Haiti Mission 2014 - Day 5

Our fifth day in Haiti provide us a bit of down time; by that I mean that we were not active in ministry work in the same way we were the rest of the week. As always, I started the day with prayer and Bible reading so I could hear God in the quiet of the dawn, and see His light begin to illuminate Creation. There is something amazing about watching the sun come up over the mountains of Haiti. I was - mostly - up early enough all week to see the stars still bright in the sky. Then, ever so slowly, the starlight would begin to dim as the Earth turned our little patch toward the sun. At the same time, the waves were rolling gently to the shore, as inexorable as the sunrise.

The heavens are telling of the glory of God;
And their expanse is declaring the work of His hands.
Day to day pours forth speech,
And night to night reveals knowledge.
 - Psalm 19:1-2

You alone are the LORD. 
You have made the heavens, 
The heaven of heavens with all their host, 
The earth and all that is on it, 
The seas and all that is in them. 
You give life to all of them 
And the heavenly host bows down before You.
 - Nehemiah 9:6

Sunrise and the ever-present fishermen

After breakfast, we boarded Bluebird and rode to Minoterie for church. One thing about church in Haiti, when you're visiting, there is no sneaking in the back and sitting down unnoticed. As guests, we are invited up front, people are moving to make room for us...it's all a little disconcerting. The term back-row Baptists wasn't coined for nothing.

Another thing about church in Haiti, they don't do it halfway. Because of our schedule of activities for the rest of the day, we could not stay for the entire service. Because of our travel time, we did not make the beginning of the service. In Haiti, church starts early and lets out late...when the body comes together to worship God on Sunday morning in Haiti, they WORSHIP God!

We were able to hear some excellent singing and one of our sponsor moms - Kimberly - addressed the congregation in Creole. This seemed to cause great delight amongst the Haitians. Especially when Kimberly would reference God, which in Creole, is Bondye. It is pronounced similarly to the French bon Dieu, which literally translated means good God. Think about that. In Creole, there is no need to put another adjective before the name of God because His name already means, good God!

In any case, Kimberly speaks Creole about a million times better than me, which is to say I can't speak it at all. And here she was addressing the church in their native language. But as she spoke, she would pause after the first syllable of God's name, "Bon...," and about half the congregation would finish in a loud falsetto, "Dye!"

Apparently, Kimberly's voice box goes up a couple of registers on the end of that word - she can't help it - and the Haitians find it...interesting. But come to think of it, if I wanted to be known for some weird thing I did, having people know me for saying God's name would be pretty cool. So, kudos to Kimberly!

The rest of the service - at least the parts we were able to stay for - included the wife of one of the church leaders preaching from Ezekiel chapter thirty-nine. I was able to catch this because, although I don't speak Creole, I do manage a little French, so I recognized the chapter and verse numbers and I peeked over at my neighbor's Creole Bible and saw that she was in the book of Ezekiel.

Note: The link for Ezekiel chapter thirty-nine above will take you to the English NASB translation. The link for Creole Bible will take you to the Creole translation of Ezekiel 39.

By late morning, we were making our way out of the church, bidding our adieus. The next part of the day was about to commence: a beach party for the recent graduates and their families at Kaliko Beach Club! We boarded the bus and made our rounds in the village, picking up our guests and hitting the road west. It took awhile to get everyone checked in but once that was completed, we had an awesome day with our Haitian friends and their families.

You might be asking yourself, what does a beach resort have to do with mission work? One of the things that touched my heart during our stay in Haiti this year was how deeply involved we were with the lives of Minoterie's people. We have team members who sponsor Haitian young men going to college in the States. We have team members who sponsor young men and women still attending school in Haiti. We have team members who provide whatever they can afford for special needs kids in the village - remember Berry Jean?

In short, the folks from Minoterie who we sponsored for a Sunday afternoon at the beach/pool weren't just being rewarded for completing their schooling - this ministry thrives on love and our team wanted to show them love through an awesome day of fun, food and fellowship. And since it's all about family in Haiti, we packed the bus!

While we waited for lunch to be prepared, most everyone hit the pool...

Tropical pool time!

In fact, if it weren't for lunch, I'm not sure some of the kids wold have gotten out of the pool all day.

Buffet lunch!

Kaliko put on a great buffet lunch for everyone. And we weren't the only people there so it took awhile to get everyone sat for their meal. Bildad, one of our Haitian college students and a leader in PoG, put his own hunger aside and started helping the Kaliko staff bus tables, seat guests, serve drinks...Bildad was everywhere and his help did not go unnoticed - or unappreciated - by the Kaliko team.

Kimberly has game!

Remember soccer? There was more than one soccer game played on the beach Sunday - heck, I even played. But, as you can see from the action shot above, Bildad's American mom, appears to know her way around a game of beach football!

You can't keep American moms down!

As the afternoon wore on, it was time to party American-style, with presents for the grads, snacks with poor nutritional value...you know...the good stuff! Frankly, I still don't know how we came by chocolate brownies but I know that several of the ladies brought nuts, trail mix, M & M's, and other goodies with them on the plane. 

Let the snacking begin!

Once all the presents had been given out and the snack table decimated, I think we spent about an hour on hugs and goodbyes. It had been an awesome day of fun and relaxation for everyone and we were so happy to be able to provide our Haitian family and friends this mini-vacation.

 Exhausted but happy crew

 

The sun sets on a great day in Haiti...

God gave us an awesome day Sunday. We were able to spend time with Him and His Haitian children. Each one of us established or deepened one or more relationships with someone from Minoterie. And those relationships would do nothing but help us as we continued to minister in the village.

We closed out the day with a team devotional, sharing things from our day that shined a light on God moments we had all experienced. We needed to hang on to those because the next day (Monday), we were bound for the children's prison in Port au Prince.

X

Haiti Mission 2014 - Day 4

I rose before dawn and offered myself as a living sacrifice. I am not holy, but I am acceptable to God. I'm sure I am not the only one who wonders why God doesn't speak directly to us anymore. I mean, God has spoken to me through His Holy Spirit, and He can speak to us through His word, the Bible. But I occasionally wonder what it would be like if God spoke to us in an Old Testament sort of way. You know, an Adam and Eve, Noah, Jonah, Abraham, Moses sort of way.

If we came across this today, we'd call the Fire Department

And therein lies one of the big problems we have with God. We want Him to do things our way. It's inconvenient that He wants to continue to speak to us in this obscure way that requires us to have a close, personal relationship with Him. We can't sit down in Starbucks and talk things out with Him over a latte; we can't invite him over to the house for tossed salad and lasagna and pepper Him with questions about all those crazy, confusing things in the Bible that - at least to us - don't make any sense.

God isn't on Facebook and He doesn't Tweet. Romans 12:1-2 says, "Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect."

So, on our fourth day in Haiti, I did my best to present. And, what do you know? The sun rose from behind the mountains and shone across the land and the sea. I could breath, felt healthy and had a purpose for the day.

After breakfast, we boarded Bluebird and headed off to Minoterie. See, the thing about Haiti - and in reality the entire world - is that it won't bend to our will. It doesn't matter if we're Barack Obama or Bill Gates. The world happens - and we just live here.

As President, he can have beach hotels anywhere...

Although we didn't see the scene of the accident, traffic along Route National #1 backed up and came to a standstill. As you might expect, it's not the easiest thing in the world to do a one-eighty on a two-lane road with a large school bus. But our phenomenal driver, Jean Justin, managed it perfectly. We rode back the way we came for a few minutes then turned south toward the coast. Did I mention we had a stupendous driver? We certainly needed it because the side roads were taking were not much more than skinny dirt roads.

We took up the entire dirt road in Bluebird

Was, or is going to be a house...

Once we had successfully negotiated the back way to Minoterie, Saturday morning kicked off with a walk through a suburb of the village known as Blue City, a small community made up mostly of shanty-type dwellings which still employed a lot of tarp material…thus the name.

Working with Frantzdy, one of the recent graduates, and another man from the village, Wilkins, we invited Blue City residents to bring their shoes to us in a small area nearby so that we could clean and polish them. Although we weren't able to serve as many as we would have liked, it did give us the opportunity to spend time in a different part of the community and meet some new people.

Knew that Air Force training would come in handy someday

Christy working hard on Blue City shoes

Vickie had a tough job with some delicate footwear

Another bonus to our shoeshine ministry came from the fact that all the kids were pulling on my wrist bands and asking for them. I told the boys and girls I could not give the bands away, and asked if they would like to know why. When they said yes, with Frantzdy translating, I was able to talk with them about my faith in God, and outline His plan of salvation using the colors and words on the bands. After we finished with all the shoes, we had a time of prayer and, with all the kids in tow, headed back to Berdy's house.

Noir, Rouge, Bleu, Blanc, Vert, Jaune

Awesome kids!

Berdy explained to me that in Haiti, soccer is one of the most important aspects of life. They are mad for soccer. As we gathered for lunch, a small television came on in the front room of Berdy's home and many people materialized from out of nowhere to watch the Brazil vs Chile game. Since there wasn't much else to do with the ladies cooking for the feeding program we were leading a bit later, we sat with them and watched. Everyone was cheering for Brazil except for one young man, and he was teased in a good-natured way every time Brazil made a play.

Futbol, you bet!

One other note from lunch, I spent a good portion of my time holding a little girl named Ashley. She was the sweetest thing and she shared my love for peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, and smiling.

Hide and seek with Ashley (violet blouse) and friend

My first thought after the game, when the host nation (Brazil) finally won on penalty kicks, was how much different our world would be if everyone would get that excited about God. As the winning goal was scored, the room literally erupted. Fans young and old celebrated as if they had a personal stake in the victory. Isn't it ironic that every man, woman and child has a personal stake in the biggest victory of all time, yet we rarely celebrate it - even a little bit.

By the time the game was over, all the food was prepared and we loaded the bus with five huge basins, most holding rice mixed with beans, and one or two with an aromatic mixture of meat, vegetables and seasonings. We also loaded up several coolers with juice and then drove the bus around to the PoG school. We unloaded all the food and beverages into one classroom where a crew got to work getting ready to serve.

As children began to stream into the building, we played a few games and I was asked to share a Bible story while we waited for the servers to complete their set up and for all the kids to arrive and get settled. Christy had brought along a quilt stitched with panels depicting everything from creation to heaven, but for some reason I thought of Joseph and his life, so we used the quilt as Joseph's coat of many colors. Caleb played Joseph, Frantzdy was one of Joseph's brothers, Keith was the Midianite trader, Israele was Potiphar, and Bildad was Pharaoh. I recounted the majority of Joseph's life as illustrated in the Bible, with a young man - whose name escapes me - translating for the children.

Joseph kneels before Pharaoh

By the time we finished recounting Joseph's adventures, we had seated a lot of kids…we estimated there were about 450, many more than the 300-350 we had planned for. We established a serving line in the bucket brigade style and began serving. As the afternoon wore on, we began to run out of things, first plates, then spoons and finally - sadly - food. This was a crushing blow because we wanted to feed every child who came, but even with all the food we had prepared - none of the five basins could be lifted by one person - we still did not have enough.

Just a few of the many good people of Minoterie

Eventually, we were able to explain the situation to everyone and people made their way back home. There were a lot of mixed emotions as we cleaned up the school, ferried all the utensils and servers back to Berdy's home, and lastly made our own way home for the evening.

After dinner, still coming to grips with what had been a day of both joy and sadness, everyone gathered together for a group devotional time. Kelma, our fearless leader asked me to share what God had been highlighting for me and I read 1 Peter 3:15. We discussed this passage - one that God has really laid on my heart this year - we sang, and each of us shared what God had showed us that day. By the end, after everyone had talked - and many tears had been shed - God had brought us together in understanding that despite the food and plates and spoons all running out, despite the fact that there were some kids we could not feed, we had fed a lot of children - children who would not have eaten that day were able to eat a hot, nutritious meal.

With hearts still heavy for the kids we could not feed, we affirmed that we would all learn from our experiences and continue to try and do our best each day. That is really what God wants from us: our best, for Him, every day. And as long as we give Him that, we can have the peace that comes from knowing that we have given our all, and that the results will be up to Him.

X

Haiti Mission 2014 - Day 3

First, let me apologize that this blog has been delayed. I really want to write each blog chronicling the team's activities in Haiti and get them published as quickly as possible. Several things are slowing that process down. Primarily, I am still getting my head around some of the things that happened on our mission. On top of that, the old day job isn't any less busy than before I left. And finally, I was blessed to pick up another freelance proofreading gig, but one with a quick turn-around. I will persevere and continue to churn out my thoughts on what God accomplished while we were in Ayiti.

Our third day was Friday, June 27. As was my habit, I rose early and went outside - after a little judicious use of bug spray - and ushered in the dawn with God's Word. I was on deck to lead our group devotion the next day, so in addition to my personal reading, I spent time in prayer and contemplation regarding what God wanted me to share with the team.

The sun comes up; it's a new day dawning...

On this morning, we had to leave early in order to arrive in time for the Mission of Hope graduation ceremony. There were many seniors from Minoterie graduating, among them Ketna, Wendy, Frantzdy, and Eliezer, all of whom are friends and family of our team. I believe there were about twenty graduates in total from our small village.

For those who missed my blog series last summer, you can revisit Day 1 here, but I'll provide some quick background on Mission of Hope (MoH) for those readers who may not be familiar with them. MoH was officially founded in 1998, and has since grown from a small mission located on a barren piece of land to a fruitful organization that now houses an onsite orphanage, medical facility (including clinic, hospital and prosthetic lab), school, food distribution center, church, and more. Through partnerships, MoH also serves outside of its property by helping other orphanages, churches, and schools throughout the country.

 - Sources: MoH and me :-)

One of the most compelling facets of the MoH story is how they work to employ Haitians throughout their ministry organizations. This is not an American-led effort - although the parent organization is presided over by Brad Johnson, the son of the MoH founders. From drivers, to translators, to teachers, to nurses and doctors, the MoH ministries and community service organizations are staffed by Haitians. MoH may complete the foundational efforts required to get a program off the ground, but it is quickly handed over to skilled Haitian workers and leadership. Most of the people I've spoken with in Haiti agree that for the country to transcend its past, the Haitian people themselves must take responsibility for, and leadership of, their future.

Mission of Hope Church

In any case, we were heading to the MoH church this morning for their school graduation ceremony. In many ways, the proceedings were quite familiar. There were lots of parents and other relatives milling about beforehand. The graduates walked gracefully up the aisle and took their places accompanied by Pomp and Circumstance. There were the usual speeches by various school and community officials. One difference? The graduates sang several beautiful songs as a group - 195 strong - and also serenaded us with a few wonderful solos. Another highlight of the festivities - judging by the shouts and applause - was a student fashion show!

Students in fashionable clothes...if you can see them!

I could post A LOT of pictures from graduation, but I think I'll include just a few that, I believe, will illustrate the happiness of the occasion!

For Wendy, the smile says it all!

Caps AND gowns in the air :-)

Eliezer shows off the parchment

No more Pomp & Circumstance - Frantzdy is a graduate!

After a morning full of recognition and celebration for the outstanding achievements by these dedicated young people, we packed the bus and rode back to Minoterie with our team, students and parents. After dropping folks off, we ended up at Jamari Berdy's house for our daily dose of peanut butter and jelly.

The early afternoon was spent playing with kids, visiting families and just building relationships with the good people of Minoterie. Tomorrow - Saturday - we had a food program coming up so by mid-afternoon Friday, we needed to break away and head to the market in Titanyen.

This isn't so bad...

Okay, this is crowded...

I couldn't really tell you what all we bought. We basically followed a couple of ladies from Minoterie around and did what they said. They picked out all the fruits, vegetables, meat and seasonings that we believed were needed to feed the expected three hundred children we would host on Saturday. In addition to fifty kilograms of rice, we filled a large sack with so much food it took two of us to carry it to the bus - and even then we had to rest a time or two. We also picked up a large quantity of charcoal and a few other odds and ends to round out our market day.

I will spare my gentle readers the photographs of the meat market. Suffice it to say that Titanyen is not Kroger or Publix. There are no clean, neatly-wrapped packages of meat displayed on a refrigeration shelf. There are goat, lamb and cow heads sitting on the ends of long butcher tables, advertising the kind of meat available. There are legs, hooves, and other body parts scattered around randomly as the butchers ply their trade. Flies are rampant and the smell of animal blood is intense. But that's life in places where the food chain is much more compact than we're used to in America. Fortunately, this wasn't the first time I had been in a meat market in a country like Haiti. Not so for young Caleb. It took a little adjustment for him, but he came through like a trooper.

After taking all of our supplies back to Jamari Berdy's house, we unloaded, said good bye to the kids and headed off into the sunset. Tomorrow would be another long day and we were looking forward to it.

X

Haiti Mission 2014 - Day 2

It was an early morning yesterday
I was up before the dawn
And I really have enjoyed my stay
But I must be moving on

- From 'Goodbye Stranger' by Richard Davies and Roger Hodgson (Supertramp)

Up before the dawn was a standard while we were in Haiti, at least for me. The great majority of our thoughts, strength and effort were focused on the people of Minoterie and others whom we served while in-country. But there is also a personal component. I'm probably not the first person to realize that being 'on mission' is physically, mentally and spiritually taxing. There has to be some rejuvenation - a time of refreshing - or our effectiveness will wane.

The Bible tells us in Proverbs 3:5 (NASB), "Trust in the LORD with all your heart And do not lean on your own understanding."

So each morning, I was up before the dawn spending time in prayer and Bible study. Thursday morning, the refreshment was from Romans 1 and 1 Peter 3. Paul's explanation of the Gospel in his letter to the Roman church is illuminating, and God has really put 1 Peter 3:15 on my heart this year.

We were blessed to have lodging near the water so, after my reading and prayer time, I was able to look out over the Canal de Saint-Marc as the sun rose over the mountains behind me. This morning - and indeed, every morning - the fishing boats were small, bobbing fairies of light in the darkness. Each one with but a single lamp on board. Dawn hid the lamps and revealed faceless men rowing along the contours of the shoreline in rough, weathered boats, with no sails and no motor, propelled by arm strength alone. They stood amidships - a grand term befitting the fishermen, if not their craft - strong hands gripping two oars, pulling against unseen tidal forces that have existed since God placed the moon in the heavens and brought forth land from the deep.

Canal de Saint-Marc with Île de la Gonâve in the distance

On this particular morning, I turned and walked back toward our room. I was again struck by how the mountains in Haiti rise, seemingly, out of the sea. This was my fourth trip but I am still awed by the beauty of this land.
Haiti seems - in a way - what it has always been: a small island inhabited with hardworking, creative people (who, I don't believe, ever sleep in); nestled in its own little corner of the Caribbean, like the youngest child who sits at the side-table during holiday dinners. As if to emphasize my thoughts, a man passed nearby speaking to his friends, his deep baritone laugh - hearty, not cynical - echoing through the trees.

 

Mountains in Haiti - one with the sea

After breakfast, Christy led our team in a group devotional based on Romans 12. We also sang - but for the life of me, I can't recall which song(s). It's not that it wasn't uplifting, it was; it's just that I'm not the most musical guy on the planet and...

We left the hotel and rode our trusty steed Bluebird to Minoterie. On this morning, we held a dental clinic and provided fluoride treatments for the kids in the village. We had to track down the caretaker from the Prosperity of God (PoG) school so we could get inside and set up for the clinic. We did not have to walk the village and call the children...as soon as Bluebird rumbled into Minoterie, the village children streamed along behind us like Haley's Comet.

While the dental clinic was going on, us guys - all three of us - retreated to a classroom where we started blowing up soccer balls. Locking the door didn't help much because the village boys would just sneak down the window ledge and peek in! We weren't hiding per se, we just didn't want to distract the kids before they received their fluoride treatments, instructions on how to properly brush their teeth, and individual toothbrushes and toothpaste.

Mmmm...fluoride!

We succeeded…mostly.

Michelette getting his brush on

After the clinic wrapped up, we deployed six soccer balls, about ten Frisbees and a couple of jump ropes. Attendance estimates hovered around two hundred. A great time was had by all and we made some new friends - that's another way today that the Supertramp song Goodbye Stranger came into play: once you meet someone and begin to establish a relationship with them, they are no longer a stranger. So, even on our first full day in Minoterie, we were saying, "Goodbye strangers," and, "Hello friends."

Jump ropes are universal

Futbol!!

Lunchtime in the village was a casual affair. Each of us had brought a plastic jar of peanut butter and one of jelly, three cans of Pringles and a package of sandwich cookies. One of the PoG young men went to buy some fresh bread and Israel, another young leader, invited us to prepare our sandwiches at his home. And wouldn't you know it? Israel had a television and antenna so we were able to watch the World Cup match between the USA and Germany!

Those patient and wonderful folks who persevere and read all of these blogs will notice something: soccer will feature prominently throughout the week. Soccer (football) is the national sport in Haiti and they are devoted to the beautiful game. Everywhere we looked, there were kids playing, flags flying, radios blasting commentary. Being in Haiti during the World Cup was a fantastic experience because I was able to share my love of the game with them as well.

Brazil and Argentina flags flying at the police station

Above are two snapshots of a police station on the road to Port au Prince. Note the Brasil and Argentina flags flying from the yardarm in the second photo. Cars, buses, tap-taps, motorcycles, houses, and yes, even police stations were flying the flags of these two favored soccer nations. I never did get a satisfactory answer as to why Brasil and Argentina. I think the answer lies in Messi and Neymar. If you know the beautiful game, that will make all the sense in the world.

After lunch, we returned to the school and launched into a Kid's Club. We started with some games, including a really neat one where someone calls out something like, "Thumbs up!", extending their arms with, you guessed it, their thumbs pointed up. All the children then shouted it out and put their thumbs up without being told what to do. I heard everything from, "Feet together," to what sounded like, "Rumpy shake." I think you get the idea...

Hands together!

Alarmingly, this game includes a moment when the person who is leading points to someone in the audience and then that person has to jump in the middle and take over the calling. Hopefully no one took any pictures of me.

Next, Karen led the kids through the life of Jesus, from birth, to death, to resurrection. She held up a picture book so the children could see the illustrations that went along with the narrative. 

Wi, Jezi se wa!

We finished up with a craft in which the kids made crowns using paper plates, colored pencils and foam appliques. To say they were into it would be a huge understatement. Haitian people in general are extremely creative, musical and artistic and the children are no exception. Some of the crowns were fit for a king or queen and shouts of, "Jezi se wa!" (Jesus is King) were heard echoing off the classroom walls and corridors the rest of the afternoon.

It's my crown...and I like it!

After the Kid's Club, we basically just hung out in the village and talked with the children, continued playing games and had a chance to meet some of the parents. Climbing aboard Bluebird we waved goodbye amid shouts of, "Hey, you!" and, "Michael, Michael, Michael!"

A small cadre of children who would prove to be some of the core group we would work with the rest of the week, followed Bluebird as she was expertly guided through the narrow streets of Minoterie by Jean Justin and back out onto the main road. The stamina they showed - and the excitement - was inspiring. We waved and shouted, "Au revoir," or, "à bientôt," until we accelerated away onto the paved portion of the road. 

A quick nap on the way home...

We were bushed - but in a good way. The late afternoon sun glinted off Bluebird's windows as the Caribbean day came to an end, and we drove west toward our hotel. 

Haiti Mission 2014 - Day 1

Bienvenue, mes amis! This is the first in a daily series of blog posts that will provide information, insight, and personal thoughts regarding our recently completed summer (2014) mission to Minoterie, Haiti.

Minoterie (Google Earth)

This year, five people from Wall Highway Baptist Church (WHBC) in Madison, Alabama partnered with a fantastic group of seven folks from White House First Baptist Church (WHFBC) in White House, Tennessee. I suppose you could say that we went to Haiti this year with the White House staff!

Minoterie is a relatively small village about twenty or thirty minutes northwest of Port au Prince. It is situated on Baie de Port-au-Prince and extends north from the coast and the economic anchor of the village - a flour mill - which gives Minoterie its name.

Le Minoterie (Flour Mill)

The village is quite spread out although, as you can see from the Google Earth image above, there are neighborhoods, as we would call them. The tag in the image is the basketball court in the center of the village. The original court was destroyed in the 2010 earthquake and the Haitian ministry we partnered with - Prosperity of God - completed the rebuild in June, 2011. In the autumn of 2013, the Haitian government installed solar-powered lighting at the court after recognizing its central location and utility for other community events.

Minoterie Basketball Court (PoG)

We arrived in Haiti on Wednesday, June 25, with thirty-six pieces of luggage! No, we're not all fashion horses. Because of the broad scope of the mission, part of our funding goes to pay for an additional suitcase for team members, in which we can each carry up to fifty pounds of supplies for the village. American Airlines in Nashville - our point of departure - was kind enough to let us check our carry-on bag as well for no additional charge. How cool is that?! It should be noted that the bag total doesn't include our backpacks, the indispensable, go-to, daily container.

Ministry note: Shipping anything to Haiti is very expensive, so, despite the cost of travel and lodging, paying for an extra fifty-pound suitcase for each team member is actually a pretty economical way to get matériel into the community. 

The airport in Port au Prince has vastly improved since I first visited this beautiful country in 2010. Haiti has worked very hard to get this key infrastructure back in shape - and they have done a fantastic job. Despite all our careful packing, checking and documenting of luggage, we ended up short two bags upon arrival. And in Haiti, there is no service that will bring them to you when/if they are found. So, what to do? We hung out at the airport - first inside - then outside. On the inside, we found a kind and conscientious airport official who helped us determine which two bags were missing, and then he was able to discover that they would be coming on the next flight from Miami a little later in the afternoon. With profuse expressions of thanks, we then took the thirty-four suitcases which did arrive and loaded up the elementary school-sized Bluebird bus that was to be our primary mode of transport for the duration of our stay.

Then we sat on the bus…for a couple of hours. Did I mention it is warm in Haiti?

Bluebird luggage lounge

At the end of our wait a rousing cheer echoed inside the bus - and likely outside too - as two of our intrepid Haitian leaders (please accept my sincere apologies for not remembering which two!) appeared with our wayward suitcases. With all bags now securely on board, we headed off directly to Minoterie to meet and greet Bildad's family and some of the other good people in the village, with whom the Tennessee folks have become friends with over the years.

This is probably a good place to begin noting - and I will likely do this a number of times as I complete this blog series - how wonderful our driver was (is). For those of you who have driven American school buses, you will totally get this. For all the others, imagine driving a large school bus through a putt-putt golf course and not hitting any of the edges or damaging any of the decorative hazards. Throughout our eight days in Haiti, Jean Justin was reliable, calm, intrepid, helpful, imminently skillful and, ultimately, the source of perhaps the biggest blessing we would receive all week.

Jean Justin

Although everyone wanted to spend as much time in Minoterie as possible, it was late afternoon when we arrived thanks to our airport adventure. So, we wrapped things up before dark and headed off to our hotel for check-in and to get settled in our home base for the week.

Room 142

Room 142: We will miss you. You provided us a place to clean up, lay our weary heads, rest and recuperate, and, in the spirit of Haitian hospitality, you also became a sanctuary for the odd gecko or two.

Tomorrow, our mission begins in earnest...

X

We the people...

Living in a democratic republic has its advantages. I can travel from state to state without fear of reprisals from unscrupulous, under-paid border-crossing agents mired in an unenforceable bureaucracy. In addition, I have at least the façade that my hard-won vote counts for something at City Hall, the Statehouse and the White House. Our constitution guarantees us certain freedoms, although some of those are in danger of being abrogated by legislative or executive decree.

I doubt we'll have a bunch of parades but this year we can celebrate the 225th anniversary of George Washington's inauguration as our first president. I am by no means a historian but can work Google as well as the next person, I suppose.

At the end of his first term, Washington is noted to have bemoaned the burgeoning development of two parties. In his Farewell Address, he urged his countrymen to "forswear excessive party spirit and geographical distinctions". In foreign affairs, he warned against long-term alliances.

Two-hundred and twenty-five years on, how's that working out for us?

Listening to NPR news yesterday morning, I - somewhat randomly - connected several non-related reports. My thoughts on these matters may be a tad off the populist mark and, in fact, some might consider me an unnecessary alarmist. Be that as it may, I cannot escape the feeling that somehow our union is becoming less perfect each day.

1. U.S. District Judge Lynn Adelman (Milwaukee, Wisconsin) issued a decision repealing a voter ID requirement law, removing barriers for minority voters. That's a good thing, right? Adelman sided with opponents of the law, who said it disproportionately excluded poor and minority voters because they’re less likely to have photo IDs or the documents needed to get them.

Now, people in Wisconsin can vote without having to show any identification. And that's a good thing?

2. The NBA has banned LA Clippers' racist owner Donald Sterling for life and fined him $2.5 million. I don't think anyone in their right mind considers that a bad thing. Despite arguments that Sterling's comments may have been recorded illegally, there is a trail of racism in Sterling's history stretching back for years so good riddance, right?

Just to make sure there is no quid pro quo, the NBA is now working to force the man to sell the Clippers, to get him completely out of the sport for good. As has been pointed out, Sterling signed on knowing that the NBA is just like your local, neighborhood association (only with more money and nicer suits), with rules and fees and all that. So it's not like the NBA is stripping Sterling of a personal asset and, if initial reports are accurate, there are a number of very well-heeled replacements lining up to drop a billion large on the table and take over the team.

Who says you can't (eventually) be punished in America for being a knucklehead?

3. President Obama continues to push for an increase in the minimum wage to $10.10. Good, right?

According to a report released April 29, 2014 by the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office, President Obama’s proposal to raise the minimum wage from $7.25 per hour to $10.10 per hour would raise income for about 16.5 million workers by $31 billion, potentially pulling nearly 1 million people out of poverty. The same pesky report indicates that the proposed minimum wage hike would cost 500,000 jobs in 2016.

The net-net of half a million folks being better off is worth it though, right?

Widely conflicting reports on the effects of increasing the federal minimum wage are a clear indicator that no one really knows what will happen. While I agree it's somewhat childish to block a resolution which would simply open the issue up for debate, I can understand why Republicans might do such a thing. Clearly, congress men and women going home to their districts with an increased minimum wage in their pocket will fare very well in upcoming elections.

I mean getting nearly one million Americans above the poverty line is awesome, right? Only, I'd like to hear the facts on how that impacts overall unemployment and who will be paying for the increase. The money has to come from somewhere. We can't just pay workers $31 BILLION more dollars and not expect some impact on the economy...

If you've come with me this far, you may want to go ahead and just click away. I appreciate you reading this blog and I always welcome thoughtful comments on anything I write. I don't do profanity but I can handle opposing viewpoints. For some reason, I found it appropriate to close today with the following:

Our very own Declaration of Independence opens with the paragraph:

When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

Somehow, we have lost the right for - and/or the ability of - dissolution. We live in the age of Why can't we all just get Along, when the get along part means accepting more and more government control in our lives which was anathema to the founders of this nation. We are slowly and surely replacing our freedoms with the very yoke of government that good men and women shrugged off two and a quarter centuries ago.

Who knows, maybe it will all work out. Let's pray so.

X