So much has happened since I first got here. Everyday has been a new exciting adventure. Day one began with a tour of the compound and the village. Merely walking through the village is an adventure.
There were tons of kids everywhere pushing each other out of the way to get the chance to hold your hand. They are so loving and so affectionate, always seeking your attention. We also spent some time going through the school. I'm so excited to get to work with these wonderful students! \
Then we met with a man named Beni and his wife Dominique, a couple who have a ministry on an island off of Haiti. We gave them 40 boxes of Kids Against Hunger food (pre-packaged rice that also includes vegetables, soy, and vitamins) to take with them to feed their school children. We took it to the sea where they loaded it on a boat. It was so nice to see the ocean!!
On our way out there, we ran into a woman from our village who was pregnant and was about to have her baby. We had needed to get to the port to make sure Beni and his wife got on the boat in time so we told her we'd be back after. When we got back she had been having contractions so she, her husband, and her mother got into the bed of our pickup truck and we were going to drive her to a hospital. Not long into our trip we had to pull over because she had to have the baby!
She was so strong! Imagine giving birth in the back of a pickup with no drugs or anything! Not even comfortable bed. We brought her back up to our clinic to get her and her baby checked out. They were both healthy.
I then spent the afternoon going through the village and meeting my new neighbors. I also spent some time in one of the classes where I attempted to learn French along with the students.
Day two was a bit more difficult. We got up at 4:30am to pack love bundles onto mules to take up to a village in the mountain. We hiked practically straight up for two hours. That was probably the most physically demanding thing I've ever done! But it was amazing. It was a good illustration for life. When we looked up the mountain from the bottom it looked huge! It looked impossible to conquer. Even when we had been hiking for over an hour it still seemed impossible. It was so difficult! What made it crazier was seeing all these Haitian men women and even children climb up and down with no difficulty. Some of them even went up and back down again before we made it to the top. And some of them were in their bare feet! It brought to mind how many times I had complained about not having the right shoes. Now here was a perfect time to have the right footwear to climb and these sweet Haitian children were making the path in their bare feet. But Jesus says that when we are weak, He is strong. So we used his strength and continued up the mountain, taking it step by step. Eventually we made it to the top!! We felt so accomplished! It was a good reminder to keep pushing, no matter what the obstacle and to take it step by step. So many times in life things look overwhelming. What we need to do is take a step back, pray, and then take it bit by bit. God will give us the strength we need. We don't have to carry those every burdens on our own. Speaking of carrying things....Their weren't enough mules to carry all the love bundles for the school, so instead of coming back down for the rest, some of the Haitians carried them in boxes on their heads up the mountain. I don't know how they did it!
It was all worth the hike when we saw the faces of the children who received the love bundles. They were so grateful!! I will definitely do that hike again to see those children.
After loading up on water and food, we got back to work again. We spent the rest of the day building school benches, painting the school directors house, and putting together buckets of necessities that double as water filters.
During the middle of the night we were awaken by sounds of voodoo chanting and drumming. I'm praying for the day when voodoo is gone from the island!!! Pray for the salvation of everyone here please!
Today was of course another amazing day in Haiti. We got a chance to visit a market in Archaie. It was different then any other market I've been to in Haiti. There was no kind of path, just people everywhere selling all kinds of things. There was some really nice things from America! They had beautiful clothes, shoes, and sunglasses. They had all kinds of food including meat that was just laying all over the place. Then we went to where they sold charcoal. That site was pretty sad. 95% of Haiti's forests are gone. That's part of the reason why the land is so bad. There are so many things that need to be done to help this beautiful nation strive to be what it can be. I've fallen deeply and passionately in love with the Haitian people. They are an amazing, strong, loving people unlike any I've ever met.
After that we went to an orphanage. I wanted to adopt all of those sweet children!!
Got my mind rolling for an orphanage of my own one day! I kept thinking of what those kids could grow up to be and how we could make sure they lived good lives. After we got back we finished up the work on the school benches, buckets, and painting.
We also gave love bundles to another pastor and his church.
I seriously love my new life here. I'm excited to see what's going to happen next! God is doing a wonderful work here and I'm so blessed beyond measure to be a part of Lifeline!
No comments:
Post a Comment