Our natural inclination is to be so precise- trying always to forecast accurately what will happen next- that we look upon uncertainty as a bad thing. We think that we must reach some predetermined goal, but that is not the nature of the spiritual life. The nature of the spiritual life is that we are certain in God, and uncertain in our certainty.
This is the devotional I began my day with today, while watching the sun rise… After reading it several times I gained the knowledge I believed was being expressed. It wasn’t until the experience of today that I now understand.
Even before we ate breakfast this morning a crew of several men arrived at Marie’s to continue rebuilding a security wall that was damaged in the earthquake. The old wall was broke into small pieces and added to the road where they had done the same with many of the damaged buildings, turning the dirt road into a gravel road. The upgraded roads appear to be an unseen blessing. With temperatures reaching near 100 today it was decided to wait until late afternoon to continue on the construction of the church at Marie’s. We instead took the opportunity to visit the water purification facility, where we purchased 100 bags, containing 60 single servings of purified water each. 90 of these bags were given to the orphanage, the remaining 10 will be used for the teams supply for the week. This trip gave me my first sight of large rural tent cities. Though they were in the distance what drew my attention was a group of kids playing soccer. No worries, just kids being kids. Traveling back into town I noticed the intricate metal workings of the gates entering into people’s homes. It seems almost signature architecture of the culture, where no matter how big or small the home, they share beautiful ornate metal work.
After lunch we decided to visit one of the tent cities, to visit the people and actually see the conditions they were living in. I, like all of you, have seen the pictures, and watched the news stories of these tent cities, but I was completely unprepared for what I experienced. The Haitian smell that has permeated my clothes and skin was intensified. The only way I can describe the smell is a combination of rotting garbage and burning tires. But meeting us at the gate was a crowd of kids. These kids had the same expression my kids do when I come home from work, and they run and meet me at the door, sharing hugs and laughs. All I knew to do was to hug them, and play with them, as they lead me through the tent city. I was overwhelmed by the conditions of the tent city… Tents were literally right next to each other, with narrow pathways wandering through. The tents are literally tarps being held up by tree branches, most didn’t appear to be much larger than 8’x8’. But as my heart broke for these people, I would look into their eyes and see joy. The smiles on their faces, the handshakes and hugs… they were joyful. Joyful in what we would perceive as chaos, and devastation, joyful in having their lives, joyful in their faith, and I was instantly humbled. It was described to me that the Haitians are resourceful and resilient. This is exactly what I have witnessed today. They live life one day at a time, as the devotional says, they have become uncertain in certainty, and instead rely on their faith.
This experience was nearly too overwhelming for me, and as we drove back to the orphanage I noticed I was becoming numb to the destruction that was all around, instead I saw businesses running, street vendors selling, kids walking home from school proudly wearing their uniforms, I saw a country that is striving and pushing on through whatever struggles, a country of proud people. Unable to understand and take this all in, I found myself shutting down emotionally. I was nearly unable to make heads or tails of this trip. Then we entered the orphanage, and the girls ran and met us at the gate, smiles, hugs, wanting to be lifted up and loved, and of course giving everyone a fist bump, which Brad and I officially brought to Haiti! The kids think it is the coolest thing! But having three girls climbing on me, fighting for who got the first hug just brings reality back. (1 Corinthians 13:13) Three things will last forever – Faith, Hope and Love- and the greatest of these is love. The Haitians in their uncertain certainty in everything but their faith continue to witness this to me.
Chris
4.29.2010
4.28.2010
Our First Full Day...
Our first full day in Haiti started at a bright and early 5:00 am to the singing rosters outside our windows. The wall outside Marie’s was being torn down as we all headed to the orphanage to hear the students sing their national anthem and watched the raising of the Haitian flag. They sang beautifully. It made me wonder why we stopped doing that in our own schools. The children there are so sweet and all seem so happy when they have so many reasons to be anything but. Its awe inspiring to witness and I am so glad to have been given the opportunity to meet these wonderful children. They are very inquisitive and the girls have taken quite interest in my hair. It makes me laugh as they pet my head.
Our mission for the day was to start on the extension of the church. After picking up some wood we were back at the orphanage and hammering away before we knew it. It’s amazing how much work can be done with so many helpful hands. We were able to finish most of the framework for the church and are making great progress. I didn’t understand most of the carpentry talk but I felt privileged to be able to help. Jim and his group are some of the warmest, caring people. At the end of the day we returned to Marie’s and the wall that was torn down this morning was almost completely rebuilt. The Haitians worked all day in temperatures well into the 90’s with little food or water. I thought of this as we were eating the meal cooked by Gina, which we are very fortunate to have. I am so very grateful for everything I’ve been provided. Thank you Marie!
This is definitely a humbling experience. It’s hard not to think just how well we have things in the US when you see how little the people have here. Their hearts are large and their needs are many. It will continue to amaze me how positive they are after everything they have been through. It will be hard to leave in a week knowing that there is so much more to do. I will definitely go home with a new perspective and be more appreciative of the many things I am lucky to have in my life. This experience will be something I hold in my heart for life. I look forward to what tomorrow brings.
Tina Miller
Our mission for the day was to start on the extension of the church. After picking up some wood we were back at the orphanage and hammering away before we knew it. It’s amazing how much work can be done with so many helpful hands. We were able to finish most of the framework for the church and are making great progress. I didn’t understand most of the carpentry talk but I felt privileged to be able to help. Jim and his group are some of the warmest, caring people. At the end of the day we returned to Marie’s and the wall that was torn down this morning was almost completely rebuilt. The Haitians worked all day in temperatures well into the 90’s with little food or water. I thought of this as we were eating the meal cooked by Gina, which we are very fortunate to have. I am so very grateful for everything I’ve been provided. Thank you Marie!
This is definitely a humbling experience. It’s hard not to think just how well we have things in the US when you see how little the people have here. Their hearts are large and their needs are many. It will continue to amaze me how positive they are after everything they have been through. It will be hard to leave in a week knowing that there is so much more to do. I will definitely go home with a new perspective and be more appreciative of the many things I am lucky to have in my life. This experience will be something I hold in my heart for life. I look forward to what tomorrow brings.
Tina Miller
4.27.2010
A Head Full of Doubt becomes a Mind Full of Wonder
About 2 weeks ago a co-worker of mine suggested that we have Jim Meyer come speak to our seventh grade students. We had just finished Greg Mortenson’s “Three Cups of Tea” and found that our students had quite a bit of humanitarian inside them, but it just never had the chance to escape and blossom. Jim came in and gave an incredible slideshow presentation filled with images of destruction but symbols and themes of hope and perseverance. After talking with him for about an hour after-school, he offered me a spot on his next adventure in Haiti, the catch was that it was in 2 weeks! I made a game time decision and the next thing I knew I was in Port Au Prince this afternoon, while my students were over a thousand miles away in our Chicago classroom.
When we arrived today, I really had no idea what to expect. I was like any other American who only knew about Haiti from the news and Hollywood fundraisers, but after meeting Jim I saw that there was an incredible place and story behind this mysterious land. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t nervous, the weird thing is I didn’t even know what I was nervous about. Maybe just soaking everything in, and experiencing something very different from what I’m used to. Well, I was right, at least a little bit. Haiti was different, and overwhelming, but also strangely beautiful and inspirational.
After cruising the streets for a bit, I found myself staring a bit, and quickly tried to correct that so I didn’t stand out that much! Being a 6’5’’ white American in Haiti already had me targeted from the second I stepped off the plane! But something amazing began to happen… instead of meeting my lost stare with hostility or a look of apprehension, I found just about every Haitian, young and old, happy or sad, smiling a sometimes weathered but also optimistic grin in my direction. This land that I was so nervous about entering had already welcomed me in, and I knew this would be an incredible experience.
As we ate dinner, which was well-needed after a long day of travel, the idea to pop into the orphanage came up. “Sure!”I thought, those kids were one of the major reasons I wanted to come in the first place. What transpired in the next 45 minutes would be an experience I will never ever forget.
Endless smiles, echoing laughter, continuous hugs and introductions, broken attempts at me speaking French and these incredible, beautiful young ladies speaking much better English! Did they have a formal education? No. Did they have supportive parents who encouraged them to study? No. But an enduring spirit, and incredible leaders (Marie and her staff, and Jim and his relentless crew), has inspired these girls to not only see the bright side of things, but to be unconditionally happy and full of love. Lifting these girls to the sky, counting the stars with them, playing jump rope, and just hugging and holding them, made me truly realize, for the first time in my life, how right it is to care. These girls taught me a lesson I will never forget, and they didn’t even speak English! It was an amazing feeling to experience a bond where there are no boundaries… culture, race, age, background… it didn’t matter. My head full of doubt turned into a mind full of wonder… what else is out there in the world for me to experience? What other lessons can I learn and share? I guess time will tell, after all, it’s only been 4 hours!!!
So… what are we doing tomorrow?!
Brad Parker
When we arrived today, I really had no idea what to expect. I was like any other American who only knew about Haiti from the news and Hollywood fundraisers, but after meeting Jim I saw that there was an incredible place and story behind this mysterious land. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t nervous, the weird thing is I didn’t even know what I was nervous about. Maybe just soaking everything in, and experiencing something very different from what I’m used to. Well, I was right, at least a little bit. Haiti was different, and overwhelming, but also strangely beautiful and inspirational.
After cruising the streets for a bit, I found myself staring a bit, and quickly tried to correct that so I didn’t stand out that much! Being a 6’5’’ white American in Haiti already had me targeted from the second I stepped off the plane! But something amazing began to happen… instead of meeting my lost stare with hostility or a look of apprehension, I found just about every Haitian, young and old, happy or sad, smiling a sometimes weathered but also optimistic grin in my direction. This land that I was so nervous about entering had already welcomed me in, and I knew this would be an incredible experience.
As we ate dinner, which was well-needed after a long day of travel, the idea to pop into the orphanage came up. “Sure!”I thought, those kids were one of the major reasons I wanted to come in the first place. What transpired in the next 45 minutes would be an experience I will never ever forget.
Endless smiles, echoing laughter, continuous hugs and introductions, broken attempts at me speaking French and these incredible, beautiful young ladies speaking much better English! Did they have a formal education? No. Did they have supportive parents who encouraged them to study? No. But an enduring spirit, and incredible leaders (Marie and her staff, and Jim and his relentless crew), has inspired these girls to not only see the bright side of things, but to be unconditionally happy and full of love. Lifting these girls to the sky, counting the stars with them, playing jump rope, and just hugging and holding them, made me truly realize, for the first time in my life, how right it is to care. These girls taught me a lesson I will never forget, and they didn’t even speak English! It was an amazing feeling to experience a bond where there are no boundaries… culture, race, age, background… it didn’t matter. My head full of doubt turned into a mind full of wonder… what else is out there in the world for me to experience? What other lessons can I learn and share? I guess time will tell, after all, it’s only been 4 hours!!!
So… what are we doing tomorrow?!
Brad Parker
3.24.2010
Our Last Full Day in Haiti...
The morning’s wake-up call (our friend the rooster) was accompanied by what sounded like a semi-truck trying to turn around in a 2 car parking lot. This woke us all up and thus begun our day… well kinda, a few of us managed to catch a few more moments of sleep before finally rising for our last full day here. Bill and Tim were already over at Marie’s orphanage before most of the team had woken up and made a cross for the church using the remaining 2x4’s.
After eating our breakfast of coffee and assorted power bars/trail mixes, we began the task of replacing the large tarp that covers the main deck between the adjoining buildings within Marie’s compound. Marie has been sleeping on this deck since the team’s arrival and it has been affected by the weather and winds for some time now. It took some interesting engineering to get the new tarp in position, but once in place the tarp was a noticeable improvement and should be able to withstand the weather that Haiti is expecting. While securing the tarp on the roof, we took a look at the compound’s 200 gallon water reservoir and decided to add the extra reservoir to provide more water. This proved successful and now there is double the water to support the compound.
We then took off down the street to visit the girls at the orphanage and had a great time playing with them and practicing their version of “patty cake.” Most of the girls were sitting in one of the classrooms with Sophia (one of the teachers) singing songs and practicing their vocabulary. Although the Ministry of Education has been adamant that school will not begin again until April 5th, the children appear eager to return to their studies. When we arrived they were very happy to have more people to play with, particularly Trevor – the girls seem to enjoy braiding his hair and ripping out the hairs of the rest of the team… not sure why, but they get a kick out of the faces we make I suppose.
After visiting the girls, the team loaded up in the truck and drove to Pastor Wislet’s orphanage which supports more than 50 children. We spent some time adjusting the military-grade UN tent to provide more air flow and also distributed some supplies which included food, clothing, toys, and necklaces. The pastor’s wife, Jaqline, had their choir assemble and sing several songs for us which sounded great! They also expressed an interest in coming to the US and singing at various churches in the near future as well.
When we left Pastor Wislet’s compound, we stopped by the “Metal Worker’s” section of town. These artists mainly use 55 gallon steel drums and pound them with various sized hammers and chisels to create some very unique ornamental pieces. Although most of the team isn’t into the artsy stuff, let alone shopping around, we managed to walk around the area for almost an hour and even made a few small purchases.
When we returned to Marie’s house, a few of the guys took a look at the generator that supports Marie’s compound and determined that due to bad air flow and ventilation, the system has been overheating. This issue will need to be addressed in the near future to ensure adequate power supply. We’re looking at ways to fix this during our next trip here in April.
Later in the evening we visited Debbie over at the Hope House, and had dinner with her. Debbie prepared a great meal for us and even served a cake in celebration of both: Marie’s and Debbie’s birthdays which they both intended to celebrate in January. Afterwards we asked Debbie of her experiences here over the last 20+ years, in particular the events immediately following the earthquake. It is amazing to hear some of the stories that Marie and Debbie share, and to feel their overwhelming faith and support for the Haitian people. We ended up staying over at the Hope House for quite some time, until Marie gave us the “Ok, let’s go” signal. At times she reminds me of some of the Drill Sergeants I once worked for, which is awesome because sometimes that's exactly what's needed.
So here we are at 10:30 p.m. packing our clothing and equipment, and preparing for our departure tomorrow. Marie is already asleep, and most of the team is shooting the breeze and reflecting on the week’s events. The Haitians we’ve met have touched us more than words can begin to describe and we’ve seen the Lord at work throughout the week. Haiti will be in need of much support into the foreseeable future and I am confident that with the many efforts of the world community, the Haitian people will overcome.
After eating our breakfast of coffee and assorted power bars/trail mixes, we began the task of replacing the large tarp that covers the main deck between the adjoining buildings within Marie’s compound. Marie has been sleeping on this deck since the team’s arrival and it has been affected by the weather and winds for some time now. It took some interesting engineering to get the new tarp in position, but once in place the tarp was a noticeable improvement and should be able to withstand the weather that Haiti is expecting. While securing the tarp on the roof, we took a look at the compound’s 200 gallon water reservoir and decided to add the extra reservoir to provide more water. This proved successful and now there is double the water to support the compound.
We then took off down the street to visit the girls at the orphanage and had a great time playing with them and practicing their version of “patty cake.” Most of the girls were sitting in one of the classrooms with Sophia (one of the teachers) singing songs and practicing their vocabulary. Although the Ministry of Education has been adamant that school will not begin again until April 5th, the children appear eager to return to their studies. When we arrived they were very happy to have more people to play with, particularly Trevor – the girls seem to enjoy braiding his hair and ripping out the hairs of the rest of the team… not sure why, but they get a kick out of the faces we make I suppose.
After visiting the girls, the team loaded up in the truck and drove to Pastor Wislet’s orphanage which supports more than 50 children. We spent some time adjusting the military-grade UN tent to provide more air flow and also distributed some supplies which included food, clothing, toys, and necklaces. The pastor’s wife, Jaqline, had their choir assemble and sing several songs for us which sounded great! They also expressed an interest in coming to the US and singing at various churches in the near future as well.
When we left Pastor Wislet’s compound, we stopped by the “Metal Worker’s” section of town. These artists mainly use 55 gallon steel drums and pound them with various sized hammers and chisels to create some very unique ornamental pieces. Although most of the team isn’t into the artsy stuff, let alone shopping around, we managed to walk around the area for almost an hour and even made a few small purchases.
When we returned to Marie’s house, a few of the guys took a look at the generator that supports Marie’s compound and determined that due to bad air flow and ventilation, the system has been overheating. This issue will need to be addressed in the near future to ensure adequate power supply. We’re looking at ways to fix this during our next trip here in April.
Later in the evening we visited Debbie over at the Hope House, and had dinner with her. Debbie prepared a great meal for us and even served a cake in celebration of both: Marie’s and Debbie’s birthdays which they both intended to celebrate in January. Afterwards we asked Debbie of her experiences here over the last 20+ years, in particular the events immediately following the earthquake. It is amazing to hear some of the stories that Marie and Debbie share, and to feel their overwhelming faith and support for the Haitian people. We ended up staying over at the Hope House for quite some time, until Marie gave us the “Ok, let’s go” signal. At times she reminds me of some of the Drill Sergeants I once worked for, which is awesome because sometimes that's exactly what's needed.
So here we are at 10:30 p.m. packing our clothing and equipment, and preparing for our departure tomorrow. Marie is already asleep, and most of the team is shooting the breeze and reflecting on the week’s events. The Haitians we’ve met have touched us more than words can begin to describe and we’ve seen the Lord at work throughout the week. Haiti will be in need of much support into the foreseeable future and I am confident that with the many efforts of the world community, the Haitian people will overcome.
3.22.2010
Blog Update by Jay J
It is another beautiful sunny day, approx. 90 deg F. There was a nice breeze during the entire day that felt very good to everyone. We started the day with some breakfast. Bob made some scrambled eggs for those who were up early enough to catch him cooking on the stove. Bob got up very early so luckily I was one of the few.
After breakfast, we went to the girls orphanage to tie down the new roof so that it does not blow away during the hurricane season. The new roof (made only from tarp and wood) covers most of the orphans dining area and will now allow outdoor cooking and cleaning even during rainy days. Bill used his creativity skills to design a gutter system that will capture the rain water and allow anyone within the orphanage to route it to one of two different directions, either within the orphanage so that it can be used to clean dirty dishes, shower, store in a water tank, etc., or outside of the orphanage so that it does not cause any flooding. The person who does most of the cooking and cleaning for the orphans, whose name is Joceline, was extremely happy that we did this project because it will greatly improve her working conditions. She could not speak a word of English, but showed her appreciation by giving everyone a big smile and a hug when we were finished, which was about 9:00am.
The next activity on our agenda was to visit the clean water manufacturing facility and pick up the 497 bags of water that we had left over from last week, and distribute them to those living in ‘tent cities’. When we reached the manufacturing facility, the man in charge said he would not have any drivers until noon because they were distributing water and ice, so we decided to load 97 bags in our truck and give them to Marie. The remaining 400 bags stayed in the cold storage facility until we came back to pick them up. Each bag of water contained 60 pouches, each with approx 8 oz of water, so we had 24,000 pouches that we wanted to distribute in the tent city that Marie’s half sister lives.
To give you some background, Jim, Bob, and me (Jay) went to visit Marie’s half-sister on Saturday to discuss how we would distribute all the water to the ~2000 families living in tents. The living conditions in this tent city was probably the worse I have seen in my life. It happened to rain night before, so this place was completely muddy, hot, humid, and smelly, especially near the outdoor toilets (which were holes in the ground surrounded by flies). Each tent was only 2-3 feet from the next, and I could honestly say that I had never seen any worse living conditions in my entire life. Everything looked dirty and many people did not have shoes so their feet were completely covered in mud. I was not sure why Marie’s half sister was not staying with Marie in her relatively nice place. Nonetheless, we agreed to come back to give them the water on Monday, and she was going to have a few guys help us.
We loaded up the refrigerated truck and drove to tent city. Since it had not rained in a couple of days, the ground was completely dry. We setup an assembly line to drop off all 400 bags of water in the church tent so that they can distribute the bags to each family. See pics below.
After we finished dropping off the water, we walked around the area, and everyone was very nice to us. The kids were very excited to see us, so there must have been at least 25 kids trying to hold our hands/arms. The parents were very trusting and did not mind if their kids followed us throughout the camp. A very cute two-year old boy wanted to follow me around everywhere so I carried him with one arm while holding the hand of another two kids. All the other guys also had at least 2 or 3 kids with them. It is amazing how friendly these people were to us even though they lived in the worse conditions imaginable. Seeing the smiles on the kids faces made me want to do more for all the people living in the camp. Although we gave them clean water, they probably would have appreciated food more. I pray that these people won’t have to live in these conditions for too long, and that God will provide them the food that they desperately need.
When we got back to Marie’s place, we cleaned up and had dinner. Josh cooked delicious spaghetti for all of us, and we spent the rest of the evening enjoying each other’s company.
After breakfast, we went to the girls orphanage to tie down the new roof so that it does not blow away during the hurricane season. The new roof (made only from tarp and wood) covers most of the orphans dining area and will now allow outdoor cooking and cleaning even during rainy days. Bill used his creativity skills to design a gutter system that will capture the rain water and allow anyone within the orphanage to route it to one of two different directions, either within the orphanage so that it can be used to clean dirty dishes, shower, store in a water tank, etc., or outside of the orphanage so that it does not cause any flooding. The person who does most of the cooking and cleaning for the orphans, whose name is Joceline, was extremely happy that we did this project because it will greatly improve her working conditions. She could not speak a word of English, but showed her appreciation by giving everyone a big smile and a hug when we were finished, which was about 9:00am.
The next activity on our agenda was to visit the clean water manufacturing facility and pick up the 497 bags of water that we had left over from last week, and distribute them to those living in ‘tent cities’. When we reached the manufacturing facility, the man in charge said he would not have any drivers until noon because they were distributing water and ice, so we decided to load 97 bags in our truck and give them to Marie. The remaining 400 bags stayed in the cold storage facility until we came back to pick them up. Each bag of water contained 60 pouches, each with approx 8 oz of water, so we had 24,000 pouches that we wanted to distribute in the tent city that Marie’s half sister lives.
To give you some background, Jim, Bob, and me (Jay) went to visit Marie’s half-sister on Saturday to discuss how we would distribute all the water to the ~2000 families living in tents. The living conditions in this tent city was probably the worse I have seen in my life. It happened to rain night before, so this place was completely muddy, hot, humid, and smelly, especially near the outdoor toilets (which were holes in the ground surrounded by flies). Each tent was only 2-3 feet from the next, and I could honestly say that I had never seen any worse living conditions in my entire life. Everything looked dirty and many people did not have shoes so their feet were completely covered in mud. I was not sure why Marie’s half sister was not staying with Marie in her relatively nice place. Nonetheless, we agreed to come back to give them the water on Monday, and she was going to have a few guys help us.
We loaded up the refrigerated truck and drove to tent city. Since it had not rained in a couple of days, the ground was completely dry. We setup an assembly line to drop off all 400 bags of water in the church tent so that they can distribute the bags to each family. See pics below.
After we finished dropping off the water, we walked around the area, and everyone was very nice to us. The kids were very excited to see us, so there must have been at least 25 kids trying to hold our hands/arms. The parents were very trusting and did not mind if their kids followed us throughout the camp. A very cute two-year old boy wanted to follow me around everywhere so I carried him with one arm while holding the hand of another two kids. All the other guys also had at least 2 or 3 kids with them. It is amazing how friendly these people were to us even though they lived in the worse conditions imaginable. Seeing the smiles on the kids faces made me want to do more for all the people living in the camp. Although we gave them clean water, they probably would have appreciated food more. I pray that these people won’t have to live in these conditions for too long, and that God will provide them the food that they desperately need.
When we got back to Marie’s place, we cleaned up and had dinner. Josh cooked delicious spaghetti for all of us, and we spent the rest of the evening enjoying each other’s company.
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