My First Haitian Experience

Here's a note that I wrote a year ago when I got back from Haiti the first time:

6/4/2009

It is near impossible to put into words everything that I felt and experienced in Haiti, but I'm going to try my hardest. Our trip started off in a frustrating way, boarding and unboarding the plane 3 times before having the pilot tell us that the flight was rescheduled for the next morning due to the curfew in Haiti. By that time I had gotten to know a lot of Haitians on the plane, could recite the safety video in English, Creole, and French, and could walk to my seat on the plane with my eyes closed.

We finally left for Haiti on Saturday morning, and Louis met us at the airport. Flying into Port-Au-Prince it appears that there are huge flat sheets of tin all over the city, which is in fact the roofs of the houses in the slums. The poverty and filth is staggering, and words cannot describe the helplessness and pity I felt for those people. We went to Mother Teresa's hospital while we were still in the city, which is a small building for babies and young children. In each room there are about 25 cribs, and the workers spend their entire day keeping everyone changed and fed. The children lie in their cribs all day with minimal human contact and stare out of their big lonely brown eyes. I was afraid I was going to break some of them when I picked them up because they are so skinny. I went up to this one little girl who immediately put her arms up for me to pick her up. I held her for about 20 minutes and then went to put her down so I could hold other children as well. She started wailing and holding her arms up to me, and walking away from her was one of the hardest and most heart-wrenching things I have ever had to do in my life. While holding the children, I felt such a strong maternal instict and knew that Mary was working through me and holding the children herself, letting them know that they were loved and not alone.

We then preceded to drive 4 hours to the village. As most of you know, I get extremely carsick and the Haitian way of driving through the city (no offense Louis) sent me over the edge. I was about to throw up out the window onto the feet of the vendors on the sidewalk when Sean thrust the bag previously holding Mother Teresa's sweater into my face just in time. He made fun of me for the rest of the trip for almost showing the Haitians what I really thought of their country...

I rode in the front of the van the rest of the way, and fell asleep thanks to Drammamene. I awoke to the bouncing and jerking of the car, after we got off of the paved road and started traveling on the dirt roads that make up most of Haiti. There are ruts from the rains and we had to cross several rivers...it was even more fun when I rode on the back of a pickup on the way back to the city! If you love off-roading, I strongly suggest you go to Haiti :)

We finally got to the village and Brother DeLord (not to my knowledge) played out a fake Voodoo "welcoming ceremony"...I should have known the chicken blood wasn't real if it was in a soda bottle ;P The orphanage is almost completed and is a miracle. I can't wait to see children from the city brought there and having 24/7 love and support.

Sam, Kristen, Johnna, Greg, and Chase were already down there and they have been doing such an amazing job! We helped to fix a road to the outhouse that the Haitians couldn't get to when it rained (kind of a problem) and I accompanied Kristen on her visit to the local clinic. There is such a dire need for simple medical care in Haiti, and it really awakened something within me. I would love to work at the clinic that Sean is planning on building when it's open.

On Sunday we went to a service led by Brother that lasted for hours! The villagers are lucky if they recieve the Eucharist once a year because there are no priests in the immediate area. It made me appreciate it so much more, and it was so humbling to see how excited the Haitians are about their faith even if they are deprived of one of its main sacraments. They sing almost everything during the mass, and it was such a beautiful service.

One of my most favorite parts about the trip was the children. As I mentioned above, I felt such a strong materal force within me come alive while I was there. Having a child fall asleep in my arms, either at church or at the hospital or the orphanage, was the best feeling in the world. I knew that at that moment they felt safe and loved, and the way that they desperately clung to me broke my heart and elated me at the same time. The love that they showed me was just as powerful as the love that I showed them, and even though we had a language barrier I felt so connected to them because the language of love is universal.

And yes, I did bathe in a river! And believe it or not it was the best shower that I have ever had. The first time we went it was dark and we swam in the intensely bright moonlight, which felt so beautiful and natural. The part we swam in was deep enough that I couldn't touch and some of us (not me) did cannonballs off of a cliff. I would totally continue my newly acquired bathing habits in the States if I didn't think that people would think I was crazy...

Haiti will forever be in my heart, and I will never forget my Haitian brothers and sisters who I met while I was there. I can't wait to go back..in fact I never wanted to leave in the first place! Thank you so much for everyone's love and support, and please continue to pray for this awesome mission :)