I know this blog is really late and I am so sorry. It’s been very busy. With that said, here is a blog about my time in Haiti.
Haiti has captured my heart.
Guys, I can’t even explain it. Coming on the race, I was sure that Haiti would be my least favorite country. I can’t even put my finger on why I thought that, but boy was I wrong!
I enjoyed my time there more than I can even describe with words, but I’ll give it a shot. 🙂
We lived on a compound in Titayen, Haiti. It’s a slum about 30 minutes outside of the capital. The same capital where there were constant riots leading up to when we got there and where there was actually several deaths during our second week there. We were on a compound though, so we were very safe. There were armed guards and the staff knew when it was appropriate and safe to go outside to the villages.
We did a lot of village time. This consisted of going to different villages and interacting with the locals. We got to play with the kids there, teach families about hand washing and tooth brushing, help them carry water, play with the kids at the schools, do census questions so our ministry contact could learn more about the areas they are working in, paint houses, do construction, and much more.
The people of this country are rough around the edges. They initially look very mad or standoffish, but once you smile at them, play with them, talk to them, you see that many of these people are filled with more joy than any of us could imagine having…even despite their poverty. And guys, their poverty was unlike any I have ever seen. In the other countries I’ve been to, I’ve seen poverty. But the poverty in Haiti is devastating. A lot of the people don’t have bathrooms. Their houses are the size of two cars. A lot of the houses now do have cement floors, which is really great, but almost everyone has tin roofs. They bathe in streams or ponds, even if it is filthy. There are water trucks that come by and sell clean water, so that was a blessing to hear!
We got the opportunity to do a Vacation Bible School with the kids from the orphanage. There are 62 orphans that live on the compound where we stayed. I worked with the young ones ages 3-7 years old. They stole my heart. Especially, a little 3 year old girl named Sudeline and her twin brother Sudenell. They are precious. Sudeline would only come to me and she clung to my side each day we were working with them. After the VBS was done, I would still go visit her and each time she would just light up and come running to me. Saying goodbye to her was the hardest thing I’ve done yet.
Lastly, I got to go on the mobile clinic for a day. Wow. My heart was rocked. These people have very little access to medical care. In a village one day I had to bandage a little boys foot because he was badly burned and had flies in his wound. They just don’t know what to do about these things, but worse, they just don’t have any materials or supplies. Can you imagine not having band aids for your kids boo boos? I can’t.
The mobile clinic was definitely a highlight of my month in Haiti. I got to work in triage and also got to love on some of the kids 🙂 There was a little girl who needed to have a procedure done, so I was able to hold her hand while she was just put on the table and the doctor worked on her. She was screaming and crying, so I just held her and talked to her. It was an extremely powerful moment for me.
I wish I could explain with words how much I was changed in Haiti. As much as I would like to say it was the experiences that changed me, I know that it was The Lord that broke my heart for that country. It was Him that taught me more about his unconditional love. I grew closer to The Lord than I have probably ever been in my life. I am really beginning to learn what it looks like to live the life that God has called me to live, whether that looks like painting houses, playing with kids, or just loving my teammates. He is freeing me from a lot of different things in my life and I’m learning what really working through things means.
Thanks so much for reading my blog! Another one about Costa Rica will be posted in the next 24 hours! So keep an eye out for that!
Thank you to all my supporters! I couldn’t do any of this without you all!
