Haiti
I posted my journal in December of ‘05. I will paste those posts here to accompany the pictures.
“and of some having compassion, making a difference”
jude 22august 2002 i was fortunate enough to spend a week in haiti. while there i was impressed with the people, the natural beauty, and extreme depravity of the country. for those familiar it may seem odd that i say the beauty of haiti. only less than 2% of haiti’s forests remain. clear-cutting has destroyed the land. there is no industry. haiti is made up of haves and have nots. there are more have nots than you could imagine. the extreme poverty and lack of hope can not even be imagined, but there is beauty there.
so why did i go to this country? it was a mission trip to help a group of 40 girls in port-au-prince, haiti. we had a med team, construction team, silent drama team, and vbs team. while there we did vbs style activities with the girls and gave each a much needed medical examination. the med team, of which i was a part of, also held a clinic for the community where we evaluated symptoms and gave meds and hygiene products. we did this in port-au-prince and other areas nearby. it was a very enventful week, and one that touched my heart. i will never forget the 40 girls we worked with or the events of that week. i kept a journal while there, and i will share parts of that with those who choose to read here. i also plan to upload a few pics to offer a little bit of a visual.
August 2, 2002
august 2, 2002
we arrived in haiti to find a hot crowded airport. there was apprehension that our checked luggage didnt make it. it made it!!! thankful! all of our supplies were in the checked baggage. we spent the evening sortin medicines and preparing for tomorrow. it will be a difficult day.flying to haiti was beautiful. the landing was hard. . . i was totally nervous getting off the plane. it was not as bad as i thought it was going to be.
(it wasnt good either…wow the smell and the heat!)august 3, 2002
we woke at 4:30 am. we were so thankful for the ac in our room. the ac went off -5:30 am- and it is quite warm with just the fan. we will meet the orphans this morning and do medical clinic with them in the morning then the general population in the afternoon. tonight we will show the Jesus video and do street drama. i’m a little nervous.PM
WOW today was unreal. i really dont see how these people survive. when we were told our guest house was in the “rich” part of town they werent joking. we saw and smelled some nasty stuff. sewage running down the street. decaying vegetables, raw chicken with flies, and garbage everywhere. it was a lot like driving thru a dump filled with people. tin houses, if that. vendors on the street. people digging thru garbage along side pigs, dogs, and goats. a lot of roosters too.
waking up this morning there was a rooster cockle-doodling. guess what we had for diner. we’re curious to know if we’ll hear a rooster in the morning, i’m hoping.(fyi- we didnt.)bored.gif
we got to meet the girls today. they are SO adorable. all just want love. a hug. a smile. just attention. we danced and jumped rope, played hand-clap games. they are so friendly. we examined all of them in the clinic. i do not know what serious problems they may have. last time the leaders brought a team here they thought one may have aids. she was lethargic and unable to get out of her bed. with asthma treatments she started getting better. i was shocked at her size 6 years old and no bigger than my two year old!
(has since been found that the young girl did not have aids, merely needed treatment for her asthma.)
it is 11 pm and so much going thru my mind. i just finished my encouragement list. there are so many things to say about my team, but it is very difficult to put into words. some on the team are having a very difficult time. we have to encourage them and help them be stronger before they get sick. we are trying to stay upbeat with practical jokes and silliness. it is the only way to cope when everything looks so desperate around us.
Haiti: August 4
“we live not in a spirit of fear, but of power, of love, and of SOUND MIND”
2 Timothy 1:7aug 4 2002
we spent the day at the clinic today. saw tons of people. pastor boulle’s wife came in for an exam. doc said it would be 5-7 days before she had the baby. one of our interpreters was embarrassed and concerned about being present for the exam. he told me “in ayiti pastors can not…” he never really said, but we assured him she would be covered and he would see nothing. i told him to just close his eyes and interpret, he laughed. there seems to be a modesty here. it is somewhat different than we imagine. i mean, if they have to “go” they just go. men find a corner somewhere and women lift their dress discreetly and go. i have seen this only once. there is no choice. there are no public restrooms and many homes do not have much more than a whole in the floor. we are very fortunate at the guest house. and at the orphanage well, the girls are not so fortunate but they will have an outhouse before we leave.a young girl was at our clinic with chronic eye infections. there was not much doc could do. she will go blind unless she sees a specialist. that will not happen here. one of the orphan girls did not lose her baby teeth, and has her grown up teeth.
after dinner we left for the mountains to do silent street drama and show the jesus video. that was interesting. we did not get to do the drama. a storm was coming so it got dark quickly. we did get the film started and people came from everywhere! and so did the rain very soon into it. the team was told to go into a nearby “church”. turns out we were in an uncontrolled area and the situation was more dangerous than we realized at that time. we had asked a woman if we could take a picture of her and her baby. she said yes so we did. she had other kids with her so we took several pictures. the kids like having their picture taken, especially with a digital camera so they can see the pictures. some did not like this and said a few things not so nice to our team leader.
we went into the church and all the female team members were sent into the pastors house attached. we had no clue what was actually going on. we just thought he wanted us out of the wonderfully cold storm. doc and 3 other male team members went with us. we actually had fun singing and playing with the pastors children.
(it was a tiny 3 room cinder (sp?) block house. everything is local made brick and cement in haiti. no wood. the pastors wife was very gracious in opening her home to us crazy people.)
the team leader got us back on our bus (think very old and rickety school bus here). we were blocked in. people just park in the middle of the street here. then the battery died and there was nothing we could do but sit there. we could hear the young men who had been bathing in the rain speaking towards us. one said we do this because you take pictures. they were yelling and banging on our bus. i never felt scared, but it was alarming. our team leader said that even though we asked and the picture was not of them, the saw the flash and did not like what we were doing. it was unnerving and a reminder to be more careful.
we got to play with the girls this morning. they love my hair. there is always one petting me. they love our cameras as well. a team member handed them his and let them take a few pictures. they really like the video camera too. we have on video them singing to us the very first day. it is so sweet!
lots of work getting done. the orphanage got electricity today. the girls were fascinated. they will also have a swingset when we leave.
we are holding on to humor and silliness each night to keep us upbeat. we hung docs clothing from the chandalier. he was amused. tomorrow we will go to the mountains for medical clinic. should be interesting.
Hait: Mountain adventure
we went to the mountains today. it was the most beautiful place i have seen here. it was a very difficult task getting there. we had to bribe our way through one area. the team leader explained that the citizens were repairing the roads and people were “tipping” to get by. as we went up the mountain the roads got so much worse. they became more “gullyish”. there was oner area so narrow we were asked to get off the bus…just in case. the bus couldnt make it. the women loaded into another bus. i think we had to buy it. the men hiked the remaining way. we carried their packs with us and left our water with them. i wouldnt have minded hiking too. long way though. while waiting on them we set up the clinic. very primitive outside. i played with the kids that showed up when there didnt seem anything else requiring attention. they love the simple things that kids at home take for granted…frisbee, bubbles, balloons, hand clap. one little boy came up to me and pulled on my shirt so he could whisper in my ear, “mweh enfermal”. (i am sick). i pointed to the doctor and got him a place in line. we have doc seeing people with the major things. the three nurses and two team leaders saw people with other minor things. all considered doctors. we battled heat today. one older women in line passed out. doc took care of her. he dumped 1/4 of our culligan jug on her and wiped her down with germx. the alcohol lowers your temp. she came out of it and he sat and talked with her. hubert, the interpreter, told me they call that “indisposed”. it was getting a little crazy there after “lunch” time. no one really took a break, we took turns taking a quick snack occassionally. we all kept drinking water constantly. it was my job to entertain kids in the area, i had to lay down once because it was so hot. after the woman passed out the team leaders decided we just needed to make bags for everyone and stop seeing them for specifics. the weather was a concern, we had to get off the mountain before the storm moved in. if it started, we wouldnt be able to. (i know now the seriousness of weather in haiti and the danger of mudslides. i also suspect there was a safety issue that we were not aware of at that time.) we started filling bags. they all need vermox for worms, pain meds and vitamins. so i started helping fill bags. felt fine at that time. someone asked me a question and i stood up to answer, started phasing…unable to focus. then i went down. someone caught me and got me to a chair. one team member held my head while another poured an entire culligan jug on me. (keep in mind water is precious here.) another team member dehydrated yesterday and had to have an IV. i made a joke to one of the nurses that if i needed one i wanted him to do it. little did i know. when he got to me doc was already working on putting a line in. i was incoherent but somewhat aware and tried to beg him not to put an IV in. but he got it started and dropped two bags of saline in. the line hurt so bad. the first needle was defective and wouldnt let fluid in. so doc had to stick again. i hyperventilated after that. not fun. everyone was so great though. pastor boulle put his hand on my head and prayed while they worked. a haitian lady came over and did the same. both praying in creole, i hope they said good things, cause i couldnt understand any of it. junior, our other guide and interpreter, was very concerned and has been checking on me all day. it was a scary moment for all of us. we had to leave and get off the mountain before rain. i tried to walk but couldnt. another team member carried me to a little truck. another team member climbed in to hold my IV bag, i had to sit in her lap. doc and another member kept up with the truck while everyone else hiked down to the bus. we met up with the bus and rode back to the guest house. after another bag of saline doc took the line out. not easy to do on a bus. another team member got sick when we got to the guest house. doc gave her phinagren (sp) and she got better quick.
Haiti: Last Day
There was no time to journal yesterday. We took the girls to Fort Jaques. It was a long ride up the mountain. A few team members rode the bus with the 42 girls and house mothers. WAY packed! The rest of us rode up in two tap-taps. (colorful transportation method, similar to a us. ours were small trucks with a covered bed.) Ours was a piece of junk with a bad clutch. I preferred it to the bus though! There were a few times where we had to get out and hike up a hill. On the way down the breaks were burning. As we went down hill people kept yelling at us for attention…or because they didnt like us, we couldnt tell! We eventually heard the word “firio!” One of the guys got the attention of our driver and got him to stop. Then had Enoch translate that he was burning up the breaks. When we stopped people came with water to cool them. An older woman came running to our tap tap with a large water bucket on her head. She sacrificed an entire bucket to put out our flaming breaks. Water is precious in Haiti. I would guess she collected it the day before when it rained so much. Some pay for water here and water trucks fill a container on top of the houses. I hope this was not water she had paid for.
We rode for a little while longer but then ended up hiking the last mile or so to the orphanage (and bus). It may not have been a mile, but it was mostly uphill so it felt like it! Another HOT day too!!!
At the fort the girls were SO well behaved. It was a little scary for me because we were so high. I walked around anyway and the woods were very nice. It was much cooler. Inside the fort was interesting. A young boy explained the rooms to me and what went on in each. There were canons too. Some climbed on the wall for a picture. The kept at me until I joined them. I did not want to do it and wouldnt until Enoch promised to hold on so I didnt fall. That particular spot was safe, but creepy. One slip and you were sliding down and off the mountain.
The girls sang several songs for us. They know so many that we do. Then it was time for lunch. That was so cool!!! They would get two meals that day! We spread sheets for them to sit on and they waited patiently. We made made chicken salad sandwiches and gave them either peanut butter or cheese crackers with kool aid. There were SO sweet. Each one said “merci” when they received their sandwich. I gave each a cracker. Some had already been given one and refused to take another. Again, each said “merci”. After lunch we took each girls picture with a polaroid and gave it to them. The loved it! Many have never seen what they look like. We gave them goody bags before heading home. They were filled with bracelets, dolls, and candy…the girls called “sivet”.
We did not accomplish everything we set out to do here. We could have run the medical clinic everyday and not finished. We wanted to get the gas stove in but it did not work out. Still we got to make many memories. We got the love and play with the girls. That is most important. Many of the team were touched most when on of the girls would fall asleep on them. How often do they get to be held, or rocked. They take care of each other, but nothing can replace the love an adult can offer a child.
My favorite memory is walking in to meet them for the first time. As we walked in the girls were singing to us.
“Jesu, I love you. Jesu, I love you. You give you life for me. You give you life for me. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you Jesu, for that.”
They were so sweet and happy to see us. Even though they are growing up a very difficult life, they have a smile on their face.
Yesterday we went to market after visiting the fort. THAT was an experience. Very similar to market in Mexico, except more people and more seeking attention. It was very difficult to stay with someone and not get separated. People kept trying to pull me away to look at their items. One local tried to work his way into bargaining for me. I refused to let him. I wanted to bargain myself, and not pay someone to do it for me. The last lady I bought from was great. She was a friend of our team leaders. I bought several things from her and Pastor Boulle asked her to throw in a little container with the rest of my items.
My most prized purchase was actually made near the guest house. Vendors brought their items to the gates each evening for us to look at. It was a drum, a djembe actually. A little over a foot tall with engraving in the wood. Cow hide head and sticks poking out in each direction. It was the perfect gift for Steve. I worked hard to get a good price. So, I was very upset when Miami customs took it away from me. It wasn’t the money. It was just the fact that it was the perfect gift. I was told that it was possible for hides to carry anthrax. I was very upset. This had been in my bag and possession for 3 days. I don’t think the threat of anthrax was gone or eliminated by taking my drum! Others made it thru checks with their drums.
*****
I was SO ready to be home. When we finally got back, we were all so tired. I was glad to see my family, but still irritated over the drum fiasco. One of my team members knew what it meant to me finding that drum and bargaining for it as a gift to bring home. He gave me his, saying thank you for help during the trip and listening when he needed it. It is a smaller version of my drum, but i am thankful to have it. Very sweet thing for him to do.
Haiti: Why go?
why would anyone go to a third world country like haiti? when i tell people that i have been and would love to go back, that is what they ask.
first impression of haiti….
wow this place STINKS! it’s hot and there is the smell of decomposition and sewage everywhere! they live in shacks. there is garbage piled 20 feet high with pigs, goats, and other animals climbing on it. it’s disgusting! there were SO many people! and did i mention HOT!
so why go?
lots of reasons. 42 girls who needed someone to care about them. a community that needed medicines and vitamins. we couldnt fix every problem, and we barely touched the surface. the group i went with was called “making a difference”. pulled from jude 22, “and of some, having compassion and making a difference.” did we make a difference? haiti has been in political chaos for the last few years. the girls had to abandon the orphanage and flee to the mountains. the orphanage grew to house more girls, 80 was the last count. a boys orphanage was established as well. but they are no longer in the city. all the work we did, and other teams before and after, it is undone. so what is the point? it does seem hopeless. but for the days we were there, and for the days other teams were there, they made a difference on those days. they showed love on those days, and the girls experienced the wonderful feeling that someone does care about them.
is haiti a disgusting place stricken by poverty? i have to say yes. there is no industry there. there are no jobs. the people are poor, starving, and suffering from the ailments that come from living in such conditions. but haiti is also beautiful. the green is greener than i have ever seen. the flowering plants were bright, colorful, and just beautiful. the people need hope. they need an economy. can i give them that? no. of course not, but i made a minimal difference for a few, for that time.
and, i made a difference in my own life. coming back from haiti was the hardest week. i came back and school had started. i had one day to prepare my room, then kids the next day. i was numb. coming back was the hardest part. the first day with students was difficult. here are all these kids who do not realize how lucky they are! it isnt their fault. but it was a difficult thing to face. two students had been on the trip with me. they came by that first day. they were having a hard time too. they visited several times that first week, and we finally adjusted back to normal, but with a new appreciation for how lucky we really are.
the other reason for why go… personal satisfaction of doing something for someone in need. getting out of that personal comfort zone.
should everyone go to a country such as haiti? no. it isnt for everyone. i would love to say yes, because it is life changing. but the answer is no. some say i couldnt handle the smell or filth. that part is easy to get over. the hopelessness is the part that is hard. it isnt for everyone. but if the opportunity presents, i think one should seriously consider it. it will change you, and strengthen you.
reflections
I really appreciate all the kind things that were said about my choice to visit Haiti. We worked hard, and hopefully helped the people there. More than anything the trip made an impact on me. Thank you for the kind words, but I am just an ordinary person who struggles to be a good wife and mother in my family while also trying to be a good teacher. There are times when I have stumbled, fallen, and picked back up. Thank you for reading my Haiti journal. I enjoyed the opportunity to share and hope that you may be touched in some way to help those less fortunate.
Kontan jou.