This morning I cared for an older woman who care from the bush with an enormous cancer of her cervix. But fortunately she was feeling very little pain. All I could do was to explain to her adult sons that we had little to offer. It was way too late to operate. I hope that they perceived a sense of compassion from me. It would be the least I could do. Shortly thereafter, a four-year old arrived in the ER with a broken arm. I felt such a sense of relief. Finally, someone I could actually help!! The predictable “Angola entry shock” is starting to wear off. But I’m still impressed by how well I can speak Portuguese, yet how little I actually understand of this culture; with how frequent is death (I’ve had 3 patient’s die in 2 days), yet how easily people accept it; with how little I can actually do to help, yet how gracious people are towards me.