There’s never been a period in human history when more people travelled to more places for the sole purpose of enjoying a good time of relaxation in an interesting or exotic location.
Bob and I have enjoyed a few of those over the years, but none have been as dramatic as our recent visit to an all-inclusive resort in the Dominican Republic. We were guests of our daughter and son-in-law, Leanne and Nic. I was especially looking forward to not cooking, cleaning or grocery shopping for a week, replacing that routine with fun in the sun and perhaps the adventure of taking a bus tour to see how people live in a foreign country.
God, however, had a different plan in store for us. Our adventure would be to discover how their medical system works! It didn’t take long for the adventure to begin.
We arrived in the Dominican Republic (D.R.) on the first day of 2025 at about 4.00 p.m. and went straight to our hotel. After getting settled in our rooms we left to join Leanne and Nic and our three grandchildren for dinner. Then came the drama!
Bob stumbled on a step, pitched forward, and broke his hip. An ambulance rushed him, Leanne and I to a nearby hospital while Nic and the three kids stayed at the hotel. I was in the rear of the vehicle praying for Bob while Leanne rode in front, praying for our safe arrival at the hospital!
Our unplanned adventure dialed up several notches after we got there in one piece only to discover a language barrier that stood in our way. It seemed nobody at the hospital spoke any useful English and neither Leanne nor I nor Bob spoke any useful Spanish. After much waving of hands and the use of one syllable words we came to understand that the hospital would require a downpayment of 205,000.00 US dollars before admitting Bob.
Since we don’t usually carry that much cash with us (!), we considered the alternative of arranging for a medical flight home because Bob could hardly move and getting him into a regular plane seat would be impossible.
Alas, that would cost between $25,000 to $35,000, also considerably more than we had available in small change. And a plane would not be available for several days, so we returned to negotiating the hospital bill.
When at last a doctor arrived who spoke some English, we learned to our considerable relief that the cost of admission to an emergency room would be “only” $2,500. 00 US dollars, an amount that could be covered by my credit card. Surgery would require a further up-front payment of $30,000, which Nic was able to pay with his credit card. The final bill would be a lot bigger, but not impossible to meet because Nic had taken out travel insurance for us that would eventually pay for everything. It turned out to be the best $87 we ever spent!
Surgery at the hospital proceeded without a hitch and after a short recovery period Bob was well enough to board a regular flight that brought us safely home. Looking back, it is tempting to second-guess my desire for an adventure! On the other hand, we had the invaluable experience of the Lord completely taking care of us, as He has done so often over so many years. We met many sweet Christian people along the way who uplifted our spirits even as we marveled at how all our physical needs were met by God’s hand of mercy and love for us.
Our vacation was not what we planned, but through our misfortune we have been reminded again how truly blessed we are to be part of the family of God.