The Bus

I don't know how many more Haiti stories you all can stand, but there are so many swirling around in my head right now, I can hardly keep from talking about them.
One of the biggest things that happened while we were there related to "the bus". The bus story is in itself rather lengthy and if I actually got all the details right you might be impressed. But I'm bound to forget some important point, So I think I'm better off just giving you the gist. The bus, when it first arrived in Haiti about 2-3 years ago, was happily used for only a short period of time before it was driven into a river and ruined. Completely. As in, if it were in the U.S. it would have been junked out for parts. This was a major disappointment because it was such a widely used part of the ministry. And you'd agree since there's no one who has vehicles there except the missionaries and other aid workers. But instead, for 2 years running, a top notch mechanic (as seen in above photo) went down and worked on it. Scrounging for parts, working 12 hour days and above all, praying that it would be fixed. There were several funny stories that the guys who worked on this were all able to tell, about finding parts, running all over, having the Haitians help yada yada yada. The second to the last day of our visit, they were able to start the bus and actually run it back to the compound. They tinkered some more and It is officially fixed! The point to my story is, I was as excited about having this bus fixed as if I actually did something. When in reality, the only thing I really did was offer up some very half hearted prayers. I really didn't even pray too intelligently when it came to fixing this thing. I have no idea what I was praying about. i.e. "O Lord, help them get the manifold, transmission, transformed." You see what I mean. Good thing God can work in spite of me. Good thing God wasn't waiting for my prayers so He could work in the first place. His business is manifold transformation. I can go join in. God is indeed at work in Haiti!

Modern Haiti

The sun set in Haiti around 6:30 p.m. Once that happened it was dark. Really dark. While there was a generator on the compound and we had lights in the evening for awhile, no one else did. We went out in the evening several times and people were everywhere wandering around in that blackness. No flashlights. No candles. No oil lamps. There were no electrical lines into Pignon or Bo Hoc where we were staying. But one thing that was there: cell phones! It was the most incongrous thing I've ever seen. (They haven't had lessons in cell phone ettiquete yet either) Here are these people with nothing but they all have cell phones. The picture above is of a solar cell phone charger. The guy who owns it charges a small fee and relies on the one constant that Haiti seems to have: plenty of sunshine! But when you think about it, owning a cell phone makes a bit of sense. It certainly saves time. You can check to see if someone has something you might need ahead of time and save yourself a long walk if they don't. Haitian time runs similar to other places where clocks don't abound. Things happen when you (or everyone) gets there. So having a cell phone comes in handy there too.
The one light that we could see at night came from the cell phone tower. Very odd.

Church in Haiti

We held Vacation Bible School in 3 different churches. They were the churches that were in charge of the three feeding centers that the mission runs. They have a big stake in feeding the children of their community. The only thing that outsiders do is provide the money to purchase the rice, beans and cabbage. After that, the churches take over. There were strict standards as to who got fed. Children were weighed and measured and they had to be weaned and not over 10 years old. These kids were brought to the centers by their mothers or older siblings. It was here, at these churches that we did the VBS programs. The contrast was interesting. The first church was pretty nice by Haitian standards: painted and roofed, with a sound system even, and pews. The second was nothing more than an open air pole barn. The kind we might keep an animal in. With some benches. The third was between two rows of trees. Rope was strung up and some sheets were put up. There were a few benches. The first two had "bells". A tire rim that could be beaten to signal the beginning of church. None the less, I was impressed with the pastors and their enthusiasm and excitement about being able to do this kind of ministry. We showed up just in time to pass out a few things, but mostly we were just observers. The real work was already being done.

Haiti pictures

Enjoy the trip!