Clinic

Since we had a medical team in and I wasn’t teaching (much—I still have a few classes), Maddie and I both went with the team to work in the clinic. A very welcoming group who were sure that we would be super helpful (little did they know that we didn’t really know what clinic is like). There were 5 doctors so we had to get a lot of patients ready in order to keep the doctors busy. There were 2 people in triage (they do vital signs and find out why the patient is there that day). And 3 in the pharmacy to count out all the drugs that were prescribed. And 1 person to go wherever needed. They put Maddi and I in triage to hand out vitamins to all the people who came (children’s chewables or adult multivitamins). We also did the temperatures with these devices that you just hold up to the person’s temple. And we did the weights of the babies…since they can’t stand on their own you often weigh the mom with the baby and then take the baby, weigh the mom, and subtract. I cut out a step by just weighing myself with the baby and subtracting…Then I often just continued to hold the child. I kept a few until they were ready to go into the doctor’s room but others I only kept until there was another that needed weighing.  I wandered the halls and into the pharmacy with them as the pharmacy is so removed. They were pretty happy to see and get to hold some happy babies.

Downside is that not all of the babies were wearing diapers…some were already damp (held for shorter times) and then I actually did get peed on.  Guess I had to take the good with the bad…I’ll say it was cooler to wear wet clothes (I rinsed all my clothes out well in the bathroom and was water wet for the rest of the day).

 

Croix de Bouquets

The next week was a group from Blackburg, VA who worked in the clinic. The first night they were there Maddie and I learned the names of all 11 of them. We weren’t sure if we’d be able to do it the next morning but the week was off to a great start. After church they were headed to Croix de Bouquets where a lot of the metal art comes from in Haiti. It felt similar to the wood markets in Malawi with shop next to shop next to shop with many of the same things but here you could see how different artists did things with a little different flair or technique. They have things as big as a door to small butterflies or angels, geckos, trees. I bought a butterfly and some angels. One of the women bought a very large sun that we weren’t sure how it would get back (but it did).  One of the last shops I went into had wine holders—one of them was taller than me! and held at least 30 bottles. There were also smaller ones.

I’d been wanting to go to check this place out since I’d first heard about it (back in Novemeber), but whenever the teams would go I would always be busy with class or unavailable. Now I can say that I’ve been and would still like to go back…there were many shops that I didn’t check out and while after a few shops the art does start to look the same, you can find some jewels in there!

I can take orders if there is something you might want. We'll just be creative with how to get it to you and when.

PK Teacher Training

We had a group down from Bel Air Pres in California to help do a preschool teacher training. They were so much fun. The PK teachers from each school came for the workshop…I enjoyed it because I knew lots of them (though not as many from the other schools). For the first two hours of the morning the 4 year olds came so that the teachers could see some of the techniques they were being taught in action. The next half of the morning was introducing new concepts to the teachers and more talking/teaching.

Each morning began with a group welcome circle in the courtyard where we sang songs such as “The more we get together,” “the hokey pokey” (substituiting You give your heart to Jesus for You do the hokey pokey), and too-de-ta which is a fun movement song similar in actions to Father Abraham but simpler since there are no words… then into the classrooms where we did activities based on the book Brown Bear, Brown Bear (matching, sorting, reading), arts and crafts and more. I was a translator for the team which I found worked ok whenever there wasn’t someone in the room that I thought would be able to do a much better job.

One day they did centers as the teachers group with a music station, reading station, arts, blocks, beads…the music station was very loud. We really enjoyed it because almost all of the teachers are quite musical but afterwards we talked about what would really work in the classroom…and the music wasn’t one as it interferes with being able to think or concentrate at the other centers and would disrupt neighboring classes during school. It was fun to see the teachers see that and work out different options for a center.

It was a great week that was enjoyed by everyone involved. The teachers here are already looking forward to next years training!

Pastor Leon and I doing the too-de-ta

Languages and Goodbye

On Isabelle’s last morning here she helped out with a seminar put on by Georgia Kurko (who also helped put on the 6^th grade Frog retreat and has been coming down for years). Isabelle speaks 5 languages fluently (English, German, French, Luxembourgish, Spanish and some Chichewa but we didn’t go that far). When Georgia heard about that she jumped on it and asked if Isabelle would read a bible passage in all of her languages. She agreed. Only after that did she get the Bible passage-- 7 of the longest verses in the Bible (I think).  The seminar was on the body being God’s temple and staying pure and making good decisions.

The seminar started with breakfast (as most things do here) and then came the readings.  I read the French. Mary who was helping Georgia read the English. Then Isabelle did the Spanish, German and Luxembourgish.  There were also some facts and figures up about Luxembourg (size and population) as it is smaller than Haiti.  We didn’t stay for the rest of the seminar but I’m sure it went well.  Instead I took Isabelle to see Repatriate and Cite Soleil centers before dropping her at the airport. I’m so glad she came and was sad to see her go…

teacher beach day

At the end of the school year Leon and Jacky Dorleans take the teachers, cleaners, cooks to the beach. It is a thank you and a staff meeting all in one. And I was lucky enough to get an invite. Along with Isabelle and Maddie we jumped in the back of Leon’s truck at 6:30 in the morning to lead the bus full of 60+ teachers and staff to the public beach. An early start for a full beach day—I’m all for it! At least until we arrive at the gate and it is still closed and locked…but we make enough noise and work it all out to get in. We get to spread out over most of the beach as we’re the only ones here (and stay that way until the early afternoon when others arrive). First things first is breakfast. We had brought little snacky stuff with us as we were told there isn’t a restaurant really and that was fine. But all of the Haitians (ok maybe not all) had brought spaghetti and they were all willing to share. It was so sweet (the sharing, not the spaghetti). And I’ll have to say they are some good cooks! After breakfast we would have gotten into the water (early morning sun better for our skin being so white), but it was time for the staff meeting portion of the day. We gathered for prayers and thanks to all of the hard work that had gone into the year to make it the success that it was. Then they asked us to break into small groups according to grades and jobs and to write what was good about the year and what might need to change as well as how to change it.  Then it was time to get in the water (around 11)…and there we stayed for most of the bright time. We got a boat ride along the coast which was full of singing and cheering (most had never been on the water before). It was a great day for fellowship and trying new things and stretching some trust…coming out farther in the water (though never too deep).  Maddie, Isabelle and I came back tired, happy and a little bit red…

Sodo

Leon had dinner with us one night and asked me where I was going to take Isabelle while she was here. I told him that I wasn’t sure yet and he immediately told me I should take her to Sodo (the waterfall that I’d been to with him around Christmas). Sounded like a great idea! Then he asked me how I would get there. I said probably by taptap (as I don’t really have any other options here) and he countered by offering his vehicle and then I would just need to get a driver. Great!

So Wednesday morning, Kevin, Maddie, Isa and I headed north with Fritz driving. We passed the Mirabalais hospital that is open and operating (we didn’t stop to check it out). They had all asked me if it was worth it and while I really liked it the first time I wasn’t sure how to answer that. There isn’t much physical activity and it is about 1.5 to 2 hours in the car each way but it is beautiful and the terrain around it is very different from around here in Port au Prince. As soon as we were out of the city, they were already amazed. The drive starts out even more desolate and bare than what we see from the compounds. Sometimes there are still lots of people but there is really nothing around out of the city. Then the road starts to go up into the mountains, past a lake and as soon as you go over the first mountain it starts to get much more green and lush.

At Sodo (Saut d’Eau in French—Jumping Water) everyone was so glad we had come. (I was relieved.) It really is a beautiful place that overlooks lots of banana farms, has cool water, and is peaceful. There wasn’t anyone else there (other than our ‘guides’ to help us as we climbed around). On certain days there are lots of people there worshiping the voodoo spirits as evidenced by the burnt trees and metal plates placed to protect the trees, empty licquor bottles in the water and around on the ground. We had fun wandering around and wading in the water.

We came back down by a different road and came out near the ocean which was pretty as well (as I usually find the water).

Appreciation!

My last class with the teachers was the Tuesday before school ended. I didn’t really know it until that day as we hadn’t discussed it and I still didn’t know my summer schedule (which has been drastically reduced on the teaching front—a very nice break). My preschool teachers left early (the kids were done and so were they) but the grade school teachers came to me and asked about class…what time it would be. I hadn’t really planned anything because I had guessed that they would also leave early but when I heard that I did some pretty quick brainstorming for a class. Isabelle came with me and it was a good thing. The teachers had a different idea of class for today…We opened with prayer and then they sang me a song—a thank you song that it sounded like they had come up with themselves as I’d never heard it before and it included my name. Basically thank you over and over. One of the teachers sang it through first by herself then the others joined in. I was floored! So sweet of them. Then they gave me presents! It was so unexpected. Isabelle was then asked to take a picture of us all together. I opened my presents and found a heart picture frame with ‘God bless you’ on it (where that picture would go when I get it developed and a carved book that says ‘thank you Jesus’ and has a big flower on the other page. I have been so blessed to meet, teach, and work with these wonderful people. 

A Visitor

Isabelle came to visit! She is finishing her master’s program studies and had a 2 week lecture/practical in Boston and said that since she would be that much closer to me she would come to visit! (not that Boston is close to Haiti but it is a lot closer than coming from Luxembourg) She arrived on a Sunday morning and Marty was galant enough to leave church early with me to pick her up from the airport. I’ll have to admit I was a little worried about getting a visitor as I wasn’t sure what we would be able to do this week (going back to the fact that I don’t get out all that much and don’t have the freedom of a vehicle), but it was a wonderful week, we visited the House of Hope girls, went to Sodo the waterfall, the beach and to the other HOM sites. My week with her was over too soon…

So the first afternoon we went over to the House of Hope to visit the girls. They were doing a painting project when we arrived—painting on a canvas that had a tape cross on it so in the end the cross would be white with a colorful background. I didn’t know it when we arrived but 2 of the girls were quite sick and Nadege was busy getting them care. She said later that it was so good that we were there to keep the others occupied. We sang some songs and played until it was time to eat something. We left when the girls sat down to eat. The 2 girls who were sick got IVs for fluids and on Monday Nadege took them to the hospital since they weren’t getting better. They stayed overnight and are doing fine now. Running and playing with the rest of them. It was scary for a bit but they’ve made a great come back as children often do.

FROG

a lesson on worship (in the church)

At the end of the school year there is a 6^th grade retreat. It is the end of the HOM schooling (right now—there are plans for a high school as soon as all the money is raised, plan to open Sept 2014) and a chance for fun and some more teaching…The retreat used to go off site but since the earthquake there hasn’t really been a place to go and now I think it might be a money thing…I hope that changes for them because there isn’t a great place here to run around for the kids. But on to the retreat…

party time!

FROG retreat is the name. It stands for Fully Rely On God. In English class we’ve been learning all kinds of songs for them to use here so that the kids would already have some understanding of what the songs meant as they were singing. Teachings on Salvation, Making Good Decisions, Relying on God, the God Sequence (life events in a Christian order), etc. happened throughout the 3 days of the retreat. When they arrived on the first day they were giving a 5 gallon bucket, pen, marker, hankerchief, folder full of the papers they would use and many other things.

 They would have breaks and would be given more toys and things…there was a bouncy break (given bouncy balls), a kazoo break (sadly and yet not, many of them weren’t working and an Easter egg hunt for example. On the second day in the afternoon there was a big party with cake and candy and juice. There was a ‘shop’ where one could get a toy or other prizes after the party. 

One of the ladies who came down to help lead is an art teacher and one of the projects for her classes was to make a drawing from a photo…each child’s photo was then laminated into a place mat with the drawing on one side and the photo on the other. It was pretty cool. Each child also receives a Bible, a hymn book and a bag and more…it is a lot of presents and very special. The kids and the teachers love it. and it was a lot of fun to help with! oh and everything was frog themed of course!

a great hold all and can be used for water at home

 
 

listening intently

Lunch

Some of the facilitators and translators

New LTV

LTV= long term volunteer

I have a new roommate…have had for about 2.5 weeks now. In my small room I have to admit to being pretty leery about having someone else move in for 6 weeks…not much storage space (Americans bring a lot of luggage usually), bunk beds, etc. I’ve had different people in for shorter amounts of time and most of them I’ve known already or only over lapped a little bit of time. This is 6 weeks! Maddie came down with a group in March so supposedly I had met her but while she looked a little familiar when she arrived I didn’t know who she was. We get on very well. It didn’t take much time at all to know that it was going to be ok. Even having to share our small room I know that I’m going to be sorry to see her go in mid-July. She is a third grade teacher and there was an idea that she would come down to help me with classes and ideas…but school is out so that is not going as planned though we have done some school stuff. We are having a great time helping with the teams that have been here. Won’t want to see her go but I don’t think I’ll think about that until I have to.