Friday, February 20, 2015

Healing Our Hearts



We had the honor of meeting 19 beautiful children at Juno's orphanage this morning.  The kids met us at the entrance and eagerly walked us into their primitive living quarters while showing us the mattresses that they sleep on.  While there is a definite language barrier for most of us that do not speak Creole, there is a universal language of smiles, hugs, and kindness that is easy to share with each other.  They brought us outside and worked with a translator to introduce themselves.  They offered to sing us some songs in Creole and English.  As soon as they started singing songs for us, I couldn't help to feel the tears start welling up in my eyes.  I sat there listening to their beautiful singing and couldn't help but think of how unfair the world is to them.  It just breaks your heart.  We read them a story, played games, gave them some snacks, prayed for them and reminded them of Jesus' love for them.
Then we headed into downtown Port au Prince to visit the public General Hospital.  I am a nurse and was thinking that I might find this place pretty interesting, but what I saw was not at all what I was expecting.  There were big noisy rooms filled with parents, babies, and rows of metal cribs.  My brain could not really absorb how different this atmostphere was compared to where I am used to working.  No OSHA safety requirements, computers, identification bracelets, hand sanitizer or running water.  I did see parents holding their babies and looking for hope in a place that seemed hopeless.  We were able to spend time with some of the parents and their children.  Thanks to many donated supplies, we were able to give away bags full of basic hygeine supplies that hopefully brightened a spot in their day.  It broke my heart to take it all in.
I have had the honor of being on this trip with my husband and our two boys.  Our group has graciously taken our boys under their wing and guided them through this journey.  This trip has opened our eyes to poverty in a way that is difficult to explain but very easy to see, hear, and feel.  Our kids have taken it all in with a graciousness that I have found to be beautiful yet heart-breaking at times.
Our evening closed out with meeting the founder of Healing Haiti.  Jeff lives in Minnesota but was able to meet with our group tonight on what is his 70th trip to Haiti.  He shared with us some of his life story and described how his heart was broken into a million pieces when he saw the needs during his first visit to Haiti.  He encouraged us to let this trip change our lens of how we see the world.  I loved his description of how having a broken heart gives God the opportunity to repair our heart back into one that more resembles His.   

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