A Farewell to Nick

 This was a week of mixed emotions.

Nick finished up his rotation in Cape Coast. We have loved having him here and are sad to send him home. Overall, he said he was glad he came and had the experience, but he was also grateful to be heading home. He shared how impressed he was with the doctors and nurses and what they are able to accomplish with so little—while also noting how primitive medicine can still be here.

One story in particular really stood out. A woman came in with a ruptured ectopic pregnancy and was bleeding out into her abdomen. There was no blood available for a transfusion and no family in town who could donate. So they did what they could. They collected the blood she was losing, strained it to remove clots, and transfused her own blood back into her body. He said it felt like a scene straight out of M*A*S*H. Thankfully, it worked and saved the woman’s life. His best advice to us was not to get pregnant or seriously ill while we’re here. We promised for sure on one—and to do our best on the other. 😉

Nick finished on Thursday and headed back to Accra first thing Friday morning, arriving around lunchtime. We were so excited to have him for one more weekend. We wrapped up his trip with a little more sightseeing. He had to get his picture taken with the VAG (Veterans Administration of Ghana—an unfortunate acronym!), see what a mall in Accra looks like, and, last but not least, make one more trip to the gift shop.


Doug and I hadn’t yet visited a shop called The Wild Gecko, so we decided to check it out. It was a cute little store with, of course, plenty of new things we suddenly couldn’t live without! The best part, though, was the animals in the back. They had a monkey that reportedly did NOT like women, glasses, or long hair. Doug and Nick were skeptical that the monkey could really recognize those things, so they decided to test it.

The boys went out first. The monkey was perfectly content, doing typical monkey things. Then I walked out—and the monkey completely lost his mind! He ran around the cage, loudly banging his body against it and making a huge commotion until I was out of sight. It was unbelievable! The boys had a great time trying to figure out, “How did he know?”

Nick attended our ward with us, and the members loved meeting him—especially admiring his hairy face. After church, we went to Break the Fast and introduced him to our senior couple friends. He said goodbye to Ron and Jenny, who insisted he could easily be their child. We enjoyed a few more treasured hours together before heading to the airport. It was hard to say goodbye, but we are so grateful for the extended time we had with him. We sure do love that boy—and each of our children. We feel truly blessed.


Doug’s medical week was mostly the usual: headaches, stomach bugs, and malaria. One unusual case involved a missionary with a post-appendectomy abscess. She had her appendix removed before entering the MTC, but during that surgery, a foreign body was accidentally left inside her. She had a second surgery to remove it and had healed from that, but now had developed an abscess and needed to return home for a third surgery. We felt so sad for her.

Another sister had a large cyst on her cheek that needed to be removed. In Africa, it’s often a difficult decision whether to send missionaries home for care and recovery or have them treated here in Accra. In her case, the final decision was to send her home.

I also received a new assignment to help at the gathering place in Teshie, which is about a 20-minute drive from Accra—unless there’s traffic, in which case it can take an hour or more. I am super excited, and Doug is very supportive. I’ll be helping with beading and hair-braiding classes. My role will be to talk with, support, and love the Young Single Adults (YSA) who attend. I’m so excited for this opportunity! The YSAs here are amazing and make up a large part of the Church population. The classes start next week when Kris is here. Don’t be surprised if you see a picture of me with African braids!

We have loved studying the Old Testament this year. I must confess that I’ve never done a deep, in-depth study of it before, and I’m really looking forward to it. Reading other Bible translations and using the additional resources in the Come, Follow Me study guide in the Gospel Library app have been so helpful in bringing greater clarity and understanding. I’m also so grateful for the Pearl of Great Price, which gives us additional insight into the stories in Genesis.

We are truly blessed to have additional scripture and modern-day prophets, seers, and revelators who help us better understand God’s word. I challenge each of you to take time to study the Old Testament. Look for the premortal Christ (Jehovah) as you read. Apply the lessons you learn to your life. As you do, you will draw closer to our Savior, Jesus Christ, and your joy will increase as you strive to become more like Him.

We love you all so much! We hope your new year is off to a great start. Have a phenomenal week!

Love,
Elder and Sister Baker

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