Fall

I love Fall. Especially October. The colors, the crisp smell, the fashion and the pumpkin spiced lattes. I usually take time to celebrate October 1st- whip out the apple cider, candied apples, throw on a scarf and have good intentions of carving a pumpkin. 

Tomorrow I am going to attempt to "layer" my outfit. Maybe create a scarf out of an old shirt... throw on some Frye boots and tights (heck no). 

And to substitute for the pumpkin spiced latte....

Happy October! 

musing. pondering. wondering.

musing. pondering. wondering. 

I near my one month anniversary in Haiti and I have some thoughts...

not complete thoughts. 

please feel free to add comments to these thoughts because I would like to know the answers to some. 

homeless. 

We came across this below family "squatting" on some land Child Hope is hoping to build upon. Very normal to "squat" in Haiti as there are many abandoned buildings. This family has the advantage of sleeping behind a steel gate to keep them safe at night as opposed to the million living in tent cities.  We came across these kids and I almost didn't think twice about this family that pitched a tent on our land. Didn't think twice! Why? Because there are 100,00 more like them right next door? 

If I walked into my Chelmsford residence and saw that a family of five has pitched a tent in my front yard... mother and father killed in earthquake and left five children. You can bet your bottom dollar I would invite those kids into my home, feed them a good meal, watch High School Musical and say, "Mom, can I keep them?" 

But do I not do the same here because I can't help them ALL? 

house fell on mother and father in quake- five children left.

their tent

I asked what the white "dust" was covering their bodies. I am told some form of fungus that could be cured by a few good showers. 

the inside of their tent

outside of tent

compassion. 

I moved to Haiti because God broke my heart for this nation. Yet, I can feel so distance from these people. I am sitting next to them, holding them and playing. But the difference of the situations we are in are vast- if I want to leave Haiti- all I have to do is make a phone call. If I break my leg and have to go to the hospital, guess what? The white girl will probably get pushed to the top of the waiting list. How do you encourage those when I can not relate? 

humbled. 

most days I walk out my gate and am instantly surrounded by children. Most of them sweet and lovely and wrap their arms around me. Some though- become aggressive. Not in a scary way- but annoying way. I hear, "Give me, Give me" and the tugging on the arm just becomes a little too rough. My patience wears thin and I disappear behind the gate again. frustrated. God humbles me every day here. frustrated with children who don't know any better? frustrated with desperation? I am humbled. 

 construction. 

I have not seen one construction vehicle. Not one! I will admit, I don't get out much. But, there is an obvious lack of ANY rebuilding. Ask the one million that are still homeless nine months after the quake. Blame the US government- yes, I get it. The money pledged by the US is still held up. Blame the Haitian government- yes, they are just useless and evil. But what about all the money we donated to NGO's? Did all that go to relief? I have asked many this question and I have yet to get an answer. Would love to hear more thoughts. 

I don't get out much. 

I really don't! This is probably music to my parents ears. No car. No public transportation (that I have the nerves to travel on). A casual walk to the market- doesn't tend to be casual. Cindy (the nanny to the 12 youngest boys- aka SAINT) has planned a "Girls Night Out" on Sunday and bought Brooke and I tickets to a concert. I can not contain my excitement. What should I wear?!? I'm actually going to shower for this event! 

storm

my neighbor giving birth

so there I was. taking a picture of my neighbor's newest baby- only minutes old. (the goat) And thinking to myself, "oh this is exciting, blog worthy!"

we are about 300 yards from my gate- in about 30 seconds the sky turns black, thunder starts cracking and dirt is stinging my eyes. in the 300 yards to get back to my gate it has already started pouring rain and the noises began....

i could hear winds whistling, trees falling, power lines collapsing, steel falling onto of steel, screaming, crying. The air formed a thick blanket. 

30 children start running past, holding each others hands and crying. At this moment, I realized what this storm meant- heavy rains and high winds means no more tent. 

the children, were screaming "Earthquake" as they ran past us crying- they were running to see if their families were still at their tents. It wasn't an earthquake- but probably the word they relate with natural disaster. I heard later that the tent city around the corner from our house collapsed in about 5 minutes. 

it is hard to describe the chaos and emotions in the  five minutes that followed. This was a pretty bad storm.  But, at my Chelmsford residence we probably would have collected the outside furniture and gone inside. When I was little, my Dad and I would sit on the porch and count the seconds of the storm. Somehow this made me less scared. Maybe a few branches would hit the house. Here, this storm means something different. 

First, I watched the utter confusion on the Haitian's faces as they were terrified to go under any roof yet it was unsafe to be standing outside as well. I had to pull our Haitian cooks inside because they just didn't know where to go. We stood under the little awning listening to trees hit the house and power lines fall. The pure terror on the cooks faces made tears come to my eyes. One cook was literally trembling with fear. 

I could hear the girl's crying so I ran next door to comfort them. Upon entering the gate I saw the most terrified little faces shivering with fear. Their bodies shook with emotions. The kids were fearful but the heartbreaking part was the cooks, maids and nannies that stood there with us. Their eyes were filled with distress and they held children and cried out prayers. Were their homes washed away? 

We waited out the storm and then started cleaning up the pieces. Some of our staff went down to help start rebuilding the tents yet I just felt lost. I watched the scramble of locals hitch rides to bring them "home". Tonight we are exhausted with emotions.  Staff members are still busy trying to find places for friends to sleep that lost tents. 

I am grateful that everyone at the orphanage is safe. But, I am thinking about all those little bodies going to bed in mud tonight. 

waiting out the storm

fallen tree on our truck

Haitians run to stake claim on fallen branches to rebuild their tents. First time I have ever seen a machete. 

my apologies for being absent the past few days. I have been on the 'Haitian diet plan'. Not to worry, Nurse Brooke took good care of me and nursed me back to health. I don't really know if it was something I ate but I now feel officially initiated into Haiti!

Thought I would share some photos...

(please enjoy these because they took about 4 hours to load)

neighborhood shop- I am told it is a welding shop. (ironic?)

I want to be this woman- she has her hand on the bucket holding a pile of sticks in the picture but she walked the whole street balancing it on her head. People walk all over town like this! Done selling for the day? Pile your shop on top of your head and walk home. It doesn't look that hard... I haven't seen anyone drop anything. I am going to practice the art. Just you wait, I am coming out of Logan airport with my suitcase balanced perfectly on my head.

classic white girl with child photo.
but i have fallen in love with this one- she may be balanced on the top of my head while exiting Logan airport as well...



oh just me and tara enjoying a sunset.
What a nice 'Haitian glow' you have! It is sweat.
Always sweat.



more feeding program kiddies.



Oh just your average trip to the market.



Water is sold in bags here. this little one has a bacterial infection all over his face. something a simple antibiotic would clear up- no money for such a thing.

add your own caption.

I know, I know. EVERYTHING has Jesus written on it here. Almost every car, truck and tap-tap (mix between a bus and taxi) has 'Merci Jesus' written on it. I will try to take more pictures but usually I am holding on for dear life while driving- the moment is not opportune for a photo.

My new neighbors. I am getting used to goats roaming the lands (and chickens, dogs and the occassional rats). Who owns the goats? I am told, try to steal one and you will find out.

how can we help?

i am graced by the many emails and requests to "do something" and send clothes for the girls. Thoughts and gestures like this give me encouragement and remind me of all the great souls cheering for this orphanage in the US. It is blatantly clear that this world can not forget about Haiti.

so in response- unfortunately shipping to Haiti can be difficult. There is a large chance the package will never arrive or get held in customs for months. So if you would like to send clothes please buy a plane ticket and fly them down here. =) ooorrrrr you can go to our website www.childhope.org and make a direct donation there. If you go under general donation you can put whatever you would like the donation to go towards; girls clothes, boys clothes, Christmas gifts, education, vegetables (also a great need).

if you let me know what you have selected- I can probably personally follow up and send you pictures of the experience. Also, using the money to give to street vendors and business owners in Haiti helps the vendors provide for their family as well.

thank you all.

and yes, I will probably give you all a child to sponsor for Christmas this year. get excited.

my project

Guess how old she is? Did you guess 2 yrs? She is 2 but her birth certificate says she is 3.

She got into some stickers.


Trash in the streets.

Neighborhood kids.

my biggest overarching project these past 2 weeks has been collecting information and creating a MASSIVE application for an official orphanage license from the government. You can function without one (like this orphanage has been for the past 6 yrs) but gaining this license provides more cooperation with the government. And I can see why it has taken so long! Just creating this application could be a full time job.

So I hunkered down determined to get this application done by the time I leave in December...

Task 1 (out of about 100): Collect childs information and collect the information of a relative. Basically we need someone to sign a paper saying that they authorize the child to be in our custody. Easy, right?

Well, the first step to collecting this information would be their birth certificate. So I pull out the first birth certificate- born in December 2007- but I am clearly looking at a 5-6 yr old girl? I ask the Director about this oddity? Come to find out that most of the kids don't know their birthdates because they were just dropped off here and they had to buy birth certificates later. Some of them can have errors due to oversight.

Next, I am to find out mother and father's name, which I can find on most birth certificates. But more importantly, are they alive or dead? Picture this: My first day on the job I go around to each child, bend down and say, Sweetie do you know if your mom is alive or passed away? Most kids know the answer... some do not.

But these kids are orphans? Aren't all their parents passed away? No- about half of them do have a parent living but can not afford to keep them so their only hope is to give them to the orphanage. In that case, I must label them on the official form: Abandoned.

if the child is actually abandoned I must give an explanation as to where the parent is and if they are able to testify that they actually did abandon the child. So I sit there and write official things such as: "child's parent sold them to slave labor for $10" "child's parent dropped them off in the middle of gang-infested territory to die. Her aunt saved her and brought her to the orphanage." "Father dropped child off 5 years ago and has not been back to visit since." "Child was found begging in streets- parents visit once a year."

For those that do have known relatives I need an address, phone number and ID #. Simple task, right? So far, only ONE relative has given me an actual address- WITH NUMBERS. All the other "addresses" consist of a street name or area. Most people do not have phones. Hardly anyone has any form of ID.

Next, if I can not call these relatives on the phone I am to go find them. Yesterday I am with a 14 yr-old girl on the crowded streets of Port-Au-Prince, climbing over piles and piles of trash saying, Is that your mom? Is that your mom? (who am I? Oprah?!) We did not find her.

It is hard to wrap my brain around all of this but the real shocker of it all: The kids.

These kids are amazing. What they have been through and who they are is astounding. I have yet to figure out how they do it. They are loving and kind. They cuddle up next to you and give you sweet kisses on the cheek. They dance to Justin Bieber. They treat each other kindly. They praise God with every inch of their being. They laugh, they play.

I am starting to realize I would be a fool to think I could ever teach them or heal them in any way... they are the ones teaching and healing me.

Please get on your knees tonight and thank God for these beautiful children.

Haitian Vacation Spa

All this service work can be hard and sometimes I need to take time to pamper myself. So I have created an easy do-it-yourself spa. I call it... The Haitian Vacation Spa. All it takes is 10 simple steps...

Step 1: Cleanse- Wake up early with a slight mist of micro sweat beads on brow. or if you are like me the mist will collect on your upper lip.

Step 2: Relax under state of the art, European technology cooling fan.

Step 3: Treat your pores to a cold shower.

Step 4: Exfoliate- Cover your skin in DEET. This will also help prevent those red bumps that cover your body.

Step 5: After DEET soaks in, rub off first layer of skin. Burning sensation is normal

Step 6: Optional: Apply a light layer of make-up for that extra glow

Step 7: Sweat make-up off

Step 8: Mud bath- or just take a walk. let dirt soak into pours and every crevice. For best results sit in the sun

Step 9: Sweat dirt off

Step 10: Resume 2nd shower of the day

Repeat steps 1-10 the following day

Hope you enjoyed these quick, easy steps to your at home spa! If followed correctly it will leave you with a beautiful Haitian glow! Tune in soon for some of my dieting tips.

And as always, wear sunscreen!

Enjoy! =)