wrapping up

I can hardly believe today marks the first of July! It's the first day of the second half of the year.

Yesterday I flew from Port au Prince to Denver. We were delayed three and a half hours in Haiti and I have never literally had to run through the airport to catch a connecting flight until yesterday. I whizzed through immigration, my bag was one of the first on the carousel, breezed through customs, dropped the luggage, ran through security and to my gate of departure. To my benefit, the pilot of the plane was also delay coming in. The flight had been loaded and ready to go for over an hour when I arrived there. The casualties of the trip: I did not get my Starbucks Miami mug, my cell phone is on, but unresponsive, and my suitcase did not arrive to me until 5pm today.

I am grateful that I felt well the last day in Haiti. I will miss the fresh produce, watching women haul loads on their heads, the flowers, the colors, the amazing work that GLA is doing for kids in Haiti, the beautiful hills, and friendly people from my team, the orphanage staff, and the Haitians. I do not know if I will go back again, but I do know that I was a part of something there that God started and is continuing to use as a labor of love in the mountains outside of Port au Prince.

Today, I caught up. I sorted out a few things and unpacked a little. I sent some overdue personal e-mails. I looked at a lot of pictures. I rested. Tomorrow I will put my nose the the pavement in search of a job again, and hopefully get my phone fixed up.

sunday, sunday

This morning we woke up to our last full day in Haiti. It is Sunday, another restful weekend day. I spent some time cuddling with a cooing baby this morning before we loaded up to go to church. The community GLA is involved with here meets at a Haitian radio and television missionary's home. We had a nice breakfast (including some fantastic and rare mangoes) there with a group of about 20 people and then spent the morning worshiping with them.

The house had a wonderful little veranda overlooking the cliff it is built onto and we enjoyed the flowers below us and the view beyond us.

The afternoon was fairly quiet. I helped a little girl walk for awhile and then watched her nap on my shoulder. We watched a bit of satellite television and I was able to spend some time by myself for awhile to journal and think. A storm gathered over the mountain south of GLA, but very little rain fell out of those clouds to us.

When walking between the buildings, I noticed a dark unusual shape walking toward me. I found a big hairy tarantula moseying down the stairs. It was about the size of my hand if it were all stretched out. I took a step back, and then got my camera out!

Tomorrow morning we leave here about 9:30 (central time) and I will be back in Denver with Laura about 9:00pm (mountain time).

It's been an eventful and not-all-together-easy trip for us. I am ready to come home, but will take a lot of good memories, too. I came across this verse today:

Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable his judgements, and his paths beyond tracing out! Who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who has been his counselor? Who has ever given to God, that God should repay them? For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be the glory forever! Amen.
-- Romans 11:33-36 --

It is not in my wisdom and knowledge to know why God sent me here, but trust that this is part of everything (in Haiti) is from, through, and to him.

a day away

Today we spent the morning resting and catching our breath. We left late in the morning for a day in Petion-ville to shop and run some errands.

The first stop was at the market where we were able to purchase a few paintings and some jewelry. It was hot and humid and all sorts of people were trying to sell us their art. We walked up and down the streets a couple times and then took off for a little shop, further down the road.

The Galata is an old wood house decorated with the arts and crafts that they sold. If I had a place to decorate and a home to move to, I would have loved to have purchased more here. The place was gorgeous and colorful. In the back was a nice stone table in the shade!

From this little spot, we continued on to the grocery store. I was surprised at how clean and commercialized it was. I picked up some coffee and browsed through their products. Many of their grocery items are made in Brazil and printed in English, French, and sometimes Creole, but more often in another Arabic text. They had dried fish in their produce section and a few different cookies and candies, but the staples were there and many familiar brand names lined the shelves.

From the grocery store we went up to a cafe for lunch. The food was American and Lebanese in nature and had fantastic looking desserts and, more importantly, ice cream! The ice cream had to be a highlight of the day. I had two flavors; fruit du bois (forest fruit) and corosol (a spiny tropical fruit). Yum!

better left behind

While there are lots of great things about this country that I like to experience, there are also a few I'd rather not bring back to The States:

one. smelling like mosquito repellant.

two. crying babies and smelly diapers.

three. humid heat with no air conditioning.

four. wearing conservatively warmer clothing than I would in the U.S.

five. sweating in my sleep.

six. having need for a security guard in Port au Prince.

seven. seeing poverty. I know it exists everywhere, but it's particularly potent here.

eight. being around so many people all the time.

nine. limited water and power.

ten. being tired, sick, and exhausted.

haitian happiness

Haitian happiness is what they call getting some sort of bug around here. However, listed below are a few things that are really great about being here:

one. the colors; everything from the tap-taps to the fruit to the artwork is cheerful.

two. the stone walls lining the streets.

three. the mountains are so green and sweep broadly into valleys toward the sea.

four. the food; though I haven't been able to eat much of it, is quite tasty.

five. the children are so anxious for love and attention and bless us with a few smiles.

six. gorgeous flowers and tropical plants.

seven. simplicity of life.

eight. rich culture.

nine. can't go wrong with fresh coffee and fresh fruit.

ten. being able to make even a small difference for a few kids.

slow friday

After being out of the action on Thursday, Friday was much more productive. Jeanine took another sick day in bed with a fever but finally got up around dinner time.

I spent my morning with three kids; the ones I figured would be "easy" and not require too much energy from me. They were all quite happy to be held, or eat, or crawl by themselves. I took a lot of breaks and by lunch time I worked up a little appetite.

Jenny's mom passed away on Friday, so last minute arrangement were made to see her off today. Our team isn't doing so well when it comes to sticking this out!

I took over Jenny's crib painting job in the afternoon and helped another volunteer clean the upstairs balcony.

I was grateful for the lethargic pace of my day, but still exhausted by 6:30pm. Our group of four met together in the evening to recap our day and I could hardly keep my eyes open!

two days

Wednesday was a good and productive day. We spent time with one child in the morning and then hand an opportunity to spend some time at the Toddler House where another 67 children live. Some paint has been donated to GLA and we spent the morning coating the walls with color. The white walls turned yellow, red, blue, green purple, pink, and orange. I can't even imagine how excited those kids would be to see their bright rooms! Being able to do that was a huge reward.

The afternoon we spent more time with our babies. And in the evening, Jenny and I took two kids out for a walk. Some boys were walking behind us, discussing what to say to us; recognizing that we were English speaking. They finally came up with "good morning" rather than evening. But the effort was definitely appreciated.

We wrapped things up in the evening and I was exhausted. There was a reason for that. I spent the worst night with a violent bug that had me up the whole night. By the morning, I was so tired and sore, I spent nearly the entire day in bed with 7-up and some Guarina crackers (baked, unsalted food). Jeanine also caught the bug and it seems like we're both in recovery mode. Today will be a slow day with lots of liquids and a bit more food.

rested

Rested. That's how we all felt today. We probably each slept between nine and eleven hours on Monday night. It felt great!

We woke up, had some breakfast and even coffee before starting our day with a child. We only had time for one visit, though, before we were privileged to take a drive up to the land where a new orphanage is being built. The building as begun with a wall around the property and a few shells of structures. The land is good sized and has some tremendous views of Port au Prince and the sea beyond. There are all sorts of pine trees on this hill and lots of room for children to play and run.

A Haitian contractor has been hired to build the new place and all the stones are drawn from the property. Each stone is hand chiseled down to the correct proportions. The cement is mixed with water that is trucked in, or, as we saw today, with the water that falls from the sky.

The trip there and back was great, too. We saw plenty of street market stands; mangoes, lettuce, stoneware, pots, cell phones, vegetables, clothes, shoes, and bread were just a few. There were donkeys for hauling and many people out selling and buying. We saw new construction and ramshackle shelters. We saw breathtaking vistas and lots of hibiscus.

The afternoon was spent with more of our babies. They each have their own distinct personalities. One of my boys has been sick and is malnourished. Another is very constructive and observant, but does not show emotion. Some kids smile when I pick them up and bawl when I leave them in their nursery. They are all very unique!

I was lured downstairs by some grown-and-roasted-in-Haiti coffee. I glad I tried it. The flavor is mild, but maybe a little spicy, too. Our food has been amazing and the fruit is tasty, too; avocados, pineapple, mangoes, and watermelon!

Our group is working together well. We are having unique individual experiences and enjoying listening to each other's perspective, too.

the children

The hills were much more dramatic than I thought; particularly the one the orphanage, God's Littlest Angels, sits on. A four wheel drive is likely the only vehicle that can negotiate this gravel and dirt road.

Upon arrival at GLA, we were greeted and given a tour of the place. About 100 children are housed at this facility and they also care for 3 to 10 year olds at a "toddler" house. When we walk in a room, children surround us, some with arms raised, some with hugs, and others grasping our legs or crawling between them. They are all seeking attention, care, and love. Each child here is supposed to be attended and held individually for one hour a day. Our job this week is to do this for between 4-8 children each day. Each baby has information about their development and sometimes and item or two that needs work. It seems like a simple task, but it's pretty daunting to walk through rooms to identify the kids on our list.

Before receiving our group of 8 kids for the week, we had some time to settle in and unpack a little bit. We all needed it. Lunch was a traditional Haitian affair with some sausage meatballs and rice with vegetable sauce.

Right after lunch we started picking up our kids. As tired as we were, we were relieved that many of them just love to be held. By child number four, I didn't have much left from our 4:30am morning!

We had French food for dinner with mango slices and a pasta dish. We spent some time together, talking about our day and reflecting on God's purpose for us here. By 8pm, we were all in bed!

arriving port au prince

I flew into Miami on Sunday and spend about 6 hours at the hotel by myself before I met up with the rest of my group from Chicago: Babette, Jenny, Jeanine, and Phil. By the time they arrived, we were all famished. So, we headed out to a restaurant called Catch of the Day to take in some of the Latino live music culture and a great last dinner in The States.

We arrived back at the hotel pretty late and had a few hours of sleep before meeting again at 4:30am to head back to the airport. Exhausted, but on our way, we loaded our plane to Haiti. The man sitting next to me was on his way to pick up his daughter for adoption. It was great to talk to someone who was using an orphanage like the one we were going to!

We entered the airport off the ramp (no sky walks to deboard the plane). Our welcome was a great live music band playing a happy Haitian tune (sponsored by the local cell phone company). We breezed through customs and immigration. Leaving the airport was a bit more difficult. I liken it to the experience of landing in Douala, Cameroon, where it seems like nearly everyone is vying for your attention and your money.

Our ride and a security guard found us, though, and we commenced our drive up into the mountains beyond Port au Prince. The drive was colorful and not adrenaline-inducing as I had expected. Tap-taps (so-called taxi vehicles that require the passenger to "tap-tap" on the roof to encourage the driver to stop) lined the streets with eye-catching colors and designs painted on them. Colors were splashed against buildings, shops, at the fruit stands, in artwork, on handmade crafts, and even in the flowering bushes and trees. There is very little "dull" about this Haitian country or people; everything and everyone seems vibrant and alive.

(the vehicle in the photo is a bit larger than a "true" tap-tap. It's actually a truck that takes workers up to pick their fruits and vegetables up the mountain).

an unexpected opportunity

I mentioned in my last post that I had some shots. I have been blessed by an opportunity to go to Haiti to serve with Christ Community Church! I found out about the opening yesterday and since then God has put a number of details in order (the biggest being a ticket and the last-minute immunizations). I'll be on my way to Miami on Sunday and to Port au Prince Monday morning with a small group from the church to work with an infant and children's ministry there. Today was busy, but I am confident that all these things have been pre-arranged by Someone who has a purpose in this trip to Haiti.