January 21, 2018:
Today started with a 4:30 am wake up call. If you know me at all, you know how much I am not a morning person. Before I even got on the airplane, I had already had multiple cups of coffee. As soon as we were all seated, we took a few pictures and then our journey began. We flew from RDU to Fort Lauderdale where we had a layover for a few hours. We met up with Steven, one of our guides before flying off to Port-Au-Prince. When we landed in Port-Au-Prince, we all filed off the plane as quickly as possible, it was pretty hot out there! We walked off the plane and down some steep stairs to an empty lot where other planes would eventually land. My first glance at the blue sky and mountain scenery was breathtaking. It took a second for my eyes to adjust to the brightness of the sun.
Once we had made it through immigration, customs, and baggage claim, we met up with our guides. Son-Son is a man who helped the St. Tim's team from last year navigate through the airport. He met us and took us from baggage claim to the cars that were waiting for us. There, we loaded up all of the supplies and luggage we had with us and started our journey to Mirebalais.
Leaving the airport, we pulled onto the busy streets of Port-Au-Prince. The streets were lined with shops. People selling food, clothing, shoes, etc. all along the road. The traffic patterns were something you'd have to see to believe. Passing on the right and left. Motorbikes with several passengers slipped in between vans and trucks carrying upwards of 12 people. It was Sunday evening, so people were dressed in suits and brightly colored dresses from church. Port-Au-Prince was very close to the epicenter of a massive earthquake in 2010. The damage still lingers along roadsides throughout the city. Among all of the rubble, and broken buildings, it remains incredibly beautiful. Soon, we were outside the city and beginning a trek up a mountainside. The road was paved nicely for the most part, with lots of twists and turns. The farther we went up the mountain, the less populated things became.
About an hour and a half later, we arrived at our hotel, dropped our things off, and headed to the rectory to have dinner. Father Alphonse and Eudras greeted us with smiles. Mrs. Lowrance, Steven, and Serena (our guides) got to embrace the friends they hadn't seen for a while. In the year since St. Timothy's had sent our first team, Eudras and his wife had their first baby. Mrs. Lowrance and Mrs. Davidson sent a gift of baby clothes for the sweet little bundle. Father Alphonse was gifted a robe from the Dioceses of Los Angeles brought by Serena. We then all shared a delicious meal together before heading back to get some rest.
Leaving the airport, we pulled onto the busy streets of Port-Au-Prince. The streets were lined with shops. People selling food, clothing, shoes, etc. all along the road. The traffic patterns were something you'd have to see to believe. Passing on the right and left. Motorbikes with several passengers slipped in between vans and trucks carrying upwards of 12 people. It was Sunday evening, so people were dressed in suits and brightly colored dresses from church. Port-Au-Prince was very close to the epicenter of a massive earthquake in 2010. The damage still lingers along roadsides throughout the city. Among all of the rubble, and broken buildings, it remains incredibly beautiful. Soon, we were outside the city and beginning a trek up a mountainside. The road was paved nicely for the most part, with lots of twists and turns. The farther we went up the mountain, the less populated things became.
About an hour and a half later, we arrived at our hotel, dropped our things off, and headed to the rectory to have dinner. Father Alphonse and Eudras greeted us with smiles. Mrs. Lowrance, Steven, and Serena (our guides) got to embrace the friends they hadn't seen for a while. In the year since St. Timothy's had sent our first team, Eudras and his wife had their first baby. Mrs. Lowrance and Mrs. Davidson sent a gift of baby clothes for the sweet little bundle. Father Alphonse was gifted a robe from the Dioceses of Los Angeles brought by Serena. We then all shared a delicious meal together before heading back to get some rest.
Monday, January 22, 2018:
I woke up to the sound of my alarm at 6:30 with a mix of excitement and apprehension. The excitement was obvious. I was about to meet and start to build relationships with new people.
The apprehension was a little more difficult for me to figure out at first. When I was 23, I went to Kenya with a group from my church. I can still recall how difficult it was for me during my stay and coming home. My eyes had been opened to a cruel new reality. A reality I suppose I always knew existed, but for the first time, I was forced to stare at and interact with. People going without enough to eat, access to water that won't make them sick, a place to use the bathroom, access to healthcare, etc. I couldn't possibly come back without being disturbed by what I had witnessed. Many years have passed since then and being away from that environment, not seeing that kind of poverty on a daily basis was going to change me. This time, I was just fully aware of what my heart was in for over the next few days.
In addition to that, one lingering thought kept floating to the surface of my mind. Demanding to be addressed. This thought disturbed me because I felt like I was coming from a truly well meaning place, but it caused me to pause and question. The dignity of people should never be called into question. Being in relationship with someone should not tip the power scale in one direction. Relationship building shouldn't come at the cost of one party feeling looked down on (totally inadvertently) by the other. So, how do I embark on this journey while ensuring that my presence (our presence) does not leave the very people we are trying to partner with feeling less than as a result of our partnership? All these deep thoughts before coffee. It was no wonder I ended the day with a migraine.
I woke up to the sound of my alarm at 6:30 with a mix of excitement and apprehension. The excitement was obvious. I was about to meet and start to build relationships with new people.
The apprehension was a little more difficult for me to figure out at first. When I was 23, I went to Kenya with a group from my church. I can still recall how difficult it was for me during my stay and coming home. My eyes had been opened to a cruel new reality. A reality I suppose I always knew existed, but for the first time, I was forced to stare at and interact with. People going without enough to eat, access to water that won't make them sick, a place to use the bathroom, access to healthcare, etc. I couldn't possibly come back without being disturbed by what I had witnessed. Many years have passed since then and being away from that environment, not seeing that kind of poverty on a daily basis was going to change me. This time, I was just fully aware of what my heart was in for over the next few days.
In addition to that, one lingering thought kept floating to the surface of my mind. Demanding to be addressed. This thought disturbed me because I felt like I was coming from a truly well meaning place, but it caused me to pause and question. The dignity of people should never be called into question. Being in relationship with someone should not tip the power scale in one direction. Relationship building shouldn't come at the cost of one party feeling looked down on (totally inadvertently) by the other. So, how do I embark on this journey while ensuring that my presence (our presence) does not leave the very people we are trying to partner with feeling less than as a result of our partnership? All these deep thoughts before coffee. It was no wonder I ended the day with a migraine.
We had a quick breakfast of bananas, eggs, and of course, coffee. I don't know what it is about leaving the United States and drinking coffee. It just always tastes
better elsewhere. We then gathered together to begin our journey to Boucan Carre. Eudras joined the car I was in with
Steven, Mrs. Dutton, and Mr. Cocker. The road through the city was busy; a replay of the evening before. Motorbikes and crowded vans whizzed by in all directions. It got a little confusing when we got to an intersection without a traffic light. I
gathered the key to being a successful driver
in Haiti was not hesitating.
better elsewhere. We then gathered together to begin our journey to Boucan Carre. Eudras joined the car I was in with
Steven, Mrs. Dutton, and Mr. Cocker. The road through the city was busy; a replay of the evening before. Motorbikes and crowded vans whizzed by in all directions. It got a little confusing when we got to an intersection without a traffic light. I
gathered the key to being a successful driver
in Haiti was not hesitating.
Once off the crowded city streets, we turned onto a mountain road. Gone was the comfort of the paved road. We welcomed a gravel road with large holes every few feet. Along the road side we could see people's homes, shops, and people walking to and from work/school/visiting with neighbors. Monday is Market Day. This was cool to drive through on the way up. People busy buying and selling goods. It reminded me of the Farmer's Market, except in the middle of the street. On the way home that night, a truck driver parked his very large truck right in the middle of the road. We sat for a few minutes, but then decided to close the mirrors and drive along the side of the road (very close to someone's shop) in order to get by. We definitely got some looks from shoppers.
We arrived about 35 minutes after pulling on to the gravel road. We parked our cars outside the church. The kids were all in their classes, so it was a very quiet start to the day. Eudras kindly welcomed us and told us to make ourselves at home. He assured us that we could take pictures and feel free to get to know the area. I started in the sanctuary. It was a large building with exterior walls, but none inside to divide up the classrooms. There were 6 different classes going on inside the sanctuary at the same time. The kids were all attentive to their teachers and working hard. Each small area had desks that double as pews on Sunday. 2-4 kids would sit on each pew. Each class had it's own chalk board. Some of the boards were standing on broken legs and others had holes in them. The teachers are incredible and captivate their classes. It was really powerful to watch. I really had to give myself a gut check when I was watching this. A few months ago, the power went out while I was teaching. It almost completely derailed me. I have become accustomed to privileges that not everyone has, and it was hard to imagine how I could make it work. I was awestruck at the management and technique used by these sweet souls to get their class engaged and learning.
After a few minutes, I snuck outside to see the rest of the area. I met some sweet kiddos who hadn't yet made it to school that day. We took a few pictures before walking around to the back of the church. This is where the Pre-K and kindergarten students have their classes for the morning. They sit at pews and some plastic tables underneath a large tarp held up by wood. It surprised me at first to see the range of ages. Some kids looked to be 5 or 6 while others looked as young as 3.
It was soon time to break for recess and lunch. This was a ton of fun. In the beginning, it was evident that both the kids and all of us didn't really know what to do first. Mrs. Lowrance pulled out a soccer ball and the tone changed immediately. I tried for a while to keep up with the kids, and they pitty passed the ball to me. Soon though, the 100 degree heat had me surrendering. I found a group of elementary school aged kids passing broken plastic bottle pieces around joined them. This was much more my speed. When did I get so old?
The other STS teachers were all gathered with a group of kids on the front steps of the church. I sat with them until a group of little girls got up and started a dance and singing party. Mrs. Baird, Mrs. Dutton and myself couldn't help but join in. Don't worry, the kids were saved from my singing voice, but not my dance moves. We had a blast. One of the girls started calling people into the center of a circle. I pulled another person in with me and everyone laughed when I didn't know what to do. It didn't stop me though, ha.
Perhaps my favorite part of the day was when someone asked me to show the kids the different filters that Snapchat can make on your faces. I started by showing them what I looked like with a giant mouth, as a dog, and with huge eyes. Then the kids crowded around and pulled at the phone to get a chance to see themselves. I saw a video of it afterward. I'm not sure anyone can tell who is laughing harder. The kids or me? If I could live in a moment, that would be one of my top moments to choose from. Some of the teachers said, "She is laughing just as hard as the kids!" It was incredible. Soon after, the lunch bell rang.
Perhaps my favorite part of the day was when someone asked me to show the kids the different filters that Snapchat can make on your faces. I started by showing them what I looked like with a giant mouth, as a dog, and with huge eyes. Then the kids crowded around and pulled at the phone to get a chance to see themselves. I saw a video of it afterward. I'm not sure anyone can tell who is laughing harder. The kids or me? If I could live in a moment, that would be one of my top moments to choose from. Some of the teachers said, "She is laughing just as hard as the kids!" It was incredible. Soon after, the lunch bell rang.
Lunch was special. Eudras gathered us all around the kindergarten classroom where a table with a large bucket filled to the brim with white rice and black beans, a serving spoon, and a bowl of sauce were all ready for us. I grabbed the big spoon and listened to Eudras tell me to give two large scoops and then Mrs. Baird used a teaspoon to put some sauce on the rice/bean mixture. It was piping hot, fresh off the stove. There was a collection of bowls and spoons to use, and some students brought their own bowl with them. We passed out lunch to the little ones and then moved on to the church. There, the process started all over again. This time, we stayed at the back of the church and filled bowls as they came to us. Then, finally, we moved to the oldest kids. We ran out of rice and sauce a few times and had to make some sprints to the kitchen to fill up our buckets again. When all of the kids had eaten, we were all called into the office and given our lunch. We ate rice and beans with the teachers and admin. staff. It was really nice to have a little time to sit with the people who run the show all day long. I recognized the familiar smile of relief when walking into the lunch room and there is food to eat and place to rest for a minute. There were even bottles of lime soda and "Fruit Champagne", which was fancy soda.
The rest of Monday was incredibly special. I think it was really meaningful to both sides of this sweet partnership. Mrs. Lowrance had the great idea of taking the pictures from last years visit and making a picture book and some frames to showcase the pictures. Mrs. Roach and Miss. Lee's classes took all of the pictures and made photo book pages out of them. They looked up some Haitian Creole to include and drew some cool pictures to decorate it. One of the sweetest pictures drawn was a picture of the Earth and then hearts and hands coming together. It ended up being the cover of the book we presented to Eudras and the staff of the school. My class took Popsicle sticks and decorated them with bright colors and hot glued the pictures to them. We glued colorful string to the back in a loop so they could be hung up at the school like picture frames on the wall. Eudras and the school admin staff agreed that we should hang them in the office. The walls at that point looked really similar to an office in the United States. They had a calendar and some important information stuck on. Together, we hung up the pictures all around the office. The kids filed into the office in groups to marvel at the pictures on the wall. It made me smile and remember when I show my class pictures of themselves. Their eyes get big and their smiles wide. It was like being home.
I went to bed immediately when we got back to Mirebalais. I didn't eat dinner. I didn't wake up until the middle of the night. I felt a little something on my face and assumed it was the netting on my mosquito net. I went to push it away and was surprised by an extra long worm with what looked like horns. I swatted it and it flew off of my face and on to the side of my net. I tried to take a deep breath and not let it bother me. That lasted all of five seconds. I got out the flashlight my friend made me pack against my will, and conducted a thorough search to make sure it was not in my bed. In the process, I woke up Mrs. Lowrance who was sleeping peacefully on the other side of the room. She woke up enough to tell me how funny she thought it was. My search turned up empty, probably for the best. I'm not sure what I would have done if I had found it and had to kill it. It would have been a nightmare to squish. I tucked my mosquito net in so nothing else could find its way to my face and fell back to sleep. My sister in-law, Ashley told me that of everything I experienced, this was her most favorite.
Day 2 (January 23, 2018),
Today started similar to yesterday. We had breakfast and plotted out the day ahead of us. Today would be the last day we would go into the school as tomorrow would be a travel day. We got into the cars and took the long drive into Boucan Carre'. We started our day by going from class to class to do a handprint craft with all of the kids. Eudras was working as our translator. We would give directions and he would translate. Eudras was a natural in front of the class and we discovered that he used to be a high school teacher. It made a lot of sense! The kids were captivated by his directions and eager to get to work. The kids had to trace their hand and then cut it out. Once it was cut out, we wrote our names and St. Timothee's School and then decorated them. Mr. Cocker had to figure out how to tie twine up so we could use it as a sort of clothes line to clip the hand prints on. He had to get really crafty to find a solution. He ended up having a collapsible tripod he rigged to get the twine up and tied around a board on the wall. Then we had the kids use tiny clothes pins to hang them up. It looked really pretty!
It sounds like a pretty simple thing, right? Hand out card stock, trace hand, cut out, decorate, put up. It was a few hours before we finished with all of the classes. Once we did this, Mrs. Lowrance, Mrs. Dutton and I went into the office to put together some of the pictures of STS students that we had developed. We used some of the frames we had left over that hadn't been used yet and hung them up. I loved the office the day before, but it was INCREDIBLE to see our communities on the wall together. While we finished this, the rest of the team had started serving lunch. See? The hand prints literally took hours to complete, ha!
Today started similar to yesterday. We had breakfast and plotted out the day ahead of us. Today would be the last day we would go into the school as tomorrow would be a travel day. We got into the cars and took the long drive into Boucan Carre'. We started our day by going from class to class to do a handprint craft with all of the kids. Eudras was working as our translator. We would give directions and he would translate. Eudras was a natural in front of the class and we discovered that he used to be a high school teacher. It made a lot of sense! The kids were captivated by his directions and eager to get to work. The kids had to trace their hand and then cut it out. Once it was cut out, we wrote our names and St. Timothee's School and then decorated them. Mr. Cocker had to figure out how to tie twine up so we could use it as a sort of clothes line to clip the hand prints on. He had to get really crafty to find a solution. He ended up having a collapsible tripod he rigged to get the twine up and tied around a board on the wall. Then we had the kids use tiny clothes pins to hang them up. It looked really pretty!
It sounds like a pretty simple thing, right? Hand out card stock, trace hand, cut out, decorate, put up. It was a few hours before we finished with all of the classes. Once we did this, Mrs. Lowrance, Mrs. Dutton and I went into the office to put together some of the pictures of STS students that we had developed. We used some of the frames we had left over that hadn't been used yet and hung them up. I loved the office the day before, but it was INCREDIBLE to see our communities on the wall together. While we finished this, the rest of the team had started serving lunch. See? The hand prints literally took hours to complete, ha!
Lunch was a little more serious today. It was a stark reminder of the cruel reality that others face from day-to-day. When Mrs. Lowrance, Mrs. Dutton and I finished decorating in the office, the other part of the team had already served lunch to the Pre-K and K students. They had already moved into the church to serve the kids in there. As we were instructed, we started with two big servings of rice and beans. Soon though, we started to realize we would not have enough if we kept up with those portion sizes. So, Eudras instructed us to give smaller portions. It was really hard to follow through with his instruction. Not only was my heart hurting because I knew how hungry the kiddos were, but I also knew that the kids getting smaller portions had seen the original portion sizes. They knew they were getting less. They knew it wasn't fair. They knew that we knew it. They knew there wasn't anything we could really do. Well, that wasn't totally true. We asked that the portions set aside for the STS Raleigh Crew be given to the kids and staff who got a smaller portion than others.
When we finished serving, the adults gathered around the table in the office to grab some water, and so the St. Timothee's staff could eat their meals. We pulled out granola bars and other snacks we had brought to get us through the afternoon. One of my favorite snacks are pistachios, and I brought the biggest bag I could find. We started passing the bag around the room. Everyone taking some. Both STS staff members snacking together having some fellowship after a long morning. I asked Eudras if it would be okay to share the pistachios with the kids. He got right up and started passing out hand fulls to the kids. You see, for as long as I can remember, food has always been a big part of family or community building time. Family dinners at the table each night growing up, catching up on the day. Grumpy or happy, we were all there, together for that time each night. Big moments (graduations, birthdays, First Communions, Baptisms, Confirmations, going away to college, etc) and small moments (a good game, a dance recital, etc.) were all celebrated with a ridiculously over sized gathering of family and friends. My Mom and Dad would spend hours in the kitchen making sure that everyone would have something that they loved to eat. My Mom has an uncanny ability to remember all 7 of our favorites dishes as well as favorites of our friends and extended family members. I have literally grown up with the notion that food is one of the ways in which we can show others our love. It was difficult to come face-to-face with the reality that this is not a universal truth. It kind of wrecked my heart. Since coming back, I have been very conscious of food. At lunch, I'm sure I've been driving kids and teachers crazy. "Eat up or take it home! We don't waste food here!", I say as I stand by the trash can at clean up. I'm working on learning to be more subtle.
After this, we had some more time to just be with the St. Timothee's Community. We played and took pictures. A little girl came up and grabbed my hand; she stayed with me for the next little bit of time. So sweet. The girls LOVED taking pictures and doing sassy poses. Hands on hips, one hand of their hip with the other arm bent, etc. It was so fun. Soon, it was time to go. We said a bittersweet goodbye. I tried to learn to say, "Until next time" in Haitian Creole. a la pwochèn. I did about as well as you might think. Its the thought that counts, ha.
When we finished serving, the adults gathered around the table in the office to grab some water, and so the St. Timothee's staff could eat their meals. We pulled out granola bars and other snacks we had brought to get us through the afternoon. One of my favorite snacks are pistachios, and I brought the biggest bag I could find. We started passing the bag around the room. Everyone taking some. Both STS staff members snacking together having some fellowship after a long morning. I asked Eudras if it would be okay to share the pistachios with the kids. He got right up and started passing out hand fulls to the kids. You see, for as long as I can remember, food has always been a big part of family or community building time. Family dinners at the table each night growing up, catching up on the day. Grumpy or happy, we were all there, together for that time each night. Big moments (graduations, birthdays, First Communions, Baptisms, Confirmations, going away to college, etc) and small moments (a good game, a dance recital, etc.) were all celebrated with a ridiculously over sized gathering of family and friends. My Mom and Dad would spend hours in the kitchen making sure that everyone would have something that they loved to eat. My Mom has an uncanny ability to remember all 7 of our favorites dishes as well as favorites of our friends and extended family members. I have literally grown up with the notion that food is one of the ways in which we can show others our love. It was difficult to come face-to-face with the reality that this is not a universal truth. It kind of wrecked my heart. Since coming back, I have been very conscious of food. At lunch, I'm sure I've been driving kids and teachers crazy. "Eat up or take it home! We don't waste food here!", I say as I stand by the trash can at clean up. I'm working on learning to be more subtle.
After this, we had some more time to just be with the St. Timothee's Community. We played and took pictures. A little girl came up and grabbed my hand; she stayed with me for the next little bit of time. So sweet. The girls LOVED taking pictures and doing sassy poses. Hands on hips, one hand of their hip with the other arm bent, etc. It was so fun. Soon, it was time to go. We said a bittersweet goodbye. I tried to learn to say, "Until next time" in Haitian Creole. a la pwochèn. I did about as well as you might think. Its the thought that counts, ha.
After working at school all day, we took an excursion to see a waterfall. I didn't know what to expect other than I should wear shoes that are okay to get wet. I thought maybe we would stand at the foot of the waterfall and get splashed a little bit. We had some very sweet local Haitian men meet us in the parking lot. They walked us from the parking lot to right where the waterfall was. I didn't realize it, but we were going to get to walk up the rocks and get as close to the top as we could. Once up top, it was hard to decide if I wanted to stare at the water rushing down, or look out and see the incredible view. I was like a doggy on a dashboard, turning my head from right to left. It was breathtaking. Haiti is a gorgeous country filled with incredibly welcoming people. If you have the chance to visit, take it!
We had dinner at the rectory again that evening. We said the "St. Timothy's Family" prayer before we ate our last Haitian meal. The next hour was spent laughing and telling stories about our time together. Including laughing at Mrs. Lowrance. She sent a bunch of pictures to Mr. Tinnesz of the school the night before and accidentally sent one with me looking like the little boy from "Up" in it. I had my backpack on and was clinging tightly to it with both hands. I was, unknowingly, hiding my top lip by curling it up, and staring off into space. We didn't figure it out until I heard from Mrs. Roach that there was a really funny picture of me. We were all in hysterics laughing about it.
On our drive back to our rooms from dinner, the laughing continued. We were all crammed into one car, so I thought it would be the perfect time to get an unsuspecting passenger with the "up-dog" joke. I think I laughed for an entire hour because I finally got someone to say, "What's up dog?" No one thought the joke was as funny as I did, but they all laughed at me for laughing so hard. I didn't realize that we had started our closing meeting for the day. I was definitely talking, and for sure felt bad. Steven, one of our leaders ended the closing meeting with this thought: Where do we go from here? We've had this incredible experience of meeting new people and being privileged enough to learn from them. How do we incorporate what we've learned into our lives? How do I carry a piece of Boucan Carre in my heart wherever I go? I'm still working on an answer.
We had dinner at the rectory again that evening. We said the "St. Timothy's Family" prayer before we ate our last Haitian meal. The next hour was spent laughing and telling stories about our time together. Including laughing at Mrs. Lowrance. She sent a bunch of pictures to Mr. Tinnesz of the school the night before and accidentally sent one with me looking like the little boy from "Up" in it. I had my backpack on and was clinging tightly to it with both hands. I was, unknowingly, hiding my top lip by curling it up, and staring off into space. We didn't figure it out until I heard from Mrs. Roach that there was a really funny picture of me. We were all in hysterics laughing about it.
On our drive back to our rooms from dinner, the laughing continued. We were all crammed into one car, so I thought it would be the perfect time to get an unsuspecting passenger with the "up-dog" joke. I think I laughed for an entire hour because I finally got someone to say, "What's up dog?" No one thought the joke was as funny as I did, but they all laughed at me for laughing so hard. I didn't realize that we had started our closing meeting for the day. I was definitely talking, and for sure felt bad. Steven, one of our leaders ended the closing meeting with this thought: Where do we go from here? We've had this incredible experience of meeting new people and being privileged enough to learn from them. How do we incorporate what we've learned into our lives? How do I carry a piece of Boucan Carre in my heart wherever I go? I'm still working on an answer.