We were given the option to take a 6 hour hike to a mountain village in Haiti at our own discretion. Being the adventure-seeking team that we are, we all agreed to go without much discussion. We followed an old pastor who looked to be in his late 60s, missing teeth, yet always had the biggest smile on his face. After hiking for about 5 hours, most of us were extremely tired. The pastors smile wasn’t such a pleasing sight at this point. The 6 of us lost all positivity, and to see this old pastor showing us up without even breaking a sweat became quite irritating. I tried to tell myself it was because I wasn’t used to the heat and altitude, but my pathetic excuses weren’t helping the situation at all. I was being showed up by a mid-60-year-old Haitian man.
We continued to pull the “Are we there yet?” until we finally caught onto the fact that the pastors answer was the same every time. “It’s just ahead, we’re close!” never losing that toothless grin. By hour ten, it was no longer a joke. We were out of food and water. I can’t count how many times I wanted to turn around and go back to the “civilized” village we started at. For some reason the pastors brief “We’re almost there!” response had us fooled every time, and we all continued to walk.
By Hour 11, we all broke down. We had no energy, we were exceptionally dehydrated, and were pretty scared to be completely honest. We were stuck in the middle of the mountains without any medical aid, limited translating skills, and not knowing how much further we had to hike. We began to question the pastor and get angry with him. I definitely gave him a dirty look or two in response to his never ceasing smile. he carried a hiking stick and couldn’t remind me more of the baboon, Rafiki, from the Lion king.
At this point, the only thing left to do was circle up and pray that God would provide. Sure enough, he did. Ten minutes later we arrived to a small, run down church, greeted by several other toothless grins. The people were so kind and loving. The pastor immediately lead us into a small room where a fest was prepared. I can honestly say it was the best meal I’ve ever had.
An 11 hour hike wouldn’t seem too challenging on a regular day, but going into it being told it was only 6 hours made it an inexplicable challenge, but we made it. God was testing us to see if we would rely on him. It was humbling to see the way we as Americans want immediate results. We want to know a day, a place, a time, and we want accuracy. Mountain Haitians, for the most part, have no concept of time. They don’t wear watches, they don’t have clocks, and they definitely don’t have electricity.
Two things I learned from this adventure; Americans (i.e. myself) aren’t as hardcore as we think we are, and we can do ALL things through Christ who gives us strength.
