We get to return to Cite Soleil today for another water truck truck-two stops today. We will visit the first two stops that we did on Day Two. It will be good to see our new friends again. How quickly we form those relationships here...if you picked up a strange child in the states, you would have all kinds of ugly come down on you...but here, it is a normal occurrence. Children wander like our parents and grandparents did when they were growing up. One of the Minnesota workers was holding a three year old. When the water runs out, we get into our top-top and leave. "what shall I do with this little one? where is her mother?" "Oh, just set her down, she will find her way home" That is the way. sometimes that is how it is with God. sometimes I feel we get in the way of how God works in our lives or the lives of someone we love. sometimes....God says, just set her down (surrender), she will find her way home to me. I don't need you to help... just now. We walk such a fine balance of helping (signing up to work with Healing Haiti) and surrendering. How will we know? Listen.... we had to listen to our leaders in Haiti. When they said move, we moved. When they said wait, we wait. It was for our safety and we worked as a single unit. Listen for God's voice...when He says move, you move....when He says wait, you wait.
We had a couple workers from another organization with us today. While they worked in Haiti, they were newly aghast at the conditions in Cite Soleil. Paul, said that we had become used to the garbage and the intense crowdedness and the men standing around and the women and young children hauling these heavy buckets of water....We were looking at the people... but all of this other "junk" is still there. It kind of reset our eyes for a moment. Yes, we are dong a good thing bringing free water (which costs us $7 per 3500 gallons of water - one truckload...ONE venti caramel machiatto and a scone)....yes we are doing good but in the end, we should remember that these conditions are still NOT right.
One of the Haitians was explaining that Port-au-Prince was designed to hold 200,000 people. There are 3 million people in the city. And no structure is over one story tall. no highrise holding several hundred people in a 3000 square ft footprint....ALL of them are ground level. Imagine the crowding....
Some good things happen... Jan's precious one Reuben was once again in her arms at the first stop. Our guest worker came up and asked what had happened to his little foot. his grandma said that he had been burned when he was three months old (his foot has fused up against his lower leg). Soon she came back and said that she knew of a friend in the Dominican Republic who was an Orthopedic Surgeon who operated on these kids for free. She would put us in touch with him. Jan talked to the grandma and said is we did this then she would have to make sure Reuben went to school. Knowing Jan, she will make sure that somehow this happens-sponsorships and keeping track through Healing Haiti. He may have a chance. Changing Haiti back to Haiti one child at a time.
We rest for a couple hours at the Guest House...our bodies are fatigued....our emotions are raw.
We will visit the Home for sick and dying babies for a couple hours this afternoon. The heat feels more intense today in the small cramped rooms. We help with feeding time (tonight it is a broth with bits of chicken and potatoes) and then we take the babies out to the courtyard for some sunshine and cooler air since the bigger kids are off of school. This facility not only houses the sick babies but orphans and a school (for both orphans and local children). It was nice to see some of the babies we bonded with a few short days ago look better and hopefully they will go home soon. Some will go home to their Heavenly Father where they can sit in his arms as much as they want with cool breezes blowing. Some will go home to their families here on earth.
It is harder to leave, today. I know that they are in good hands (the workers there are awesome) and that they have other organizations coming to help. But it is hard to walk the narrow broken path, down then up, past the wire fence used as a drying rack for the dozens of tiny cloth diapers, along the cracked and crumbling concrete walls ( a ghost of what was), past the slowing evolving new construction (a hope of what is to come) to the huge wooden gate....knowing some of us will never see this again. Lord, let us not forget. Place the salve of your love on our broken, wounded hearts. and even tho' we will heal, we will carry that scar, that memory, forever. .... au revoir, mon petits. (good bye, my little ones)
But God has sent Jean to care for us. He makes sure everything runs smoothly and he cooks us healthy meals and has such a caring heart. We have Creole chicken with rice, tacos with rice and meat and beans. Spaghetti. Creole eggs and pancakes. With the overwhelming amount of sights and sounds and experiences that are SO different to us, the american style meals helps keep us grounded and stable and healthy and our tummys happy.
SALSA DANCING NIGHT!!! Jean will give us a Salsa dancing lesson tonight. Our working days in Haiti are done. Sunday is a day of sightseeing and the market so we play tonight. The kitchen table is moved and the "dance floor" is created. One, two, cha-cha-cha. Andy, Paul and Bill are good sports and give it a try. Jenn and Karen are old pros and look great with some of the advanced moves. Carmen Miranda come to life!!! You could just imagine the Fruit Hat on their heads. We laugh and whoop and holler and siphon off some of our intense emotion into the dancing. It doesn't take long before we are spent and dripping with sweat. Meci, Jean for taking care of our bodies as well as our spirits.
Bon Soir, mon petits.... (good night, my little ones). May you have only good dreams and my God hold you in the palm of his hand.
Lynne
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