Rerfreshing

Beach day! We finally got a chance to cool down in the salty ocean water of Haiti. It was refreshing to be away from all the dust of the city. We planned our swimming day with the children at Yvon's orphanage. When we went to pick them up, I walked into their common grounds and said, "bonjour" to the kids standing on the steps and all together the kids responded with "bonjour." You could see how respectful and family-like these kids were throughout the whole day. They listen to Yvon (the orphans' director) and respond to his command instantly. They greeted us with a song and a prayer and everywhere you looked you saw them helping each other and sharing with one another. After our few minutes of greeting, we packed them in a little, colorful bus and headed to the beach about 45 minutes away from their home.

On the ride to the beach you were able to see Haiti from a different light. When we drive through Puerta Prince and City Soliel, you are able to see so much dust, dirt, and lack of color. As we moved along the road to the ocean, we were able to see the vegetation and greener part of Haiti. There was so many trees, farms, and animals. A description such as this may make it seem like a less poverished area, it was not. You still saw tent huts, muddy streams, people taking baths in dirty water, and desperation among the people. It was just a different kind of Haiti, more of the native Haiti rather than the city life Haiti.

When we finally arrived at the beach, we were able to see the beautiful sight of Haiti. The mountains lining the crisp, blue water. One would almost forget they were in the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere. As soon as we set up camp at the beach, we all got ready to swim and headed towards the water. I swam with the orphans for a bit, but was a little under the weather today so I took it easy. It's funny when you swim with the kids because they all cling to you. They don't know how to swim so they hold on so tight with so much trust that you won't let them drowned.

After cooling off a bit, I headed back to the area where we put all our things and started making peanut butter sandwiches for the kids. I made over 50 sandwiches and by the time I was done, it started to rain and the kids swarmed to our place under the trees. The kids were so respectful while they ate-- they would help each other open chip bags and share what they didn't finish.

Once the rain cleared up, I moved to a rock near the water and sat with Carol, a 13 year old girl. She is a beautiful, young lady that speaks fairly good English. She offered me some of her chips and we started talking. I asked if she had brothers or sisters, and she told me she had a brother that lives with her mom. I asked if she ever gets to see her mom, and she smiled at me and said yes. From my understanding, Carol wasn't a true orphan, but was living at the orphanage simply because her mom couldn't take care of her all on her own. After observing Carol all day, you could see her love and affection for all the kids. She was almost like their mom. No one would guess that she was a 13 year old girl. She was so selfless and mature for her age. It was incredible. I was moved by Carol's love.

On our way back from swimming, it started to not just rain... it started to down pour. Rain pelted the top-top and brought with it a cooling. It's a sad thing here--it only seems to rain near the mountains and not in the city where the rain is needed. No wonder people in City Soleil can't really grow anything or have much vegetation. It makes sense why it is so dust and desert-like in that part of Haiti.

During my car ride back to the house, I road in the front of the top-top with Junior (our driver) and we talked about his family, his girlfriend (soon to be wife), and he tried to teach me some creole. I think one of my biggest frustrations being here is not being able to communicate with the people. Junior was an excellent teacher and helped me to practice saying things like "I am a girl." and "I am tired." He taught me what the word for cow is and the word for car. It was fun!

The rest of the evening, I was completely beat. My "under-the-weather" sickness caught up with me and I was out-of-it. I could see the love of our group members unfold as they all grew concern for me and checking in on me.

Shelley, our team leader, washed each team members’ feet during the word of the day. It was really fascinating to see her so eager to humbly wash each person’s feet. I am so grateful to have had this opportunity to serve God’s children with Shelley. She has a big heart for others and is very accepting of everyone that stumbles, trips, or falls in her path.