Grace Village

It's my 5th full day in Haiti and I am starting to grow accustomed to the unexpected. In that regard, it was just another day in Haiti. Today, our group spent the entire day at Grace Village with the task of entertaining the children. There was no hauling of water, no sick children, no elderly. Just 63 kids ready to play. Although this was our easiest assignment, my tank is starting to run low so I was pretty beat by the end. I'm having a hard time keeping my eyes open now and I've had 3 bottles of Coke since I got back to the mission house.

Before we starting programming with the children, we got to meet the director of Grace Village. His name is Rob and he and his family are from Stillwater, MN on an assignment for at least two years. Rob gave us a tour of Grace Village (we had only gotten a nickel tour the other day). We got to see the school they are building. It will be great for the children. One of the most impressive parts of the school is that it will be free for the village children to attend. Schools in Haiti cost money and most Haitians struggle to bring in money. I have heard that Haiti has 80% unemployment and the minimum wage is $5/day. I heard that schools can cost $100 a year. I'm surprised that any of the families can afford to send multiple kids to school. This could also be one reason why many of the kids in orphanages are abandoned and not actually orphaned -- parents see that their children will get food and an education if they let they go. During the tour, we got to hear plans for all the future expansions e.g., additional rooms for children and the elderly, a church, playfield, garden, and medical/dental clinic.

Following the tour, we got to meet the children and lead them in some songs, a lesson and some activities. The lesson was basically about following Jesus' example and not other people (Ephesians 5:1-2 Follow God’s example, therefore, as dearly loved children and walk in the way of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.) After the structured time, we basically got to play with kids all day. We brought kites and flew those. It was such a windy day that at lunch, the kids were able to put rocks on the ends of the kite strings and the kites just kept flying while they went inside to eat.

After lunch, we continued to play and do a few minor projects. The crack commando squad that worked on the swing set the other day set and painted 2 four square courts and 4 hopscotch courts on the playground. If you have a future mission that requires playground repair, I know some people.

I had a few kids stand out to me today. One was named Isaac. He cracked me up. He reminded me of Jon Jon, the little boy from 70's-era Sesame Street who counted emphatically when he got into the teens e.g., fifTEEN, sixTEEN, etc. That how Isaac would talk. JE SUIS ISAAC!. Isaac was a primary factory in my fatigue today. He was relentless in getting me to toss him up in the air. He is a cute little kid.

The other kid was actually a young man. Jeano is a mature sixteen year old. He approached me and asked me if I had accepted Jesus into my life. I never expected to go on a mission trip to Haiti and get witnessed to by an orphan. Jeano and I had a great talk. He was very well versed in the Bible and particularly interested in the book of Revolations which we talked about extensively. We also talked in length about C.S. Lewis' "The Screwtape Letters." He was a very impressive young man.

What was perhaps most unusual about today was how usual it felt. It felt like we visted kids at a school, had some fun with them and then we all went home. What doesn't immediately sink in is that after we got home and had dinner, the kids were still there. They aren't going anywhere. They didn't go home from school to their parents. They don't leave and they don't have homes to go to. When I wake up tomorrow or after I go home next week, they will still be there.