Wow, where did the time go? This morning I woke up and I felt like a part of the neighborhood. The local tap tap drive was fixing his tap tap. The little girl next door was dressed and ready for school in her uniform and there was slight music playing while people worked.
My heart is heavy today. This place has a magical pull which is both heart warming and heart wrenching. I can only pray that if it is God's will to bring me back he will soon and he will provide.
I am getting ready to go to Vie de France this morning to take some pictures and to say goodbye. I can only wish that the good bye is only for a while. The smells and the sounds I think I will miss the most. Even that silly dog next door who barks and whines all night. I sleep through the night here now without the ear plugs. It is amazing how we were created to mold into our surroundings.
I am going to enjoy this day today and thank God for bringing to this place and for opening my eyes and heart to a new land and people. I feel everyday here through the trials and the work that I am living the dream. I get to help people.
I'm Blessed!
Friday, May 7, 2010
Thursday, May 6, 2010
The Letter
Well it seems like everything here in Jacmel is ran on the letter. Meaning you need to have paperwork for everything. Where isn’t it like that? But the strange thing here is that I get asked to write the letters all the time. Who am I to write letters getting permission to do things to state that something is for real? Well that is what it is. One would think that it would have to be an official whom you get permission but then I realize what I have been asked to do it just write letter petitioning for help and aid to get jobs done here in Jacmel. Well I can do that one.
I get a call early May 1st morning from a friend asking if I can come over to help him write and print out a letter. I say sure let me get ready and I will be there. I show up at his house to help him write a letter. I am thinking it will be a letter petitioning for aid and what I come to find out is different.
I am helping him write a reference letter for his friends. Ok, I’m in, here is the back story. My friend is a pastor of a local church. He married a couple. The woman was from the Bahamas and the man is from Haiti. The problem is that the gentleman is trying to move to the Bahamas to be with his wife. They were married right before the earthquake on December 24th, 2009. I help the pastor write and print out the reference letter and then I head out on my way to check out some May 1st festivities.
The day goes by and the next day.
Then two days later, I thought about what I did. I thought about how, I helped the situation and I helped bring a family together who is struggling because they are separated. I know it was just a letter and it seems like nothing much to me to type a few words in a program and print it out. But because I was able to help out the pastor who admitted to me was not good at using a computer, I was able to help this family. That was my AH HA, moment here. It does not matter how small you may think what you are doing is; to the other person you are helping it can be fantastic.
Thus, far of all the things I have done here. That letter meant the most to me. Thank you God for letting me help.
I get a call early May 1st morning from a friend asking if I can come over to help him write and print out a letter. I say sure let me get ready and I will be there. I show up at his house to help him write a letter. I am thinking it will be a letter petitioning for aid and what I come to find out is different.
I am helping him write a reference letter for his friends. Ok, I’m in, here is the back story. My friend is a pastor of a local church. He married a couple. The woman was from the Bahamas and the man is from Haiti. The problem is that the gentleman is trying to move to the Bahamas to be with his wife. They were married right before the earthquake on December 24th, 2009. I help the pastor write and print out the reference letter and then I head out on my way to check out some May 1st festivities.
The day goes by and the next day.
Then two days later, I thought about what I did. I thought about how, I helped the situation and I helped bring a family together who is struggling because they are separated. I know it was just a letter and it seems like nothing much to me to type a few words in a program and print it out. But because I was able to help out the pastor who admitted to me was not good at using a computer, I was able to help this family. That was my AH HA, moment here. It does not matter how small you may think what you are doing is; to the other person you are helping it can be fantastic.
Thus, far of all the things I have done here. That letter meant the most to me. Thank you God for letting me help.
Wednesday, May 5, 2010
Vie de France
So I have been helping out with a local school in town. This school was started by a Haitian and is maintained by this man on his own without the aid of the government or NGO’s. Every day I spend with him and his school, I become more and more in awe of this gentleman. He has done amazing things with his school and his church.
He started his school a few years ago and now he has 640 students in his school and he provides a meal for his students every day. Many schools do not provide food for their students and the local government just started to say that they must provide food for the children. He also provides transportation for his students to and from their homes. The majority of his students come from the surrounding villages and not from Jacmel the town. He does this because he grew up in the mountains and he knows what it means to grow up in the villages.
I have tried to help out a lot at this school. Before school started the first week, I got to Jacmel all the schools had to have temporary structures built so that classes maybe held in the temporary structure or tents. Vie de France did not have any tents to hold classes so they built a temporary school out of bamboo, palm leaves, tarps and curtains. I helped build this structure and have been helping to repair this structure when it needs it. I just go up to the school to see what they need and how I can help.
The kids there are so cool and cute and funny.
He started his school a few years ago and now he has 640 students in his school and he provides a meal for his students every day. Many schools do not provide food for their students and the local government just started to say that they must provide food for the children. He also provides transportation for his students to and from their homes. The majority of his students come from the surrounding villages and not from Jacmel the town. He does this because he grew up in the mountains and he knows what it means to grow up in the villages.
I have tried to help out a lot at this school. Before school started the first week, I got to Jacmel all the schools had to have temporary structures built so that classes maybe held in the temporary structure or tents. Vie de France did not have any tents to hold classes so they built a temporary school out of bamboo, palm leaves, tarps and curtains. I helped build this structure and have been helping to repair this structure when it needs it. I just go up to the school to see what they need and how I can help.
The kids there are so cool and cute and funny.
Monday, May 3, 2010
May 1st
Well every year Jacmel has a huge celebration for the birthday of Jacmel and it happens to be on May 1st. The city became alive and the streets were filled with people and music. There was music for three nights and the party started on Friday night. There were a lot of people from out of town that came into town just for this weekend. People and families were camping on the beach and the Haitian spirit was alive.
On one beach in downtown Jacmel vendors were set up selling their art work, jewelry and goods. There were a couple stages set up for live music and it food vendors everywhere. Being here, it seemed like a huge festival and celebration. The main beach which everyone goes too, Ramon Beach, had the same kind of set up. Food vendors, craftsman and campers all lined up for the festivities. I have never seen a beach so crowded. A friend of mine here compared it to Long Beach on the fourth of July. I have never been to Long Beach on the fourth but I will take her word.
I just kept remembering Cuyahoga Falls Rockin’ on the River. For those of you who grew up in Northeast Ohio, you know these weekend summertime events that happen every weekend. Local Jacmelians told me that this year it was really small because if the earthquake and it usually is much larger than what it was. I could not imagine it being any larger because of the traffic situation in Jacmel. All I can think about that is if there were more people in town the traffic would be crazy. Jacmel is not set up for a huge influx of people.
On one beach in downtown Jacmel vendors were set up selling their art work, jewelry and goods. There were a couple stages set up for live music and it food vendors everywhere. Being here, it seemed like a huge festival and celebration. The main beach which everyone goes too, Ramon Beach, had the same kind of set up. Food vendors, craftsman and campers all lined up for the festivities. I have never seen a beach so crowded. A friend of mine here compared it to Long Beach on the fourth of July. I have never been to Long Beach on the fourth but I will take her word.
I just kept remembering Cuyahoga Falls Rockin’ on the River. For those of you who grew up in Northeast Ohio, you know these weekend summertime events that happen every weekend. Local Jacmelians told me that this year it was really small because if the earthquake and it usually is much larger than what it was. I could not imagine it being any larger because of the traffic situation in Jacmel. All I can think about that is if there were more people in town the traffic would be crazy. Jacmel is not set up for a huge influx of people.
Changing it up a bit
Ok folks,
Since I am bad at getting online everyday to write a daily blog I am going to start writing about topics. I will have three blogs I will be uploading shortly to be what happened over the last week without internet.
Secondly, I will be taking questions about Haiti and answering them from my point of view of what is happening here in Jacmel. So if you have a question, shoot them to coco.in.haiti(@)gmail(dot)com.
Ciao
Since I am bad at getting online everyday to write a daily blog I am going to start writing about topics. I will have three blogs I will be uploading shortly to be what happened over the last week without internet.
Secondly, I will be taking questions about Haiti and answering them from my point of view of what is happening here in Jacmel. So if you have a question, shoot them to coco.in.haiti(@)gmail(dot)com.
Ciao
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
