A Tour of Our Haitian Home

Bienvenu, tout moun!  Welcome, everyone!  Sorry it took so long to get these pictures up, but it took awhile to get all of them taken and uploaded.  It's funny -- our internet is through a cell phone signal and since it rains/storms up here in the mountains every evening, the internet is not always working.  I never thought internet could be dependent on the weather!  Ha. 

We've been working on our home little by little over the past several weeks as we had opportunity.  It's coming together pretty well.  Some of the stuff we have in here is ours that we sent from America, other stuff is the mission's, and we purchased some of it when we got here.  Household items here are many times more expensive here than in the States, so we haven't really bought a lot of Haitian household goods since we arrived.  We do most of our shopping through Amazon Prime, so we can get American prices on things we need.  We are so thankful for how the Lord has provided for us as we have settled in here in Haiti.




Welcome to the Bidwell house!  Our church back in the states recently had a ladies' Pinterest night, so I decided to join in.
Just because you live in Haiti doesn't mean you can't pack crafts in your suitcase and make a Pinterest wreath!

Our living room.  All of our floors are concrete and so this rug is our favorite thing in the house!

Another shot of the living room.  The homeschool room is the room in the background.

In honor of Honest October, I thought I'd post a picture of my kitchen with a ton of dirty dishes on the counter.
This is what the kitchen looks like all of the time, usually even messier though.  :)

Another shot of the kitchen.  That's our source of clean, healthy water there in the background.
Never ever ever ever drink out of the tap here!

The kids are sharing a room, which has been an adventure!  We were thankful that BHM already
 had these bunk beds so we didn't have to buy any.

Another shot of the kids' room.  One of the tubs we packed the container with doubles as a great toy box.  Thankfully, the dresser was already here, too.  The jungley art over the dresser is a Haitian piece that we haggled for at the market.  Kilee picked it out and Scott sealed the deal.

 

This is mine and Scott's room. 

Thankfully we were able to pack some vinyl wall scriptures in our suitcase to use so that our walls would not be so bare.
This one is a great one to see first thing in the morning!  The basket under it is a handwoven Haitian hamper that we bought on the side of the road in Port-au-Prince!

   For the life of me, I cannot figure out why this is posting sideways. No matter how many times I rotate it, it just does this. Sorry! This is an extra room. Scott mounted a tabletop to the side of the wall so that I would have a place to sew. I am very excited about this room. :)

Thank you for joining us on this home tour!  Y'all come back now, ya hear?

New Jersey Team

In our time here in Haiti we have had the opportunity to host several mission teams.  Most recently we had the opportunity to serve with an incredible group of guys (and gal) from New Jersey. They came to Haiti with the goals of constructing a house for a family that lived near the town of Ft. Jacques, building some cabinets at camp Laphare, and helping Kyrk and Deborah Baker move forward with BHM's project in Atrel. Little did they know that throughout the week a few of their guys (professional welders) would also fabricate two hand rails for steps at a local school.



The team that stayed here at the mission completed their house on Thursday and had the opportunity to dedicate it along with the family and the Haitian workers on Friday morning. It was an intentional reminder to the family, as well as to me, to allow their house to be a beacon of light situated on a hilltop for the Gospel of Jesus Christ. To allow them to proclaim the reason for the hope that have they have (Not just BC of a physical protection provided by the house, but because of the spiritual redemption they had found in Jesus.)

I also had the privilege to take Kilee along with me to the house dedication. We hope to intentionally teach our children about the vast poverty that most Haitians face, as well as, the vast riches that we have been blessed with. I asked Kilee if she wanted to go inside the new house and she was excited and said "Yes!" As we walked in she suddenly stopped. She looked around the two room concrete floor, concrete wall home approximately 15' x 15' and turned to me and said innocently, "It's really small." Kilee had already met the three daughters, mom, and grandmother that would be sharing this space and she correctly deduced that this house was close to the same size as her bedroom. I told Kilee that this new house was a huge blessing to the family and that because we build the house for this family we were able to tell to the family about Jesus. I also had the opportunity to show Kilee where the family had been living since the earthquake. Basically it was a 10' x 10' tin wall and tarp covered structure.

I am encouraged by the opportunity not just to build houses for people that desperately need them but with the intentionally that BHM insists on in communicating the Gospel and connecting the families with the local Bible believing churches.  Also, I am extremely grateful for teams like this one from New Jersey.  They demonstrated what it means to be a servant  all throughout the week and it was both convicting and encouraging.

Nou Ap Etidye Kreyol!

Translation: We are studying Creole!  And it seems to be going well.  We have a great teacher named Hassan and we are working hard to understand and speak this language if it's the last thing we do!

Scott and Hassan

Hassan is a medical student at Notre Dame University in Port-Au-Prince.  He is very excited about school and is working hard to complete his studies and serve his people in the medical field.  He is passionate about Jesus and spreading the gospel.  He recently went on an in-country mission trip with his church to spread the gospel to an unreached people group in one of Haiti's remote provinces.  They had a great deal of resistance from many of the people, but tens of people came to know Christ during the trip!  He teaches a "New Christians" class at the church as well.  We really are enjoying getting to know him and hearing his heart for Haiti.  And the dude puts together some pretty tough Creole exams for us bewildered Americans, too!  Whew!  We are glad he is working with us so diligently.  It helps us to push harder each day.

We think it's starting to pay off!  On Wednesday, Scott had a "speaking exam" with one of Hassan's friends.  Hassan invited his friend to meet Scott at the mission and speak only Creole with Scott for a solid hour while Hassan listened nearby!  Scott was speaking so proficiently that Hassan had to tell his friend to interrupt Scott from time to time and redirect conversation!  My friend Judy and I are having a speaking exam soon with Hassan's mother.  I am having opportunity to speak with several Haitian employees of the mission on a daily basis and they insist that my Creole is getting better "piti, piti" (little by little).  They have been very encouraging overall.  We are so thankful!

Mesi Seigneur!  Thank you Lord!

School Has Begun

For many students throughout the country of Haiti this week brings much excitement as school is beginning.  There were students from all over Haiti who, I'm sure, woke up early, put on their school uniform, gathered their backpack and school supplies and headed off excitedly to begin another year of school.  I'm sure that many students had similar experiences as I did on the first day of school -- a little excited and a little nervous about the new year and all that it may bring.  We can even hear the sounds of young students beginning school with songs from our front porch each morning.

However, for many students and families this week was yet another reminder of their lowly status here in Haiti.  For many of my new found friends around the mission, this week has been challenging.  Many have shared about the weighty responsibility they feel to send their children to school and the oppressive condemnation that accompanies their inability to provide this life-changing opportunity for their children.  Today especially was a challenging day. I sat and talked to one of my friends and in my broken Creole and in his broken english he began to explain to me that he was unable to send his children to school this year because he did not have the money to pay for their necessities (food, water, clothing etc) as well as their education.  He was broken and frustrated.  He said, "I can't sleep, I just can't figure out how to make it all work.  I just lie there and think."  It was heart breaking.  I sat there without words in English or Creole. 

Today I was confronted with what it means to have been blessed beyond measure.   Growing up in the United States, it never occured to me that it was a privilege to attend school, it was just something that we did and most often begrudingly.  As I began hearing about and studying Haiti it became obvious that the vast majority of the people of Haiti are very poor and that many people couldn't afford to provide food and clean water for their children, much less to send their children to school (aka. their very small chance at creating a life that is not marked by abject poverty), but today that knowledge became personal. Today that knowledge had a face and a family. 

Today I thanked God for the opportunity and privilege to have been born in the United States.  Something that I didn't work for or earn, but something that God, in his providence, granted through His precious grace.  I thanked God that he saw fit to bless me in incredible ways that so often I take for granted.

Most of all I thanked God for Jesus and for His death on the cross on my behalf.

Thank you Lord Jesus.

Scott

A Day In Our Haitian Life

Several of you all have asked what a typical day is like here at the mission in Haiti.  In an effort to capture what this looks like, we have compiled a typical day's schedule to share with you.  It's nothing super-awesome or earth shattering, but it is interesting in some ways.  Hope you enjoy!

5:00  Wake to the sound of roosters, goats, pigs and dogs.  Haitians are waking up now and starting their day.  We hear the voices of people that live nearby.  Try to go back to sleep.

6:30  Light is streaming in the window and K and J are waking up.  We start to get moving.  Do we have electricity?  If so, turn on shower because the water will be warm.  If not, wait 20 minutes and try again.

7:00 Breakfast together.  Hear a Haitian man belting out "How Great Thou Art" in Creole while he works down the hill.  He's pretty good!  Prepare list of needed items from the market: Lettuce, Mangoes, Potatoes, Eggs, and Tomatoes.  Wash and bleach dirty dishes.

8:00 Scott heads to work.  Takes list of market items to Haitian BHM driver to pick up on his daily route.  (So thankful for this since I have no driver's license here yet!)

8:30ish Start school with Kilee.  Try to keep Josiah occupied and entertaining himself for the first half of the morning.

9:30ish Reading time with kiddos.  We read several books in Kilee's curriculum and Josiah joins in.

9:45  Run down hill to see if laundry facility is being used.  It's available!  Run back up hill to gather laundry and start a load.

10:00 Snack time for kiddos.  Decide what to make for lunch.  After snack, do math and science work with the kiddos. 

11:00  The house is a wreck!  "Everybody pick up your stuff!"  After pick up time, go outside and play.  I run down the hill and throw laundry in the dryer.

12:00  Daddy walks home for lunch.  Eat together and then put Josiah down for a nap.  Kilee goes outside to play with the other MKs.  Wash and bleach dishes.

1:00 Our Creole Lesson with Hassan

2:00 Scott goes to his office to have another hour of Creole study with Hassan.  I go inside to do housework, read email if internet is working, or just sit down and loaf a minute before Josiah wakes up.  Go get laundry from dryer.

3:00  Josiah's up.  All kids go outside to play some more.

3:15 Oops!  Tropical rain shower is coming!  Kids come inside and watch a movie instead.

4:30  Pick up stuff around house.  Bust up fight between kiddos.  Start to cook dinner.  Bust up another fight between kiddos.  (It's just that time of day, you know mommas?)

6:00  Eat dinner together.  Skype family. 

7:00  It's dark.  Wash and bleach dishes.  Hang out as a family for a bit.

7:30 Get the kids ready for bed.  Get filtered water from kitchen for brushing teeth.  Read story, pray.  Good night, kiddos!

8:00  Pick up stuff around house.  Work on blog, answer emails, put laundry away.  "Josiah, get back in bed!"  Work on lesson plans for homeschool tomorrow.  Read, study and/or watch a DVD.

After 9 but sometime before 11 : Good night!

 

Kouri Deye

Last Thursday, the kids and I got to visit an exciting new project that Baptist Haiti Mission is using to strengthen the church and Haitian families.  It's called Kouri Deye.  My friend Chelsea Salter has headed it up here at BHM.  Here's a brief description of the ministry from her blog:

Kouri Deye, a Creole phrase that means Pursue, is an organization designed to assist women in the churches of Haiti as they pursue trades that will provide financial assistance for their families.

The name of this organization developed from Proverbs 31:27, "She looks well to the ways of her household and does not eat the bread of idleness."

Every story is different for the women who are a part of the work of Kouri Deye. However, the women share a love for the Lord and for their families.

The jewelry made by Kouri Deye is made of recycled cereal boxes. These beautiful pieces come in a variety of colors and each is unique in its own way.

 

The women come faithfullly to cut the cereal boxes and fashion the jewelry by hand.

 

Here we are in front of several hundred of the finished products ready for sale!

 

 

Josiah's Birthday

It's been about a week since we've been able to blog.  Things have been a flurry of activity around here!  One exciting thing that has happened in the last couple of weeks has been Josiah's 3rd birthday!  His day started with a big surprise!  Scott had decided that the boy likes to dig so much, he needed a sandbox.  Scott and a few Haitian workers cranked out a sandbox in no-time-flat and we gave it to Josiah as soon as he woke up.  I think he loves it!



That's one happy birthday boy!

 

Later on that night, we were surprised and blessed by our missionary staff with a surprise party for Josiah!  They had decorated the entire dining hall with balloons and banners.  After we ate pizza together, we ate a birthday cake I had made for Josiah.  Then, they even presented our little 3 year old man with a few gifts!  After Josiah opened presents, all of the children went outside where they swung at a pinata made by our friends' eldest daughter, Naomi.  They were studying Mexico in homeschool that week and Naomi decided that she wanted to do a pinata for her unit craft, just for Josiah's birthday!  So sweet.  We were completely humbled and thankful.  It was a fun time!

 



The kids' party table

Even in Haiti, we can still crank out a birthday cake.  Nothin' fancy, but it sure was tasty!

Blowing out 3 candles

A few of the partiers: from left (Ms. Elsa, Mr. Sandy, Ms. Connie, and Ms. Darlene)

Thomas train tracks!

 

Time for a Laugh: Top 10 Things We've Learned in the Past Three Weeks

So, in the spirit of trying to laugh in the midst of an intense season of adjustment for our family, we thought we would compile a top ten list.  This list contains a few of the most notable things we've learned since moving to Haiti.  Enjoy!

10. In a tropical climate, paint takes a really long time to dry.  Watch where you lean.

9. If you ask one of your Haitian friends to pick up some potatoes at the market for you, they will bring back a trash bag filled with 25 lbs. of tiny potatoes.

8. The local Baptist church uses a slightly stouter form of grape juice when serving the Lord's Supper.  Evidently, the way our eyes bugged out when we took the first sip was priceless!

7. Remember to use the high altitude setting when baking or you will not be pleased with the results.

6. Creole is a language full of exceptions and double meanings.  For instance, if you use the word "po" it could mean skin, flat, a pot, or an animal's shell.  It can make for some pretty interesting conversations!

5. Make sure your laundry has had time to finish in the dryer before 5:30 comes around -- the generator power will be AWOL until 8 the next morning!

4. Look up before venturing into the shower.  Showers are just never the same after an enormous waterbug falls on you while you're washing your hair.

3. If you see something you like in the local supermarket, you had better buy it right then.  They may not ever carry it again.  When it's gone, it's gone!

2. Haitian spiders can jump!

1. We often cook whole chickens in our crock pot and make two meals out of it.  Upon purchasing a Haitian fryer chicken, I discovered that the "giblet bag" is not a concept that has come to the nation of Haiti yet.  When you reach inside the cavity of a Haitian chicken, you will come out with a surprise!  See picture below.

I can't look at them!

Despite all of these opportunities to sarcastically laugh about the circumstances in which the Lord has placed us, we really love Haiti and trust that God has things to accomplish in us and through us! 

Mountains Beyond Mountains

Founder of Partners in Health (in the US) and Zanmi Lasante (in Haiti), Docter Paul Farmer has been serving the least of these in Haiti since the early 1980s. With his very modest upbringing, it is amazing how he persevered to become one of the foremost experts at treating TB in the world.  Kidder did an excellent job making Paul Farmer come alive to the reader by including great detail about his family's many misfortunes and many of his quirky sayings-his extreme use of abbreviations, his use of the word Comma (usually in place of an expletive)  etc. Overall, Farmer is a fascinating man who is pig-committed beyond belief to helping those who most desperately need it.   One of the most sobering thoughts for me throughout the book was when Paul stated that, “we are fighting the long defeat.”  He recognizes that ultimately that he is a treating a fraction of the people in Haiti who need the treatment, but he also correctly concludes that “he is winning some battles.” Unfortunately, while Farmer spends a great deal of time treating patients in Haiti and many other places around the world, he completely misses the fact that while someone's body can be healed for a time, ultimately they will still at some point die and without a relationship with Jesus Christ be separated from Him  for eternity.  I pray that I would be as motivated as Farmer to care for people the way that he does, because I do have a relationship with Christ and I understand that I'm called to make disciples of all nations.  While I enjoyed this book I do want to make mention of the frequent coarse language throughout the book.
Buy the book here: Amazon.com

From Amazon.com
Tracy Kidder is a winner of the Pulitzer Prize and the author of the bestsellers The Soul of a New Machine, House, Among Schoolchildren, and Home Town. He has been described by the Baltimore Sun as the “master of the non-fiction narrative.” This powerful and inspiring new book shows how one person can make a difference, as Kidder tells the true story of a gifted man who is in love with the world and has set out to do all he can to cure it.

At the center of Mountains Beyond Mountains stands Paul Farmer. Doctor, Harvard professor, renowned infectious-disease specialist, anthropologist, the recipient of a MacArthur “genius” grant, world-class Robin Hood, Farmer was brought up in a bus and on a boat, and in medical school found his life’s calling: to diagnose and cure infectious diseases and to bring the lifesaving tools of modern medicine to those who need them most. This magnificent book shows how radical change can be fostered in situations that seem insurmountable, and it also shows how a meaningful life can be created, as Farmer—brilliant, charismatic, charming, both a leader in international health and a doctor who finds time to make house calls in Boston and the mountains of Haiti—blasts through convention to get results.

Mountains Beyond Mountains takes us from Harvard to Haiti, Peru, Cuba, and Russia as Farmer changes minds and practices through his dedication to the philosophy that "the only real nation is humanity" - a philosophy that is embodied in the small public charity he founded, Partners In Health. He enlists the help of the Gates Foundation, George Soros, the U.N.’s World Health Organization, and others in his quest to cure the world. At the heart of this book is the example of a life based on hope, and on an understanding of the truth of the Haitian proverb “Beyond mountains there are mountains”: as you solve one problem, another problem presents itself, and so you go on and try to solve that one too.

“Mountains Beyond Mountains unfolds with the force of a gathering revelation,” says Annie Dillard, and Jonathan Harr says, “[Farmer] wants to change the world. Certainly this luminous and powerful book will change the way you see it.”

Bruchko

Bruce Olson's radical obedience to God's call on his life to go to minister to the Otilone Indian tribe was both convicting and encouraging.  Bruce spends a significant amount of time explaining how he finally began to minister to this tribe and I think he captured a truth that I needed to be reminded of-I should not judge whether or not God is calling me to do something if all of the "doors are opening" or not, because the fact is many times God calls us to do things that are very difficult and often times do not seem to make sense.  While reading this book we were in the thick of trying to get moved to Haiti, but there was one major obstacle standing in the way-selling our house.  We were convinced that we were supposed to move to Haiti but we were both concerned by how we would pay for and/or take care of a house from a plane ride away.  Strangely enough, our house did not sell. It still isn't sold! But we are trusting the Lord for that and in the meantime he provided someone to rent our house.  Praise the Lord!

 
Buy this book at Amazon.com

Bruce Olson, born in Minnesota and now a citizen of Colombia, is a linguist and graduate of sociology from a South American university. He has won the friendship of four Colombian presidents and appeared before the United Nations. His first book, Bruchko, has sold more than 300,000 copies worldwide. He lives in the jungle on the border of Colombia and Venezuela.

What happens when a nineteen-year-old boy leaves home and heads into the jungles to evangelize a murderous tribe of South American Indians? For Bruce Olson, it meant capture, disease, terror, loneliness, and torture. But what he discovered by trial and error has revolutionized then world of missions.
Bruchko, which has sold more than 300,000 copies worldwide, has been called “more fantastic and harrowing than anything Hollywood could concoct.” Living with the Motilone Indians since 1961, Olson has won the friendship of four presidents of Colombia and has made appearances before the United Nations because of his efforts. Bruchko includes the story of his 1988 kidnapping by communist guerrillas and the nine months of captivity that followed. This revised version of Olson’s story will amaze you and remind you that simple faith in Christ can make anything possible. “[Bruchko is] an all-time missionary classic. Bruce Olson is a modern missionary hero who has modeled for us in our time the reaching of the unreached tribes.” —Loren Cunningham Co-founder, Youth With A Mission

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In Pictures: A Sunny Day in Fermathe, Haiti

Looking down the mountain from our front porch.  Port-au-Prince is at the bottom of the mountain.
 

Josiah and his new buddy!

The whole missionary kid gang.

Kilee and an MK friend.

The missionary kids' playhouse!  It's so cute. :)

Our home sweet Haiti home!  We live on the bottom floor.

Hidden in the Rubble: A Haitian Pilgrimage to Compassion and Resurrection - Gerry Straub

From Gerry Straub's Blog
http://gerrystraub.wordpress.com/books/

Orbis Books has published Mr. Straub’s book, Hidden in the Rubble: A Haitian Pilgrimage to Compassion and Resurrection. Mr. Straub was in Port-au-Prince just weeks before the earthquake, and returned just days after the earthquake. The experience had a profound and lasting impact on his life. During Holy Week of 2010, Mr. Straub returned to Haiti for a third time in order to try to better understand widespread death and the massive destruction in the context of the death and resurrection of Christ, and that week became, for him, the heart and soul of the book.

Buy this book from Amazon.com

From Amazon.com
In January 2010 a devastating earthquake struck the impoverished island of Haiti, killing over 100,000 people and causing unimaginable suffering. But even before the earthquake, as the photos and reflections in this book make clear, Haiti was already a disaster zone. Filmmaker Gerry Straub was there weeks before the earthquake, and he returned soon after, to continue his project: to capture in words and images the reality of Haiti s poor both their sufferings and their spirit and to find in this reality the face of God.

Straub takes us into Cité Soleil, one of the most wretched slums on earth, where kids play amidst the stench of open sewers, where people eat pies made of clay. After the earthquake, he follows exhausted doctors and aid workers working desperately to relieve the suffering. Hidden in the Rubble opens a window on a scene of desperate crisis, but it is ultimately a powerful and haunting challenge to enter into compassionate solidarity with the poor at our doorstep.

Gerard Thomas Straub, an award-winning author, photographer, and filmmaker, is founder and president of the San Damiano Foundation. After leaving behind a lucrative career producing daytime television, he chose to document the plight of poor people around the world. His films include When Did I see You Hungry? and his books include Sun and Moon over Assisi and Thoughts of a Blind Beggar.

First Day of Kindergarten

We had not intended to start school this soon because we wanted to spend some relaxed time getting adjusted to life in Haiti.  However, the kids (and their mama) needed some structure to our days so that we would have a little bit of normalcy amid the abnormal.  So, since Haiti does not celebrate Labor Day and everyone was going about their normal daily business, we decided to start school this past Monday!  The night before, Kilee picked out her outfit and made sure all of her crayons and pencils were where they should be.  She is growing up so fast!!

Kilee Anne - 1st Day of Kindergarten

Haiti: The Tumultuous History-From Pearl of the Caribbean to Broken Nation

 This book was an incredible overview from the revolution and creation of Haiti to its current state.  Girard does not hold back in placing the blame for Haiti's current situation squarely on the backs of Haiti's failed governmental leadership.  He spends much time detailing also how the US "invasion" of Haiti was less than beneficial.  I felt like this was a great introduction to the history of Haiti and I was shocked to hear in detail about the brutality of prior dictators.  Also, I was shocked to read about how Haiti was incredibly prosperous early in its history.  I would definitely recommend this book for anyone wanting to gain a good understanding of the history of Haiti and how it effects the current culture of Haiti today.

Buy this book at Amazon.com

From Amazon.com
Why has Haiti been plagued by so many woes? Why have multiple U.S. efforts to create a stable democracy in Haiti failed so spectacularly? Philippe Girard answers these and other questions, examining how colonialism and slavery have left a legacy of racial tension, both within Haiti and internationally; Haitians remain deeply suspicious of white foriegners' motives, many of whom doubt Hatians' ability to govern themselves. He also examines how Haiti's current political instability is merely a continuation of political strife that began during the War of Independence (1791-1804). Finally, Girard explores poverty's devastating impact on contemporary Haiti and argues that Haitians--particularly home-grown dictators--bear a big share of the responsibility for their nation's troubles.

Praise for Clinton in Haiti by Philippe Girard:

"An engaging and wonderfully readable account of the circumstances leading up to the U.S. invasion of Haiti in 1994, and its restoration of Jean-Bertrand Aristide as Haitian president."--Elizabeth Abbott, Trinity College, University of Toronto

"This is an extraordinarily well written account that places Clinton's Haitian foreign policy in historical perspective. Linguistic wit and analytical sophistication prevail as Girard skillfully weaves readers through the complexities and tragedy of Haiti's history and the highly touted, but unsuccessful aftermath of the 1994 "invasion" by U.S. troops to restore Aristide and democracy to this Caribbean republic. Until Clinton administration classified documents become available this will remain the standard account and an object lesson for all future American cut-and-run attempts at peace-keeping and nation-building."--Joan Hoff, Montana State University, Bozeman

"Written by an outstanding young French scholar of recent American history, this examination of U.S. intervention in Haiti under Bill Clinton probes the motivations behind an unnecessary military action and explains the ways in which objective failure is translated into political success. The author's finely-calibrated sense of irony makes his work as entertaining as it is instructive."--Alonzo L. Hamby, Ohio University, and author of For the Survival of Democracy: Franklin Roosevelt and the World Crisis of the 1930s

About the Author

Philippe Girard is an Assistant Professor of Caribbean History, McNeese State University of Louisiana.

A Little Update

Well, it hardly seems possible that today wraps up our first week in-country, but it's true nonetheless.  To sum up, we have had a busy, fun-filled, humbling, blessed time thus far. 

Headed off to church

This past Sunday, we attended church in Thomassin just down the mountain from the mission.  Scott and I had been to this church before, but it was a first for the kids.  They loved it, although it did get to be a little bit long for them.  I am going to attend children's church with them next week.  It's the same format as "grown-up" church -- no crafts, games or activities.  Just a little more kid-oriented.  I think I will benefit from going since they will be speaking slower and using smaller words!  After church, we came home and I ran several loads of laundry in our facility down the hill from our house.  Our sweet friend Debra mixed up a batch of her homemade laundry detergent for us to try and it works great!  I will be hopping on the "make your own laundry detergent" bandwagon next, I think.  Then, we hung out with our new friends Roger and Judy who happen to live upstairs.  We had some good laughs!  They are a ton of fun.

A tea party on the porch
with a friend

Josiah doing what he loves!

Monday and Tuesday were a flurry of activity.  Let me say, the dish situation takes a bit of getting used to.  I think I spend about 1 and 1/2 hours a day at the kitchen sink washing our dishes.  I scrub them in the cold soapy water from the cistern first, and then I rinse them in bleach water to make sure they are truly clean.  Since a lot of the modern conveniences like a microwave, ready-made dinners, etc. are not available, we use a TON of dishes making the food we eat.  Just something else to get used to, I guess!  The kids have really enjoyed hanging out with the other children on the mission and exploring everything.  It has been so good for them. We also officiallly started our in-country language study on Monday.  Our friend from church, Hassan, met with us to tutor us.  We will be meeting 4 days a week to study Creole! Judy (our upstairs neighbor), Scott and I will meet for an hour each time, and then Scott will continue for an additional hour.  It is intense but we want so badly to be able to communicate with the people.

Judy, Chelsea and I
in the truck

Then today, I got to get off the mission campus and venture down into Port-au-Prince with the ladies!  We had some house needs that we needed to shop for: some bulk groceries, garbage can, dish drainer, etc.  We started out at 9:00am.  Our driver Rico picked us up at Debra's house and we ventured down the mountain.  Traffic was pretty awful but we reached "MEGAMART" (awesome-sounding place, huh?) around 10:30.  If I had to compare it to something, it's like a Sam's Club except men follow you everywhere to try and help you and different things are available depending on when you come to shop.  It was pretty impressive, though!  I didn't think there would be a place like Megamart in Haiti!  After that, we went to the coolest place for lunch -- Eppy's.  It was huge!  They sold fast food items, deli food, but then they had a huge bakery full of delicious breads and desserts.  Unreal.  All four of us ate for $12.  Then, we headed off to a Home Store to see if we could find a few more items on the list.  By the time we made it back to the mission, it was nearly 3:00!

From left: Chelsea, Debra, Judy and Me
At Eppy's for lunch

Scott plans to take a trip into Port-au-Prince to help Roger finish one of his projects in the city on Friday.  His main focus right now is to learn Creole, however, and he is spending multiple hours a day studying.  I am trying to keep up as well, but most of my time is spent with the kiddos and. . .doing dishes.  Ha!  Not just dishes, but other household things.

Gorgeous mountain views!

The house is coming along nicely and we will upload photos soon.  Things are coming together so quickly on the housing end of things that we may be able to start homeschool as soon as next week!  We will see.  Our main focus is to settle in and acclamate to the culture.  We know that you are praying for us and we are so grateful.  We love you all!



Bonswa, tout moun!  Goodnight, everyone!

Home Sweet Haiti!

Bonjou! 

At the Nashville airport at 3am.

Still at the Nashville airport
 after 2 cancelled flights.

This is our first post from Haiti!  We have been in country since Wednesday and have been primarily focusing on getting settled.  Honestly, getting here was the hard part!  We experienced three canceled flights while in various airports, all for maintenance issues and so our quick half-day trip to Haiti was extended to nearly two days.  The kids were troopers, though.  I think the first day, we were all awake for about 22 hours!  Our first two cancelled flights were in Nashville.  Then, Scott found a flight to Washington DC that we could connect and fly on to Miami. We had an overnight stay in Miami since it was too late to catch the Haiti flight on Tuesday, so the airline put us up in the Miami airport hotel.  We walked up to our room only to find that the room number they had given us was actually a broom closet!  Not a very nice surprise after you’ve been awake for 22 hours.  We sorted that issue out , slept 4 hours, and boarded our flight to Haiti, it got cancelled, we deplaned and then boarded a different plane to Haiti.  As we started to see the coastland of Haiti out our plane windows, Kilee said "Home Sweet Haiti!"  Love that girl.  When we arrived, our friend Trey was there waiting for us.  It was so good to see a familiar face! 

Happy to finally
 be on a plane!

Day One:  Once we arrived at the mission, we found out that some of the items from our container had arrived, so we did some unloading and tried to get settled down in the house for the night.  Our fellow missionaries had made things so welcoming for us!  As soon as we walked in the house we found a welcome sign made by our friends’ kids, fresh-picked flowers, all of our previously-sent items unpacked and arranged, our beds were made, basic groceries were in the cabinets, and lunch was in the oven.  Talk about being spoiled from the beginning!  Before we ate dinner together at the dining hall, the kids played with the Bakers’ kids for awhile and held the bunnies at the mission petting zoo.  After dinner, we walked back home and fell into bed.  We crashed!

At the airport in Haiti.  Glad to finally be here!

Day Two: We awoke to the sound of massive amounts of dogs barking, goats whining and roosters crowing.  It was a pretty day with lots of sun!  Oh, and the biggest surprise of all?  We have a hot shower!  If we wait until after the generator comes on, the tiny water heater kicks on, and even though the water just falls out like it’s being poured out of a bottle, it is GLORIOUS!  We began the day cleaning items that had come off of our container.  It turned out that some of our furniture had gotten a little moldy during its overseas voyage, so we moved it outside in the sun and cleaned it from top to bottom and left it out to bake.  Then, that afternoon our sweet friend and next door neighbor Chelsea offered to watch the kiddos at her house while her husband Trey took Scott and I to the supermarket in Petion-ville.  We jumped at the chance to go and rode down the mountain.  The supermarket was surprisingly nice, although it does cater to the few wealthy in Haiti as well as to the foreigners.  We found anything and everything you could find in a Kroger store, although the prices were nearly double what we usually pay in the States.  We went home, unloaded groceries, played with the kids and went to bed. 

We didn't get this huge avocado
at the supermarket.  They grow
 on the mission property!

Day Three: So, evidently a tropical storm was on the way today.  Scott made a quick trip to Camp LaPhare (a BHM camp) to pick up some things and then hurried back before the winds started to blow.  Tropical Storm Isaac began to pick up speed by midday and by early evening the palm trees were swaying hard in the breeze!  Friday is pizza night in the dining hall and so we trekked down in the blowing rain to eat pizza and fried plantains and drink Coke.  Usually everyone gets together after supper on Friday nights to play games together, but Scott had a bad headache.  I paid a visit to Dr. Bernard, the chief physician/surgeon at the BHM hospital because I had a huge red swollen bite on my leg.  He gave me some anti-inflammatory drugs and I offered to pay for them.  He shook his hand in the air and said, “No, no.  You are home.”  So sweet.  The meds helped quite a bit.  The winds blew all through the night and the rain poured down.  We got 18 inches of rain overnight thanks to Tropical Storm Isaac.

A home-cooked meal
helped us to feel settled.

Today: We woke up to the wind still blowing, but the rain had tapered off.  We did a LOT of unpacking today.  The kids were great sports and helped along the way.  By midday, the sun was starting to peek through the clouds.  BHM incurred little to no damage here on property, although Scott donned his rain gear and helped a couple of the guys cut up a tree that had fallen.  We watched an afternoon movie and continued our unpacking.  Then, we cooked some familiar food for dinner.  We had found whole fryer chickens at the supermarket and some of the Haitian BHM employees grabbed some potatoes for us from a street vendor.  Dinner ended up being Crock Pot whole chicken (shout out to Paula Evans for that recipe!), green beans and mashed potatoes.  Then we had cut up pineapple for dessert.  YUM!  We had a good Kentucky dinner tonight!

Tomorrow, we will be attending a local church!  More news to come.

Thanks for bearing with us for this long post!  We wanted to catch everyone up on what was happening.  Our future posts will be shorter and more frequent once we get our internet set up here in our house.  We love you all!  Thank you so much for your prayers, your support and your encouragement along the way.  You have no idea how much it means to us.