Orevwa!

As we say goodbye to this amazing country and people, we reflect on so many things....

Rocka Rolla

April 6th

Hello everyone, Ica here,
Today is our last full day in Haiti and it has been a grrrrrrrrrreat! My team has worked so hard everyday, and everyday I told them so. They have picked up endless amounts of garbage and moved rocks to make a garden and yard for The Refuge that will one day be filled with kids.

The first day I got to paint the watch tower alongside a Haitian named Jeff. We primed the building and on our breaks we (Audrey,Sierra, Danielle, Shu and Amy) would learn Creole words. We learned paint, paintbrush, ladder and anything else we could think of. And now that it is Friday it's hard to put words together to describe my week. I have met so many people and gotten to know my team on a whole new level. I have seen people sweat in places I never knew people could sweat.

On most days whenever I got a moment I would ask people what their high and lows were for the week so far which would lead into deeper conversations. I also enjoyed the old fashioned games of 20 questions. The bus rides (sometimes long) made a great time to bond.

I think there should be a CD called "Silly Songs with Jodie", because she does not know lyrics to save her life, which made me laugh just about everyday. I don't remember the last time I've laughed this hard or so much in my life and I'm so happy to continue to grow in my friendship with Jodie and I'm happy that she is part of our group.

This trip wouldn't be complete without nicknames. Everyday we become closer and closer as a team and as friends. Even though we all come from the same town, (well most of us) I have had so much fun getting to know them better. Now some of us on this trip have had nicknames from other events and for those of us who hadn't I have given them "Haitian" names. Now, naming people is not the easiest task but some names just fit. And here they are:

Jodie- Jodes MaGoads or just Goads
Jessalynn- Allen
Audrey- Audi
Joe T.- Jose Cuervo shortened to Cuervo (which is the name of the Haitian wheelbarrow we've been using all week)
Mistee- Une Femme(oon fem) which means Big Girl in french and is a Haitian compliment
Joe K.- Bob the Builder; often shortened to Bob
Sean- Seanín, which is fitting cause he's Irish (yes, I had a small freak out when I found this out)
Amy- Aims
Katie- Capaire, Irish for "sandwhich" and I'm not sure why this name stuck with me.
Tyler- Dora the Destroyer
Me, Jessica- Ica, I've even introduced myself to the children as Ica... so much easier to say and remember and very "Haitian" sounding.

I didn't get the chance to name every one but it's been fun calling these people by their "new" names. Before I go I will tell you my highs from this week have been holding naked Haitian babies, eating authentic Haitian food, and riding in the back of the bus and laughing with Casey Face, Goades and Aims. It will be sad leaving here but I'm ready to go home and see my li'l boy. More stories to come!

Orevwa, Ica

Hello everyone this is Tyler. The trip so far has been good.  I have received the nickname the destroyer, which would make sense if you look at the first three days of work we have done. The first two days we worked at a refuge where they are in the process of building an orphanage. During the first day i spent my time making ruble out of cinder blocks with the aid of a very nice sledge hammer. Then i spent the remainder of the day removing large stumps out of ground with the help of an axe. During the second day I continued the removal of stumps with an axe. But I spent the majority of the day burning stuff. We had four burn piles going on throughout the day. Sean the fireman and I kept them all going and it made the 100+ degree weather even hotter. The third day though we went to a developing village where we were helping to build a shed over the water pump. While we were there we filled sacks with mud to build a shelter that looked like a sand bag house and while i was loosening up the dirt with a pick axe to be used to put into the bags, i accidentally caught a low hanging line with the axe and managed to rip it down it was the day that i was probably not gonna get to destroy anything but i ended up destroying that too. Oh well the line actually didn't have a purpose it was just a place where they put their metal wire, and everyone laughed at the big white man and all was good. All in all its been good so far and other than destroying things it actually has been a very good trip so far the few limited conversations that i have had with the Haitians have been good. The language barrier is interesting to try and get around like today we were working with the Haitians to fill bags with mud and tie them off i have never done anything like it and i learned how to with the help of a Haitian man who did not speak a shred of english. It was very good and humbling to work with the Haitians and to get laughed at by them when i have no idea what I am doing. The kids here are interesting to say the least all of the little kids are just adorable and of course know no english. Then the older kids or at least just the older boys always are asking for you to give them stuff. I quickly learned on the first day not to wear a watch or a bracelet because the boys who can reach it will very nicely ask you to give while tugging at your watch. They are just kids though and they have to fight everyday to be able to live so I don't feel anger or any bad feelings for the kids I only feel blessed for what I have. That is all I have thank you for reading my post, and i hope you have a good day.

April 4th

I have learned so much in the past 5 days since we have been here, its unreal! From how Hatians drive to why you don't stick your arm in a hole with no gloves on to pick up the root of a banana tree because there's killer ants in Haiti that like to eat your arm off! (ok..well maybe I exaggerated a little, my arm isn't gone it's just has a lot of bumps.. I'm ok mom:)) The most significant thing I've learned thus far is from today though.When we arrived today, at the village we had been working at on Sunday, we were standing around figuring out our jobs, I saw this little boy who was 2 or 3 years old and immediately we smiled at each other and he shied away with a smirk on his face. I knew from then on, that village would be hard to leave because of this compassion and love I quickly had for this little boy. Later I learned that his name is Tipapa. Everywhere I went I found this boy following me. I would be sitting down trying to play with other kids and he would come up to me with a handful of rocks and a huge grin on this face with the whitest teeth ever and I would say, "Merci! Merci!" (Thank you! Thank you!). We also tossed around the football (an American one!) and rolled a toy car back and forth over and over again. I taught him how to count to five and say 'I love you', most adorable thing ever, though he had no idea what it meant. When it came time to leave, I tried to avoid saying "Orevwa" (however you spell that..it means "goodbye"), but he found me every time and I finally had to say it and we were gone.
Yes, it's heart wrenching to leave, but it's only a day. Yes, it's hard to not worry about him, but I have no control. Yes, he's going to be in my prayers, there's not a doubt. But, ultimately it's this love and compassion that needs to carry over to those I encounter everyday back home. It's a different kind of poverty in Missoula, I don't regularly worry about children being fed in our hometown. But, there is a spiritual poverty that our hearts need to be breaking for, they may have a warm place to stay in the winter and food to put on the table, but do they even know Jesus Christ and what he's done for them? There really is nothing I can do for Tipapa, but pray continuously and even then, God is in complete control. Every relationship I build in Missoula I can follow up on and actually be there to make a difference.
Today has been one that I will never forget, I'll hold on to these memories as long as I can. The Haitian people will always be on my heart and I hope that one day I will be able to come back in the near future. But, right now God has placed me in Missoula to bring him all the glory. Please pray that we, as a team, will be open minded to whatever God has I store for us these next four days!
Love Always,
Aud(:

April 3rd - Happy Today I Met You...

Hello everybody, this is Mistee Brown. I don't even know where to start. alright well, i'm actually typing this from An Ipad with one of those keypad attachments that is plugged into an outlit. that's right. an outlit. because God is so good and our living arrangements are absolutely prime.bed, bathrooms, kitchen, coffee, electricity. awesome. Today, we woke up at 5:55, breakfast of bagels and quiche and on the bus to the orphanage at 7. The sunrise happens around 6:30 and it is so so so beautiful, all oranges and pinks and purple. the pictures i take of this place do not do it justice.

The roads are nuts. Haitians use the horn for EVERYTHING. EVERYTHING. motorcycles and trucks and 'tap-taps' (small trucks that have a covered bed where up to ten people sit; welcome to public transportantion) and semi's zoom around, no speedlimit, driving on both sides, passing on both side. We are extrememly luck y to have a Haitian driver, Dudu, who knows the roads and rules.

At the orphange, today and yesterday, we did landscaping and painting. Shoveling topsoil (Dad would be so darn proud of me) and picking and burning trash and like i said, painting the guard tower and office. It is so hot and so humid. I've never sweat so much before in my life. ever. It's insane. But the is a breeze every so oftan that is wonderful. We are working together as a team very well, and i pray we continue to do so. Its not all hard wokr though, we talk to the Haitians guarding the compound and some pop their heads over theconcrete wall between us and the city. It is surprising how many can understand and speak english, at least a little bit.

One boy I met today, God forgive me I can't remember his name, spoke Creole (their native tongue), french, English, AND spanish. when I asked him if he went to school, he looked sadden and said that he Needed school but didn't go; his parents taught him what he knew. He asked if I was working, and when i said I was, and asked to speak to my boss, because he wanted a job. Doesn't that break your heart? I clarified; we are al volenteering without pay. I asked him if he was happy though, with his life. and he nodded his head up and down grinning, "I am very happy today, I am very happy today I met you." oh im tearing up.

I hope to just give these people a glispe of the Lord and change maybe some of their stereotypes about white people. already I have witnessed their joy that does not come from materials, a content heart, and patience for the world to notice them, but they do not pity themselves! even the poorest. They accpet the food we give them, but invite us into their dirt floored homes with pride. pride of their emaculately clean clothes and perfectly made bed and just pride in themselves. it is rreally verybeautiful. I love you mom and James ( and Dad if your reading this) derek im sorry i missed your birthday. I have to go i love you bye.

April 2nd - Hi Ho Hi Ho. Its Off to Work We Go...

We had the toughest day so far. Today we started doing work at the Orphanage. The main thing that we did today was move A LOT of dirt/rock. There is a bunch of dirt that we have to move and we got about 1/4 of it done and and then later on in the day another truck load of gravel showed up. Some of the girls painted one of the buildings that are on the compound. But most of us moved the dirt. It was pretty tough work. This morning was decently cool, but still in the 70's or so. But it started to get hot very fast. 

We are doing some landscaping to level out the ground and make it more level so it will be easier to walk and play on when the kids get here. We did a lot of shoveling and we did a lot of lifting of the wheel borrows. Don't know how many loads we did but there was a lot. Because it was sooo hot we had to take a lot of breaks to drink enough water to stay hydrated. We went through about 20-25 gallons of water in like 5 hours. 

As the day went along we broke a total of 3 shovels, 1 rake, and a sludge hammer. While we were moving the dirt, Mistee came up with the idea of saying things that we are all thankful for to keep our minds of the fact that we are tired. it was great to hear everything that we are all thankful for. But we got tons of rock moved and still have tons more to do tomorrow, Thursday and Friday. 

We all had a pretty good day and we are getting up earlier tomorrow to work when it is cooler and get done earlier when its not so hot. 

Talk to you soon, 

Casey Face :|

April 1st- Thoughts from our team

From Blan to Ami

As our bus pulled into the village, children's cries of "Blan! Blan! Blan! (meaning white) could be heard through our windows.  It didn't take long for a little Haitian hand to find ours and join us on our journey as we delivered food to local village homes. It was hard not to feel hopelessness for families that obviously have very little especially when we come from a land of so much. But we soon discovered that these people valued families and took pride in their simple homes. We were pleasantly surprised when each family eagerly wanted us to pray for them... for sickness, for their children to love God, for broken homes... they were just like so many of us in our prayers. Even though the day pushed us out of our comfort zones, both physically and mentally, God did not give us a Spirit of fear but of love. So it was only fitting to hear the love from children's cries as we pulled away no longer cheering 'Blan!' but 'Ami! Ami! Ami' (meaning friend).

-Heidi McCartan

Lost in Translation

Bonjour....oh wait! I mean “Bonjou”.  It’s pretty incredible how people communicate.  And although you might not think it, verbal language is only a small part of it.  As a French major, I didn’t know what to expect here in Haiti. 

 I had heard that most people speak Creole...which is kind of like French.  So, I figured I’d be alright.  I can speak French.  Theoretically, I should get on just fine. 

As it turns out,  Creole and French...not the same. Yes, there do seem to be a lot of similarities. And yes, there are a lot of shared words. But Creole has a structure apart.  Instead of saying “I am going”, they say “I/Me go”.  Instead of saying “Au revoir” they say “Orevwa”...which might actually be easier to read for most Americans.

And although  some people do speak French here in Ayiti, it’s less than half the population. So, overall verbal communication is a little more complicated than expected.

Thankfully, there’s a language that transcends linguistic constraints.  It’s a language that  bypasses political and cultural barriers.  It’s a language that has as its focus not different word roots/verb conjugations/vocabulary and all that nonsense, but rather a language that has one goal: unity.

This universal language:  Godspeak.  This is the a language that we communicate not only by our words but by our actions.  When we say that we love someone and we actively seek to help that person out, we express Godspeak.  When we work and sweat to do something not for our own glory, our own honor, our own pride...but rather for God’s glory and His kingdom, we express Godspeak. Namely, Godspeak is God’s speaking through us and working in us. 

Today, I saw this in both the Haiti mission group and in the Haitians.  We were very blessed in seeing how God’s people communicate and work toward His will, even when they cannot understand what the other one is saying.

Bondye beni, God bless.

Orevwa.

Seth Barnes