and multiple river crossings. We had our camping gear to bring as well as our medical supplies. Thankfully many of the villagers helped and we arrived in Charapillo. We were truly near the ends of the earth.
The very first patient I saw in Charapillo was one of the most challenging I’ve had in my mission experiences. The parents of this nine year-old child named Toribea had walked five hours to get to us. They told me she couldn’t walk. I asked when it started and they told me it was only two months ago. I tried to get her to walk and she had obvious weakness and could only take a few steps with a lot of help. As I examined her, I found classic signs of an upper motor neuron problem, which was educational for the students with us, but not a good thing for the patient. As it turns out, the Peruvian doctor serving with our team is a neurologist. Together we went through the possible causes of her disease, which we generally classified as tropical spastic paraparesis. Various infections causing her immune system to attack her spinal cord or nutritional deficiency seemed the most probable cause, but none were easily treatable and we didn’t have the means to come to a definitive diagnosis in such a remote setting. Getting her to a center capable of the level of care that she needed was not an option for this family. I was discouraged knowing that they had come so far and we had so little to offer. So we treated her with steroids to block the attack on her spinal cord and vitamins. But then we took her to the Great Physician. Our team gathered for an extended time of prayer for her and her family. In the course of this time, her family came to Christ. That’s why they really had come all that way, even if they didn’t know it. And she did show signs of improvement in her ability to walk. We continue to pray for the Lord’s intervention for her and her family to continue to trust Him for salvation and for her healing. We went a long way to be reminded that He is the ultimate healer.
