Day 2 Haiti 2014 - reunited and it feels so good

July 1, 2014 My day begins with the sun. I was unable to sleep last night due to the extreme heat, no wind from the fan, and overall discomfort. I don't come to Haiti expecting any comforts, so I'm not complaining, nor am I surprised. That's why I bring an endless supply of Spark. The day still ended up being amazing, despite the lack of sleep. Haiti awakes at 6am; so when it Haiti, we also awake at 6 am. Morning noises consist of the lady next door desperately sweeping the front driveway that will be forever covered in dirt and dust regardless of her attempts, chickens roosting, dogs fighting or barking wanting food, city electricity is shut off so any noise from the fans down below now quiets the room for all the outside noises to be appreciated. All-night Haitian gospel church also happened to be in full swing at 6am. I actually enjoy listening to a preacher a mile away preaching and yelling the gospel at 6am. It amazes me the faith that Haitian have and how much time they spend at church. It's hot, it's loud, it last not only for hours, but at least once a week it goes all through the night. That's some serious devotion to the Word. Once 6:30 arrived, we all gave up on any attempt at sleep and decided to surrender. I doubted I would last through the morning because of how little I rested and how much sweat I lost over the night. Not even 24 hours and I'm already dehydrated. With more than an hour until breakfast, we sat around and began chatting over coffee. (Side note: Haitian coffee is like Cuban coffee. thick, sludgy, and sent directly from God himself.) The chemistry of this group was evident from the very first early morning. Devin is a sweet southern girl that is a little reserved at first, but not in a shy way. Dana is the sweet Christian school girl who I roomed with last year and was inspired by her devotion to studying the Word. Her friend, Bren is a true country girl. Hilarious, loud, rambuncious, and extremely sweet and caring. I knew we would get along GREAT as soon as she started quoting "Bad Lip Reading NFL"....one of my all time favorite Youtube videos. Josh is also a friend of Bren and Dana. I thought he was 14 at first, but he just graduated high school. Those three would stay up until 2 in the morning with their shenanigans. How they have all that energy is beyond me....but they are a FUN group to be around. Sasha is the oldest daughter of Jonathan and Michelle. She has twin boys that just turned one. We all knew this would be a hard trip for her, being away from her boys for an entire week. I must say, she was a champ! She has the maturity of a mother, but being young and energetic, she fit in perfectly with the rest of us goof balls. Breakfast was scrambled eggs and toast. My perfect breakfast. Fueled and ready to head to the orphanage. This would be Sasha, Bren, Josh, and Devin's first time. Our walk was only 5 minutes to the orphanage. Perfect location for the guest house! I'm so excited to see Eileen! I assume she won't remember me, but if I remember her, she's a cuddler and will warm up to me in no time. Well I was WRONG! Praise Jesus! She came right up to me and wanted to be picked up. I don't think I've ever loved a hug more. This girls LOVES to be LOVED. I don't know her story, if her parents are alive or not, but this girl craves love so much. I want so badly to be the provider of that love. If I were in a different place in life, she would be coming home with me. Maybe God will bless me with a husband and the finances to bring her back someday in the future. It's not completely out of the question. We did all the introductions, got a few songs from the kids (less than enthusiastic...I'm sure they do this more often than they care to...but it's a sign of respect and thanks), before heading up to the porch to play games. If you followed the story from last year, the kids were relocated to this house after being threatened and robbed in the other location. The house is rented out to strangers (who drink, come and go, and are generally not always the best influences on the kids)while the kids get the yard. Luckily, Jonathan and his right hand man, Wayne (70 years old, retired pastor who now builds and plans all the projects for the orphanage...if that's not inspiring for my DAD to go next year...I don't know what is!!!!!) So, after this trip, the kids had proper cement floor dorms with screens for ventilation, and seperate showers for the boys and girls. This may seem too primitive to be building from an American organization...but the long-term plans are to move back out to the La Colline property where they have more room and will be safer. This is a temporary place, so HH4H isn't going to invest a ton of money into the building. As long as they are safe and healthy, monies will be saved for the bigger picture. (read more about the Nehemiah project at www.helpinghands4haiti.com) On the first day we typically play circle games and sing silly songs to get the kids interacting with the volunteers. Typically the little kids show no hesitation to get involved, but the teens are more reserved. This time it was different. The older kids were jumping right into the action. What an awesome surprise. Perhaps my thoughts of building trust and rapport of familiar faces is making a difference with the teens. Soon a speaker was brought out and the teens started dancing (side note modesty is not part of this culture.....AT ALL). Before we know it, a very attractive young lady jumps up, lands in the splits, and starts gyrating on the floor, while others are twerking. Miley Cyrus has reached orphans in a third world country. This is bad. This is seriously bad, people! They all read our reaction as we turned in embarassment, and the dancing turned cleaner very quickly. I knew Jonathan and Michelle were NOT going to be happy when they heard this. They are adamant on raising upstanding citizens that are examples and leaders in the community. This is not one of those qualities. Next, Nelson and Dave (seemed to be a trouble maker, quiet, distant, defiant boy last year...completely different boy this year!) had a dance off. Nelson is adorable, has a million dollar smile, speaks a little English, and has a very outgoing personality. Dave is more reserved and shy. It was awesome to see him come out of his shell and dance next to Nelson. He clearly didn't have the sweet moves like Nelson, but the fact that he tried was a huge breakthrough! There are videos on my facebook page if you'd like a firsthand look! Next we played a hot potato game and Dave made the beat and the "song" (tick tick tick tick, boom!) he made it sound like a true rap song, and kept going for tooooooooooooo long. It was hilarious. I think he really enjoyed the attention of being funny and being the leader. It came down to me and Sasha. WE were BOTH so dizzy at this point, we didn't care who won. This is saying a lot for me...who is the MOST competitive person when it comes to silly games that don't matter. I. MUST. WIN. But I lost. Oh well. I felt like dying. AFter a few hours of games and making friends, we headed back to the house. A few hours doesn't seem like a lot...but it's exhausting. Half days are just about all you can spend at the orphanage before taking a break. We headed back to the house where we made a game plan for the rest of the week, and headed in for a nap. I must have layed there for two hours listening to dogs barking and two ladies in a very loud conversation. STill no sleep. But very sweaty. I enjoyed the down time and reflection to say the least. We awake and a TV mysteriously showed up in the front room. The World Cup preliminary games are on...so we know whenever Brazil or Argentina plays city power will be on. Priorities. We were able to catch some of the USA vs. Belgium game. We lost. But it was neat to get a little home experience in the midst of a third world country. YOu always know when a soccer game is on because you will see 100 Haitian men gathered around one 15" TV being extremely loud! Dinner tonight was Haitian spaghetti, JomBoun. It's spaghetti with ham (or hotdogs), green peppers, onions, and a bouillon type sauce. I'm not a huge fan of pasta....I've already eaten more carbs in 24 hours than I have in the last 5 years. Not going to feel bad about it....when in Haiti do as the Haitians do. For devotional, the newcomers shared their initial impression, and Dana and I shared our returning impressoins. 1. I'm surprised at how quickly I got out of the airport. No mob to break through, no problems at customs, no red hats hassling me. In and out. 5 minutes. It was glorious. 2. I'm pleasantly surprised at how the older kids are beginning to connect with us. 3. I'm happy to see the kids wearing more appropriately fitting clothing and everyone has shoes. They all look healthy and seem to have grown in the past year. Signs of nutrition and a well-organized program. FOr the girls that haven't experienced this before, it was emotional and sad for them to see the living conditions. The kids literally have nothing. For me, who has see this many times, it was an exciting time to visit with the kids I met last year. It was truly humbling and an honor that they remembered me.