Haiti the second time around is a much different place than I experienced before. A year and a half ago I went to Gonaives to help with Hurricane relief. The city was covered in dirt and destruction. We were unable to leave our compound unless we were with Haitians, for safety reasons. We were met with skeptical faces and a great need for an infusion of hope, even in the members of the church.
This time around while in Port Au Prince I was able to see the city. I have seen the destruction from the earthquake, buildings flattened or cracked down the center. At first glance you might think Haitians are an angry, aggressive people. But then you try smiling at them and you see them soften and a spark of life glimmers in their eyes. I see a city that was ripped apart, yet is still surviving. There are so many people and so much chaos at all times that it seems hard to even find the room to clean and rebuild. People have been walking around seeking to survive day to day instead of really living. Only God can restore this city of ruin!
I have been in Grand Goave for the past five days. It is beautiful here. We live on the beach and have a breeze that blows through, cooling off the extreme heat. We eat good food, have amazing juice and the coffee is exactly how I remembered it…the best! The work is hard, building shelters and tarping is draining. But the reward is great, especially when you see the excited kids and family members that are going to be living in those places. Some of the team is teaching English and yesterday we all went down to Jacmel where another base is to see the orphanage there.
Tomorrow we want to make it to see team Green Light, who is in Petite Goave, the next city over. Wednesday we will be driving back to Port Au Prince to visit team Genesis and team Eruption. We have been traveling a lot and our schedule is just beginning to pick up. It is hard to feel rested in the constant heat and once we move north we will not have the breeze from the ocean like we do now. Pray for Janina and I as we travel. Pray for us to have wisdom and discernment as we meet with teams and pour into their lives!
