Breaking bones for the life of Papua. A story from Home of Papua in Santa Barbara, California

(English)

Breaking bones for the life of Papua
A story from Home of Papua in Santa Barbara, California
 

By Farsijana Adeney-Risakotta

I am writing this story from Santa Barbara in the room of Papua by which  our friends , Charles and Katherine Farhardian have called the bedroom at their warm and loving home where we have lived during our recovery from the car accident . We were invited by Westmont College to give  series of lectures during the week of awareness of interfaith activism at the school this week.. They had prepared the best hotels in Santa Barbara for our stay there , ie Mentecito Inn where we did stayed during our visiting to Westmont College in 2006 for the same purposes. But now we decided to stay in their homes as I was recovering after saying several days at the hospital while pak Bernie who was safe of the accident could continue to deliver our commitment to give the lectures on peace and reconciliation in Indonesians among Moslem and Christians and other world religions.

I actually had to wait to write this letter to my family and my friends in Indonesia , in the United States and everywhere . When I was in the hospital Ventura County Medical Center, Pak Bernie has been communicating with the family and the Presbyterian Church in Louisville, which have supported our work in Indonesia. Church leaders have written letters, called to show their sympathy and conformt to us . Yesterday at late afternoon I spoke with Pastor of First Presbyterian Merry Ellen Berkeley, California who called to strengthen my faith. I also had replied the message posted by Kurnia Widiastuti, ICRS Yogya student who sent an email with attachment documents related to two papers that will be eximened  at ICRS comprehensive exam in Yogyakarta . I replied to her message news that I could not read the document because I just got out of the hospital after a car accident that was outcontrolled by my husband, pak Bernie. Nia Bu Widiastuti then spreaded out my short message to the network of ICRS Yogya . Friends called pak Bernie and wrote  words of support to shere therir sympathy.

Now I have decided to write a short note to all my friends because every trip we go nowhere as long as I have a smartphone, I have posed them on Facebook. I can sit for 30 minutes but had to immediately get up to rotate the inside home because I have wore a shield to cover the entire of my upper body.  The strong power to write comes mainly this morning when I woke up. I realized that my life really is nothing comparing to the Papua whose lives have lost because of the deaths occurred among them, the native of Papua in their own land of  Papua . Before going to bed last night I read the book titled The Testimony Project Papua which was edited by Charles Farhardian . Very difficult to read with a book holding at my right hand as flat as my body which only in the head a thin pillow can be put to strengthen my back bone.  There are two backbone which were cracked on my body, the first called T 11, which means almost the lowest part of the thoracic part of the spine and the second is called L 4 which is the abbreviation of the lumbar spine .

 

For clarity I omit information from wikipedia <Human Vertebral Colum>
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human-_vertebral_column

or

can be read on the Post Accident thoraco - lumbar Spinal Disc Injuries T 11 - L 4
http://www.nucleuscatalog.com/view-item?ItemID=70464

Until now in my left hand have the laminating hospital bracelet which has my name including the time when I brought to hospital Ventura County Medical Center which is the trauma center at 23:12 AM on November 4, 2013. Our rental car driven by Bernie crashed at 10 PM since we left the class of Roberta King at Fuller Theological Seminary which was about the music of peace that brought together Christians and Muslims to engage in peace making in Indonesia. Several years ago , Roberta King conducted a workshop on Islam and Christianity for peace through music and song collaborated with ICRS Yogya.

Please see information about Song of Peace
http://www.songsforpeaceproject.org/participants/dr-farsijana-adeney-risakotta

On the day of Monday, on the busy day, because of several leadership meetings with the Dean of the Faculty of Theology  and Interculture Studies of Fuller Theological Seminary, Pak Bernie had to deliver some lectures for the S3 and S2 as well. In the condition when we were so tired we decided to drive to Santa Barbara, because the next morning we had to give a lecture at Westmont College . And that night , an accident occurred . Our car hit the road divided at high way then spinning to rol destroying the roof before the car flipped and  rolled, landed on the wheels and then swung around in a full circle before crashing into a wall on the right side of the road.

 

I did  not remember anything unless told pak  Bernie told me the story of how the car came into an accident. I was in the dept of my sleep.  I was awakened by the voice of pak Bernie while pulled my hand out to say: " Honey we have to get out because there is a fire under our car" . Pak Bernie helped me out from  sit belt then asked where his glasses were . I showed the glasses that exist under the driver's seat which actually were my own glasses. So pak Bernie left our car without his glasses.

We were companied by two young men who stopped to help us out from the danger we had faced due to the accident and the was the flume of fire with dropping gasoline under the front part of the car. They also called up the Police , Fireman and Ambulance.  They also gave me a bottle of water when I asked from them.  No other accidents due to road deserted to happen on us. Police checked carefully pak Bernie and no question for him anymore because they concluded that the human errors like tireness and sleepy might effect to the car’s accident . Thanks be to God , when the car was paid at LAX pak. Bernie asked whether he could pay with the Citibank card that gives car insurance to be included in the rental policy. Both the repairing of the car and my hosptital are being covered by insurances. Doctor who who the chief of the surgen operation came to me saying that they do not have a cure for me after a brace fitted .

 

Doctors came at 7 pm in November 6, 2013 to say that “You could go home to rest better because we do not have any medicine to cure you because you were healthy as seen in the results of various tests I had to do during my time at the emergency room at the hosptital. Three kinds CTScan rotgen were done and some photos as well as blood tests. The pancreas is an indication of injury from accidental contact is not proven after the blood test .

Doctor visited me to say that I could go home after two days at the hospital

Doctors and therapists are very optimistic about the pace of healing my body because I do not smoke and drink alcohol . They were very grateful that I had the will to train myself ready and after a brace fitted on my body . Benefits of jogging , muscle and yoga exercises that I do every day has heplped me to go through this critical time of my life, the broken bones of my spine.  I have to walk in the upright position as well as in the same position when I use the bathroom . Knee bend should be kept in balance so that my body was not in a state of bowing . My body is very light when I was taken by nurses came into the CT scanner or moved to the bed in the hospital room.

  

But in this there is a small, a thiny body has the power of the Lord Jesus Christ, who has never left me . My strength is the power of Him . Living disaster and tragedy of eyeglasses faith, I do see the suffering of others whose testimony I never knew until I read about their testimony here at the room of Papua. Now it is suffering , there is a broken bone in me, like a lot of people who have died Papua .

 

When a therapist come to draw my brace , he had to take the measurement of my body. I laid on the bed with the company of  a nurse and my husband . He took in detail the threshold from which a brace was made ​​. When I was deducted the size I told him that six months ago I took the measurement  of my own  body to create a work of art titled Dancer Justice . The works was exhibited on May 21 to 29 May 2013 in the Bentara Budaya of Yogyakarta. Justice dancer is my artwork which was made ​​of wire .  A Dancer of justice dances with  with glasses on the front and back of both hands . At the front of the position of the heart there are some glasses at the front and back of the body. . At the very bottom of my skirt fringe attach a symbol of peace . Justice dancers had no face , both the front and rear are the same.  Shawl dancers are dancing life uninterrupted wire wave form of justice for all people in the know about her concerns .

Please refer to
Dancer of Justice
http://www.pinterest.com/pin/535083999447586334


Now I'm using a brace.
More information on brace can be found on the article titled "Orthosis" (brace)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kyphosis

While wrapping my upper body with the brace, I feel like being an acting out the injustice that is being experienced by indigenous people because they are rich in land but their souls deliberately marginalized called off for the life of development and progress . My body is now not only a work of art but the body is cracked and brittle as the body of brothers

                                           I was out from hospital wearing brace

and sisters of Papua who were in pain for long. God was preparing me in Papua home in California to be with them togeher being healed by the Lord Jesus Himself as it says in the Book of Titus 3:5 " God saved us not because of the truth of what we have done , but because of His mercy alone . God saved us by washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit is poured out upon us with incredible kindness through Jesus Christ , our savior.

  

Tomorrow we return to Boston . Since yesterday I practiced using a brace for 4 hours , today I am grateful I have used to add up to 7-8 hours in order to travel by plane to Boston. I am thankful because I 've been training myself for a long time on how to breath while using this brace . I implore prayers of family and friends that God blessed the way home and I am strengthened in peace and thanksgiving to the events that happened to me. Both pak Bernie and I thank family and friends for support sympathy to us . Presumably my faith experience can also strengthen us all to remain faithful walk with God in suffering that we face .

With love and prayers

Note:
The same article written in Indonesia can be found in my blog titled Indonesiaku Indonesiamu Indonesia untuk semua..

Tulang Patah untuk kehidupan Papua
Cerita dari Rumah Papua di Santa Barbara, California
http://farsijanaindonesiauntuksemua.blogspot.com/2013/11/tulang-patah-untuk-kehidupan-papua.html