Vidlan

On the flight home from Haiti I borrowed a pen from Christine and jotted the following down on the back of our itinerary…just to get it all out of my head:

1.  Having much doesn’t mean what most of us think.

2. When all you have is your life – and you are so thankful for it that it makes you sing out – is there anything at all that I can actually share with you?  More likely, you have something to share with me.

3. It’s about getting the next small thing right. (Kathy Brooks)

4. An hour away is so close.  And so far.

5. 100 chickens in Emory’s house makes me smile.  OK, they were probably in the yard.  But it’s more fun to think of them in the house.

6. Dogs and chickens in Haiti are night owls.

7. When feeling unsure of your path, a 10 minute conversation with Kathy is a good start.

8. Casey can be counted on to provide you with what you didn’t know you needed.

9. It’s amazing how much people can give when they don’t even know they’re doing it. Continue reading After-Thoughts

We are currently regrouping after returning from Haiti on Saturday 3/20, with many stories and photos to come.  In the mean time, here is a BBC interview of two of our amazing student in Haiti, Allex and Bernardo.  The interview was published 2 day before we arrived at Miss Sherrie’s school:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/school_report/8559950.stm

Christine and Allex

Allex was our main translator on the 4 days we ran medical clinics in one of the large tent cities close to the school.  He did an awesome job and helped us help a lot of people.  We could not have run the clinics without him. 

Bernardo managing the construction site

Bernardo is a super smart kid with an infectious smile (although infectious smiles seem to abound in Haiti.)  He is the kind of person that just makes you feel happy when he’s around.

Keles

I spent this morning with my oldest daughter, Emeline.  We ate giant pancakes at the diner underneath a sign that read “enlightenment begins where fear ends.”  Emeline spread her own butter for the first time (she’s 4).  We talked about what the sign means.  We cut our giant pancakes into long strips and pretended we were eating snakes.  I had to explain to her 3 times that we do not need to clear our plates at a restaurant.  She is so very conscientious.  I thought about how much I will miss her while I’m in Haiti.  Then we went and got our toenails painted the same…bright pink with flowers.  We match!

When we got home I called to book rooms for our team of aid workers so we can sleep through our over-night layover on the way to Haiti.  At the end of the call the woman said, “how good of you to go to Haiti.”

I’m always unsure of how to respond to this kind compliment.  It makes me a little uncomfortable and I thought about why that is…and I think I’ve got it figured out… Continue reading how good of you to go