Sitting on the veranda, with a tent city behind us, the breeze full of all sorts of smells wraps around us. Music and chatter from our Haitian neighbors fills the air as we write this. We just finished a delicious meal of spaghetti. The conversation was scarce due to our long, tiring day delivering water in Cite Soleil. Many of us experienced the overwhelming amount of kids grabbing on to you and just looking for someone to give them attention and affection. We made three stops with the water truck, each to a different part of Cite Soleil. At the first stop, we were surprised by the excitement and joy of the children just to be held by us. We held these children in the midst of garbage and shacks they call home; their smiles and giggles were inspiring. We were fortunate enough to walk through the shacks to a junkyard by the ocean. We were told that after the earthquake and sometimes still today, people were buried where we walked. They also used it as a bathroom. Kids trailed us throughout the whole thing eager to even hold on to our shirts. While we were in the junkyard, we sang a Haitian song that the kids loved and giggled at. After the first stop, we followed the water truck to the filling station packed with other trucks waiting for water. A blessing in disguise, this delay provided us with time to play with the children who lived nearby. A group of siblings gave us many laughs and smiles as they showed us how to crack the fruit to get to the almond. They were content just to sit on our laps and play hand-games. Once the truck was filled, we headed to the next stop. What the kids lacked in possessions they made up for with their enthusiasm. We played ring-a-round-the-rosy and sang songs with them much to their delight. We watched as the children played and bathed in the leftover water. Once again, the surroundings made us grateful for our home and nice guest house to go back to. When the water was gone and we had to say au revoir, we returned to the filling station. The siblings and their friends were there to meet us. Our time was filled with piggyback rides, hand-games, and swinging the kids around. At the last station, we were met with lots of kids thirsty for both attention and water. At this stop, we filled the most buckets of all three trips which gave the opportunity to help the kids and parents carry the buckets back to their homes. Helping with the water hose was a chaotic part of this trip as well, with many people crowding around the hose to get their buckets filled to the brim. These water truck trips were very exhausting physically, emotionally, and spiritually for the whole team. We really came to love and appreciate the Haitian people through these experiences.
However, our day was not close to being done. We drove back to the guest house to pick up the neighborhood boys for an afternoon soccer game. We squished all thirty plus of us on our Tap-Tap and bounced all the way to the field while singing and getting to meet the boys. Once we arrived, we divided into two teams, oranj (orange) and nwa (black). Brunet, one of our translators and impromptu ref, blew the whistle and the game began. We had a blast being able to interact with the boys through our common factor of soccer. After lots of sweat, dirt and fun, the oranj team came out victorious. Throughout the game, some of us trickled to the sidelines, exhausted from the long day and the hot weather. While we were there, some of the neighborhood boys sat with us and taught us some Creole, a very neat experience for all there. We had a fun surprise when a boy we met earlier at the filling station stopped over to say bonjou. When we were done, we piled back in the Tap-Tap for a sweaty ride home. We were sad to say goodbye to our new friends, but we were excited we could say "see you again," as we are going on a beach outing with them again on Thursday!
As we sit here, looking at the gorgeous Haitian sky with the stars and moon shining down on us, we can't help but thank God for this incredible opportunity and know in our hearts that we were placed down here for a reason. We are very excited for the experiences we will have tomorrow at both Gertrude's and Home of Sick and Dying children. It encourages us to know we have loved ones at home praying and following our blog:)
-Posted by Cassie and Janell
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