Saturday - January 5, 2013
We leave Haiti today. We awoke early for breakfast because the new team wanted to begin demolition that morning. We all finalized our packing and just hung around playing some games and making sure we hadn't forgotten anything. Jim, Debbie, and Donna wanted to meet with us one last time before we left since they didn't get to sit in our our God moments from the evening before. They thanked us for coming and asked us to share with them what we were taking away from the week (I'll try to summarize what I took away from the week in another post). Donna started crying and got all of us going - thanks Donna. :) I think it was bittersweet for all of us. I really wish it had been a 2 week trip. We packed up the van and Jim took us to the airport.
The rest of the day was just traveling. We arrived home at 11pm. Tired, but happy to see Randy, Erin, and Stephen . . . and, of course, Coconut! Hims was waiting in the car!!
Thank you to everyone who helped support this trip both financially and prayerfully. It was a life changing trip, and as mentioned above, I will dedicate another post to what I took away from my experience!
Friday, January 25, 2013
Sunday, January 20, 2013
Haiti - Day 7
Friday - January 4, 2013
Today we went back to Dorothy's and took most of the team. We girls loved on the children a whole lot today, and the guys did some minor maintenance items for Dorothy including hanging some pictures and organizing a bookshelf. I helped Dorothy sort through a box of items that had been donated; i.e crayons, pencils, etc. Then I began sorting through a box of clothing but did not have time to finish that for her, unfortunately. Leaving today was really hard for Allyson. Her last 2 trips to Haiti had been spent 24/7 with these kids, and although this was a great trip for her, she felt like she hadn't gotten her "fill" of them. Not to mention her strong call to be there full-time - there as in Haiti, not necessarily at Dorothy's.
There was another team coming in tonight that would be overlapping us. They were a construction group from an organization called "Faith in Action". Their week was going to be speny gutting and remodeling Jim and Debbie's kitchen! I can't remember if I mentioned this before, but Allyson has an Interior Design degree. She helped Debbie measure and sketch out Debbie's vision of the kitchen. She then put it into Sketch Up (sp?) and had a 3D rendering for the construction team when they arrived. I think this made things a lot easier for them! Debbie said she had no idea Allyson could do this and that only God could orchestrate her being there the week prior to the construction team arriving! Very cool! Because the construction was going to begin the next day, we had to move everything out of the kitchen. So our afternoon consisted of moving out everything, yet keeping it organized in some fashion as Debbie and Donna were going to need to get to everything while displaced. After that we helped Donna get dinner going, as she was feeding 30 people that night; our team, the new team, plus some missionaries traveling to Gonaives that needed a place to sleep that night! ALL without anything in the kitchen! Fun. It really was fun! I enjoyed doing that!! Here are pictures of the kitchen before (haven't seen the after yet):
Our "God Moments" time with our team tonight was a very special time as we all briefly shared what the week had meant to us. There were a lot of tears and love poured out on that balcony as we were all changed this week. I went to bed knowing we'd be heading back to the US the next day. It was hard to go to sleep as I was beginning to process all that I had experienced, and how I was going to put to use what I had learned. Going back through my journal so that I could write these posts has kept it all alive and front and center for me and has also allowed me to continue processing it all.
Look for one more day's post where I'll attempt to summarize it all in one place.
Today we went back to Dorothy's and took most of the team. We girls loved on the children a whole lot today, and the guys did some minor maintenance items for Dorothy including hanging some pictures and organizing a bookshelf. I helped Dorothy sort through a box of items that had been donated; i.e crayons, pencils, etc. Then I began sorting through a box of clothing but did not have time to finish that for her, unfortunately. Leaving today was really hard for Allyson. Her last 2 trips to Haiti had been spent 24/7 with these kids, and although this was a great trip for her, she felt like she hadn't gotten her "fill" of them. Not to mention her strong call to be there full-time - there as in Haiti, not necessarily at Dorothy's.
There was another team coming in tonight that would be overlapping us. They were a construction group from an organization called "Faith in Action". Their week was going to be speny gutting and remodeling Jim and Debbie's kitchen! I can't remember if I mentioned this before, but Allyson has an Interior Design degree. She helped Debbie measure and sketch out Debbie's vision of the kitchen. She then put it into Sketch Up (sp?) and had a 3D rendering for the construction team when they arrived. I think this made things a lot easier for them! Debbie said she had no idea Allyson could do this and that only God could orchestrate her being there the week prior to the construction team arriving! Very cool! Because the construction was going to begin the next day, we had to move everything out of the kitchen. So our afternoon consisted of moving out everything, yet keeping it organized in some fashion as Debbie and Donna were going to need to get to everything while displaced. After that we helped Donna get dinner going, as she was feeding 30 people that night; our team, the new team, plus some missionaries traveling to Gonaives that needed a place to sleep that night! ALL without anything in the kitchen! Fun. It really was fun! I enjoyed doing that!! Here are pictures of the kitchen before (haven't seen the after yet):
Our "God Moments" time with our team tonight was a very special time as we all briefly shared what the week had meant to us. There were a lot of tears and love poured out on that balcony as we were all changed this week. I went to bed knowing we'd be heading back to the US the next day. It was hard to go to sleep as I was beginning to process all that I had experienced, and how I was going to put to use what I had learned. Going back through my journal so that I could write these posts has kept it all alive and front and center for me and has also allowed me to continue processing it all.
Look for one more day's post where I'll attempt to summarize it all in one place.
Saturday, January 19, 2013
Haiti - Day 6
Thursday - January 3, 2013
Today was our day of "rest and relaxation". We went to the beach, Wahoo Bay. It was about 2 hours away. While riding through a very congested town, Allyson told us about these women who sell this Peanut Brittle. We spotted some, so Jim pulled over and they came up to the van. We bought 6 bags so everyone in the van could have some. It was SO good. Next time I'm in Haiti, I'll try to buy enough to bring back - - I wonder if I can get that through customs?
We finally got to a place in Haiti where the streets had lines painted on them and road signs! I wish I could have taken pictures of all the different ones I saw, but the Pedestrian Crossing sign was so cute I had to have it. This was actually taken on our way back from the beach, and we had to get Jim to pull over and almost stop in order to get the picture - HA HA! Thanks Jim!
Isn't it cute? It looks like little children!
Anyway, at Wahoo Bay, we just had a wonderful day in the sun. It's a resort with a hotel, but we just paid $15 for the day. We "claimed" our spot:
and we did things like this:
and this
and this:
and this:
and this:
I forgot to mention, that the only "bad" thing that happened was that Pastor Dan got stung by a jellyfish while jumping off a small cliff into water that was not roped off. It was minor, and he was OK. We'd just been talking about the fact that they say if you pee on a sting like that it will take the pain away, so we told Dan he should go pee on his arm and he'd be fine!! He declined. LOL
On the way home Ken wanted to stop and take a picture of a building he'd seen on the way to the beach, so Jim pulls over so Ken could jump out and take this picture. The funny thing was that there was a Haitian man sitting on the wall Ken is standing on, and when Ken jumped out the the van, trying to be friendly, he says "BONSWAY!" really loud. It is supposed to be "Bonswa" - we laughed and laughed. We think the Haitian man was scared when this "blanc" jumped out of a van yelling "Bonsway!", so he moved down the wall and let Ken have his space. We laughed all the way back to Jim's.
That night after showering and putting on clean clothes, Jim, Debbie, and Donna took us to a pizza restaurant. I think they said it was actually a hotel that had the open air pizza restaurant. We ordered 3 pepperoni pizzas and 2 deluxe pizzas and only had 2 slices of pizza left. It was SO good!! There was a swimming pool right in the middle of the restaurant and Debbie said you could pay like $5 and just come swimming there. It was nice to see such a nice pool not at a resort. I told Donna, I could picture what their pool will be like someday!
It was a wonderful day just to relax and enjoy the beautiful side of Haiti. I kept saying "This is crazy. It's Jan. 3rd, and I'm laying on the beach in 90+ weather!" It was wonderful!!! It turned out to be a great day for Jim and Debbie and Donna as well. None of them had seen that part of Haiti before, and it did them good to sit and relax instead of working from dawn to dusk for everyone else. Jim and Debbie said they actually had over an hour just standing in the ocean and talking to one another. They said they hadn't really been able to do that since they got to Haiti and began working on their House of Hope. I think it did Donna a lot of good too, to just sit with her feet in the water and relax. I'm really glad we were able to go for ourselves, but to also be able to give them that time of relaxation - even it if was just for one day. WE LOVE YOU GUYS!!
Today was our day of "rest and relaxation". We went to the beach, Wahoo Bay. It was about 2 hours away. While riding through a very congested town, Allyson told us about these women who sell this Peanut Brittle. We spotted some, so Jim pulled over and they came up to the van. We bought 6 bags so everyone in the van could have some. It was SO good. Next time I'm in Haiti, I'll try to buy enough to bring back - - I wonder if I can get that through customs?
We finally got to a place in Haiti where the streets had lines painted on them and road signs! I wish I could have taken pictures of all the different ones I saw, but the Pedestrian Crossing sign was so cute I had to have it. This was actually taken on our way back from the beach, and we had to get Jim to pull over and almost stop in order to get the picture - HA HA! Thanks Jim!
Isn't it cute? It looks like little children!
Anyway, at Wahoo Bay, we just had a wonderful day in the sun. It's a resort with a hotel, but we just paid $15 for the day. We "claimed" our spot:
and we did things like this:
 |
| Swim in the ocean |
and this
 |
| Take beautiful pictures |
and this:
 |
| Amanda went snorkeling |
and this:
 |
| Johno (sp?) took a little photo shoot of himself (about 7 pictures) with Amanda's phone while she was snorkeling! LOL |
and this:
 |
| Swam in the salt water pool - the water was really cold. |
I forgot to mention, that the only "bad" thing that happened was that Pastor Dan got stung by a jellyfish while jumping off a small cliff into water that was not roped off. It was minor, and he was OK. We'd just been talking about the fact that they say if you pee on a sting like that it will take the pain away, so we told Dan he should go pee on his arm and he'd be fine!! He declined. LOL
On the way home Ken wanted to stop and take a picture of a building he'd seen on the way to the beach, so Jim pulls over so Ken could jump out and take this picture. The funny thing was that there was a Haitian man sitting on the wall Ken is standing on, and when Ken jumped out the the van, trying to be friendly, he says "BONSWAY!" really loud. It is supposed to be "Bonswa" - we laughed and laughed. We think the Haitian man was scared when this "blanc" jumped out of a van yelling "Bonsway!", so he moved down the wall and let Ken have his space. We laughed all the way back to Jim's.
That night after showering and putting on clean clothes, Jim, Debbie, and Donna took us to a pizza restaurant. I think they said it was actually a hotel that had the open air pizza restaurant. We ordered 3 pepperoni pizzas and 2 deluxe pizzas and only had 2 slices of pizza left. It was SO good!! There was a swimming pool right in the middle of the restaurant and Debbie said you could pay like $5 and just come swimming there. It was nice to see such a nice pool not at a resort. I told Donna, I could picture what their pool will be like someday!
 |
| Donna and Danny |
 |
| Pool at the restaurant |
It was a wonderful day just to relax and enjoy the beautiful side of Haiti. I kept saying "This is crazy. It's Jan. 3rd, and I'm laying on the beach in 90+ weather!" It was wonderful!!! It turned out to be a great day for Jim and Debbie and Donna as well. None of them had seen that part of Haiti before, and it did them good to sit and relax instead of working from dawn to dusk for everyone else. Jim and Debbie said they actually had over an hour just standing in the ocean and talking to one another. They said they hadn't really been able to do that since they got to Haiti and began working on their House of Hope. I think it did Donna a lot of good too, to just sit with her feet in the water and relax. I'm really glad we were able to go for ourselves, but to also be able to give them that time of relaxation - even it if was just for one day. WE LOVE YOU GUYS!!
Wednesday, January 16, 2013
Haiti - Day 5
Wednesday - January 2, 2013
This was one of the most emotionally, humbling, joyous days of my trip.
We began the day by walking to Sherrie's school and orphanage. She gave us a tour of her place and it was spectacular to see how much has been done since 2009. Allyson's first trip to Haiti in 2009 was to work on getting Sherri's school built. Here's a picture from 2009:
And here's a picture from our trip:
Big difference, huh?
Sherrie shared her testimony of how God brought her to Haiti. There was a lot in that testimony that Allyson needed to hear. I wanted to look at her and say, "Oh my gosh, that's you!" but I was close to tears and figured she was too, so I didn't even look her way.
After that Sherri took us for a walk through the ravine - the poorest area of Port Au Prince. Words cannot describe the conditions. I'm posting a few pictures here, but even the pictures cannot truly share what walking through this was like:
After the ravine, Jim stopped by Elizabeth's house. Elizabeth is an elderly woman who lives between the ravine and Jim's house who is dying of cancer. He wanted to see if she felt like us coming in and singing to her. She did, so we all packed into her little one room cement home and sang "Amazing Grace" and "How Great Thou Art" to her and then we prayed for her. Jim asked if any of us wanted to pray for her and no one spoke up. It wasn't because we didn't want to, it's because we couldn't speak without pure sobbing.
It was so hot. I actually had sweat dripping off my face, and I don't sweat like that, but I wouldn't change the experience of this day for anything - AND - I'd go do it again tomorrow!
In the afternoon we went to Pastor Ceynor's orphanage and this is where the joyous part of the day came in. The kids sang and danced for us, and then little Benji (sp?) prayed over each one of us. And he took his praying seriously! A good lesson for us all. Pastor Ceynor said he was praying for wisdom and understanding for Pastor Randall. It sounded like he was praying the same thing over all of us, but I can't be sure.
Pastor Ceynor shared his testimony with us also. Voodoo is very prevalent in Haiti. Pastor Ceynor came from a Voodoo background, but his parents were introduced to Christ. His mother's faith in Christ remained strong even when his father's faith wavered. Pastor Ceynor decided early on that he wanted Christ! At the age of 16 God called him to be an evangelist and he hasn't stopped since! I know there is evil everywhere, and I know there are demons everywhere, but we here in the US do not recognize demons like the Haitians do. We would do well to remember they are just as powerful here.
Our day is not over yet!! Whew! After lunch and a nap, we went to the Phillipine UN embassy place in Haiti. A new group of military folks had just gotten to Haiti for a 6 - 9 month stay. We were able to lead a worship service for them. I sang again and Pastor Dan preached. The funny thing was that all the men wanted a picture with all of the ladies from our group. They let Pastor Dan in since he preached! Ha! Then we went outside and the girls wanted their picture taken, then one by one the Phillipino men wanted to jump into their picture. It was hilarious!
Who knows where these pictures will show up!
On the way to the UN location, a mother with her child stopped the van to ask Jim for medical assistance for her child. Jim told her her would contact someone and get a doctor to her. The child was far too sick for Jim and Debbie to help. Jim said she had worms.
We're waiting for an update about the outcome of this situation.
The night got better, as two Haitian ladies cooked us a traditional Haitian meal. We thought we were going to have goat, but there wasn't enough in the freezer, so we got beef. But it wasn't like anything I'd eaten before. It was really good!! We also had beet potato salad, pickley (sp?), rice, fried plantain . . . It was DELICIOUS!!! I liked it all!!
The challenge I took away from today is this: Seeing what I've seen and knowing what I now know, what am I going to do with it now that I'm back home?
- I'm challenged to grow in my faith and to know my Jesus better.
- I'm challenged to help Allyson in every way I can to get to Haiti.
- I'm challenged to love people more and to be intentional about it. This one is going to be more difficult for me. I'm shy, and I shy away from talking to people I don't know. I will go to the ATM at the bank because I don't have to deal with a person. I need to be intentional about going through the same check out line in the grocery store and getting to know the cashier. I need to be intentional about going into the bank and get to know the tellers. Whew! I have to psych my self up to do these kinds of things - you all just don't know! But I'm definitely challenged and will begin with baby steps. I'll get more sure on my feet, I know.
This was one of the most emotionally, humbling, joyous days of my trip.
We began the day by walking to Sherrie's school and orphanage. She gave us a tour of her place and it was spectacular to see how much has been done since 2009. Allyson's first trip to Haiti in 2009 was to work on getting Sherri's school built. Here's a picture from 2009:
And here's a picture from our trip:
Big difference, huh?
Sherrie shared her testimony of how God brought her to Haiti. There was a lot in that testimony that Allyson needed to hear. I wanted to look at her and say, "Oh my gosh, that's you!" but I was close to tears and figured she was too, so I didn't even look her way.
After that Sherri took us for a walk through the ravine - the poorest area of Port Au Prince. Words cannot describe the conditions. I'm posting a few pictures here, but even the pictures cannot truly share what walking through this was like:
After the ravine, Jim stopped by Elizabeth's house. Elizabeth is an elderly woman who lives between the ravine and Jim's house who is dying of cancer. He wanted to see if she felt like us coming in and singing to her. She did, so we all packed into her little one room cement home and sang "Amazing Grace" and "How Great Thou Art" to her and then we prayed for her. Jim asked if any of us wanted to pray for her and no one spoke up. It wasn't because we didn't want to, it's because we couldn't speak without pure sobbing.
It was so hot. I actually had sweat dripping off my face, and I don't sweat like that, but I wouldn't change the experience of this day for anything - AND - I'd go do it again tomorrow!
In the afternoon we went to Pastor Ceynor's orphanage and this is where the joyous part of the day came in. The kids sang and danced for us, and then little Benji (sp?) prayed over each one of us. And he took his praying seriously! A good lesson for us all. Pastor Ceynor said he was praying for wisdom and understanding for Pastor Randall. It sounded like he was praying the same thing over all of us, but I can't be sure.
Pastor Ceynor shared his testimony with us also. Voodoo is very prevalent in Haiti. Pastor Ceynor came from a Voodoo background, but his parents were introduced to Christ. His mother's faith in Christ remained strong even when his father's faith wavered. Pastor Ceynor decided early on that he wanted Christ! At the age of 16 God called him to be an evangelist and he hasn't stopped since! I know there is evil everywhere, and I know there are demons everywhere, but we here in the US do not recognize demons like the Haitians do. We would do well to remember they are just as powerful here.
Our day is not over yet!! Whew! After lunch and a nap, we went to the Phillipine UN embassy place in Haiti. A new group of military folks had just gotten to Haiti for a 6 - 9 month stay. We were able to lead a worship service for them. I sang again and Pastor Dan preached. The funny thing was that all the men wanted a picture with all of the ladies from our group. They let Pastor Dan in since he preached! Ha! Then we went outside and the girls wanted their picture taken, then one by one the Phillipino men wanted to jump into their picture. It was hilarious!
Who knows where these pictures will show up!
On the way to the UN location, a mother with her child stopped the van to ask Jim for medical assistance for her child. Jim told her her would contact someone and get a doctor to her. The child was far too sick for Jim and Debbie to help. Jim said she had worms.
We're waiting for an update about the outcome of this situation.
The night got better, as two Haitian ladies cooked us a traditional Haitian meal. We thought we were going to have goat, but there wasn't enough in the freezer, so we got beef. But it wasn't like anything I'd eaten before. It was really good!! We also had beet potato salad, pickley (sp?), rice, fried plantain . . . It was DELICIOUS!!! I liked it all!!
The challenge I took away from today is this: Seeing what I've seen and knowing what I now know, what am I going to do with it now that I'm back home?
- I'm challenged to grow in my faith and to know my Jesus better.
- I'm challenged to help Allyson in every way I can to get to Haiti.
- I'm challenged to love people more and to be intentional about it. This one is going to be more difficult for me. I'm shy, and I shy away from talking to people I don't know. I will go to the ATM at the bank because I don't have to deal with a person. I need to be intentional about going through the same check out line in the grocery store and getting to know the cashier. I need to be intentional about going into the bank and get to know the tellers. Whew! I have to psych my self up to do these kinds of things - you all just don't know! But I'm definitely challenged and will begin with baby steps. I'll get more sure on my feet, I know.
Saturday, January 12, 2013
Haiti - Day 4
Tuesday, January 1, 2013
When I awoke this morning, I had no idea what kind of impact the first day of the new year would bring.
The day began just like yesterday did. The guys worked around Jim and Debbie's and we ladies went back over to Dorothy's.
Dorothy wanted a plan today, so we decided it would be a good day to do a movie with the kids after lunch. Allyson, Cassie, and Amanda went straight outside with the bigger kids while Amy and I stayed in with the babies. It was soon time for lunch and then we did as planned and brought them in for a movie. A "Wallace & Grommit" movie was chosen by one of the kids. I had never seen one of these movies before but both my girls had loved them, as they used to watch them in school. It was quite entertaining! Some of the smaller kids lost interest after a little bit and began coloring and combing our hair and just anything but sitting and watching the movie. The bigger kids were glued to it, though. I know they understand a bit of English even though they don't speak it, but I wondered how much of the movie they understood.
After the movie we left to go back to Jim and Debbie's. Back at the house we got a nap and then had dinner and played some games. Allyson and I had mentioned to Jim, Debbie, and Donna that we would like to schedule some time to talk to them and after dinner had been mentioned; however, between things needing to be done time got away from us. Donna, Allyson, and I were playing Rummikub when they asked us about talking. It was getting late and we said we could wait until tomorrow. But, here is where my day turned around . . . somehow our conversation with Donna over the game turned serious and the talk begin without us really meaning for it to. Shortly Jim came out and said he and Debbie could talk if we wanted, and so they did. There had not been any real God moments for me today until this talk . . .
They all had some really good advice and brought up a lot of things we needed to think about. There were also a lot of tears. This evening was one of the most emotionally and spiritually challenging days of the week for me - if not THE most. Here's what I wrote in my journal that night (without talking to Allyson):
This is what I came away from our talk with:
1) Allyson definitely feels a calling to go to Haiti, but she's in limbo as to where God wants her to work specifically. Everyone agreed that is a tough place to be.
2) Jim advised to not sit and wait but to take the next step forward. While taking that next step, continue praying for clarity. Some of the next steps I gleaned are:
a) Begin learning the language
b) Contact Amber, another 22 yr old missionary who just finished a year in Haiti. She is from Virginia and has a dream to open a trade school in the ravine section of town. (side note: On Wednesday, Jim showed us the building she hopes to purchase)
c) We need to begin making a list of expenses Allyson will have while living in Haiti; i.e. rent, food, supplies, hiring Hatian help, travel expenses, etc. so that we can come up with the total amount of support Allyson will need to raise in order to live in Haiti for a year.
I wondered even at that moment, if Jim giving Allyson Amber's name was God's way of getting them together to work together. Amber needs some organizational and administrative help and Allyson is good a that. I then thought that I'd mention to her (though I never did) that if that all worked out maybe they could also organize a day care for the people that came and that would provide Allyson a way to minister to the children also! I went to bed emotionally exhausted, yet very proud of my baby girl! I cried myself to sleep.
Now that we've been home a week, I feel very strongly that I am to be Allyson's "CEO" if you will. Help her in learning the language so that she has someone to "use" it with, help her with fund raising when the time comes, etc. etc. I haven't mentioned this to her yet either - she'll probably read it here before I get the chance. So, Allyson if you are hearing this for the first time from reading this - is that OK with you?
Now, remember how I said above that I wrote down those things that very night (without talking to Allyson) and the idea of a day care crossed my mind (but I never verbalized it)? Well, I want you to read Allyson's blog about this very same conversation and what she took away from it. (And she puts it into words much better than I ever could) . . .
http://livinghisdesign.blogspot.com/2013/01/escaping-limbo-im-moving-to-haiti.html
Did we come away with the same exact things? And what about the conversation with Amber and the day care center part? For BOTH of us to come out of that conversation - without talking to each other about it - with the same exact things, if that is not God confirming what our next forward steps are, then I don't know what is. I, also, had been telling people that I felt like it might take us a year to do what we needed to do before she actually moved - and then Allyson is saying the same thing as well. This may not seem like a big thing to you, but it is HUGE to me. Allyson and I don't always see things the same way, but on this we are on the exact same page. I love you Allyson Hemric!! And I am SO VERY proud of you!!
Now to a confession and another step - that I need to do. It's been very difficult to relay what happened in Haiti to Randy. I actually haven't tried very hard, as I really am still processing it all myself. Part of that processing is re-living the days again through these posts. As soon as I am finished processing it all - in the next few days - I need to be sure Randy is on board with this because Allyson is going to need us both behind her 110%!! I have no doubt he will be on board, it is just so difficult to relay exactly what one experiences on a trip like this, and I so want to share it. I'm really looking forward to what this year has in store for us, and because I know there is a lot to consider and to do, I'm trying to simplify my life. I quit the Duke Chorus. After this year of Baptist Singers (which ends in May) I am not going to participate in that any longer either. Helping Allyson is going to be a BIG focus for me this year, and I can't wait to get started!!
When I awoke this morning, I had no idea what kind of impact the first day of the new year would bring.
The day began just like yesterday did. The guys worked around Jim and Debbie's and we ladies went back over to Dorothy's.
Dorothy wanted a plan today, so we decided it would be a good day to do a movie with the kids after lunch. Allyson, Cassie, and Amanda went straight outside with the bigger kids while Amy and I stayed in with the babies. It was soon time for lunch and then we did as planned and brought them in for a movie. A "Wallace & Grommit" movie was chosen by one of the kids. I had never seen one of these movies before but both my girls had loved them, as they used to watch them in school. It was quite entertaining! Some of the smaller kids lost interest after a little bit and began coloring and combing our hair and just anything but sitting and watching the movie. The bigger kids were glued to it, though. I know they understand a bit of English even though they don't speak it, but I wondered how much of the movie they understood.
After the movie we left to go back to Jim and Debbie's. Back at the house we got a nap and then had dinner and played some games. Allyson and I had mentioned to Jim, Debbie, and Donna that we would like to schedule some time to talk to them and after dinner had been mentioned; however, between things needing to be done time got away from us. Donna, Allyson, and I were playing Rummikub when they asked us about talking. It was getting late and we said we could wait until tomorrow. But, here is where my day turned around . . . somehow our conversation with Donna over the game turned serious and the talk begin without us really meaning for it to. Shortly Jim came out and said he and Debbie could talk if we wanted, and so they did. There had not been any real God moments for me today until this talk . . .
They all had some really good advice and brought up a lot of things we needed to think about. There were also a lot of tears. This evening was one of the most emotionally and spiritually challenging days of the week for me - if not THE most. Here's what I wrote in my journal that night (without talking to Allyson):
This is what I came away from our talk with:
1) Allyson definitely feels a calling to go to Haiti, but she's in limbo as to where God wants her to work specifically. Everyone agreed that is a tough place to be.
2) Jim advised to not sit and wait but to take the next step forward. While taking that next step, continue praying for clarity. Some of the next steps I gleaned are:
a) Begin learning the language
b) Contact Amber, another 22 yr old missionary who just finished a year in Haiti. She is from Virginia and has a dream to open a trade school in the ravine section of town. (side note: On Wednesday, Jim showed us the building she hopes to purchase)
c) We need to begin making a list of expenses Allyson will have while living in Haiti; i.e. rent, food, supplies, hiring Hatian help, travel expenses, etc. so that we can come up with the total amount of support Allyson will need to raise in order to live in Haiti for a year.
I wondered even at that moment, if Jim giving Allyson Amber's name was God's way of getting them together to work together. Amber needs some organizational and administrative help and Allyson is good a that. I then thought that I'd mention to her (though I never did) that if that all worked out maybe they could also organize a day care for the people that came and that would provide Allyson a way to minister to the children also! I went to bed emotionally exhausted, yet very proud of my baby girl! I cried myself to sleep.
Now that we've been home a week, I feel very strongly that I am to be Allyson's "CEO" if you will. Help her in learning the language so that she has someone to "use" it with, help her with fund raising when the time comes, etc. etc. I haven't mentioned this to her yet either - she'll probably read it here before I get the chance. So, Allyson if you are hearing this for the first time from reading this - is that OK with you?
Now, remember how I said above that I wrote down those things that very night (without talking to Allyson) and the idea of a day care crossed my mind (but I never verbalized it)? Well, I want you to read Allyson's blog about this very same conversation and what she took away from it. (And she puts it into words much better than I ever could) . . .
http://livinghisdesign.blogspot.com/2013/01/escaping-limbo-im-moving-to-haiti.html
Did we come away with the same exact things? And what about the conversation with Amber and the day care center part? For BOTH of us to come out of that conversation - without talking to each other about it - with the same exact things, if that is not God confirming what our next forward steps are, then I don't know what is. I, also, had been telling people that I felt like it might take us a year to do what we needed to do before she actually moved - and then Allyson is saying the same thing as well. This may not seem like a big thing to you, but it is HUGE to me. Allyson and I don't always see things the same way, but on this we are on the exact same page. I love you Allyson Hemric!! And I am SO VERY proud of you!!
Now to a confession and another step - that I need to do. It's been very difficult to relay what happened in Haiti to Randy. I actually haven't tried very hard, as I really am still processing it all myself. Part of that processing is re-living the days again through these posts. As soon as I am finished processing it all - in the next few days - I need to be sure Randy is on board with this because Allyson is going to need us both behind her 110%!! I have no doubt he will be on board, it is just so difficult to relay exactly what one experiences on a trip like this, and I so want to share it. I'm really looking forward to what this year has in store for us, and because I know there is a lot to consider and to do, I'm trying to simplify my life. I quit the Duke Chorus. After this year of Baptist Singers (which ends in May) I am not going to participate in that any longer either. Helping Allyson is going to be a BIG focus for me this year, and I can't wait to get started!!
Thursday, January 10, 2013
Haiti - Day 3
Monday, December 31, 2012
NEW YEAR'S EVE - In Haiti!! Cool huh?
Today started out with the guys of the group doing some projects around Jim and Debbie's: Building more bunk beds, making screens for the windows, installing a hot water heater for the kitchen sink, installing a washing machine, etc.
We girls went to Dorothy's orphanage. The Faith Hope Love Infant Rescue orphanage. This is the place that stole Allyson's heart way back in 2009 when she first visited Haiti. Dorothy nurses malnourished and special needs infants back to health and then returns them to their families. She also provides permanent care for children with HIV and/or special needs. There are currently over 25 children there, all hungry for attention and love. I was so excited to finally meet Dorothy and all of the kids that Allyson has fallen in love with and Samuel, Dorothy's driver too!
(Dorothy and Lovensky)
You could hear the kids chanting "Cassie-Allyson! Cassie-Allyson!" as we pulled into the driveway. Allyson couldn't get out of the truck and into that yard fast enough. I followed her out to hear the chanting first hand! They were all so excited to see "Cassie-Allyson". They, of course, were excited to see all of us too and before we could even get down 2 steps we had 3 children climbing on us! Johnny, Allyson's favorite, gave me a HUGE hug and was not shy at all. When Allyson told him I was her Mama, he looked at us both with a sheepish little grin. After the initial onslaught, we went back inside to see the babies and Allyson introduced all of them to me. I met Tamara, the little girl with OI who broke her femur last time Allyson was there. She has the most expressive eyes of any child I have ever seen. Her break from last May is all healed now and that child can go where ever she wants to by scooting around on her elbows and knees. I gathered that she is the "leader" in the baby room. There was a new baby - Mathieu. He is 3 months old and is only at Dorothy's because his mother died during childbirth and his grandmother cannot raise him. So sweet!!
(OK, I know I look rough, but geez, it was HOT people!! And you know my hair doesn't do well in the humidity anyway - plus there were no conveniences like a hairdryer. It was what it was.)
Another missionary who Allyson became friends with last time there - and who helped her out with Tamara's broken leg - was there awaiting a ride to Gonaives where she is now serving. Her name is Katie. Katie walked us down to The Apparent Project to do a little bit of shopping. The Apparent Project is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization that empowers poor Hatian families. It allows them to work a trade to make money for food. They make some of the most beautiful jewelry - out of magazines and cereal boxes! You should check out their website: http://apparentproject.org/
Katie left us there to walk back by ourselves. Allyson said she knew the way. Well, on our way back we took a wrong turn at a fork in the road. Thank goodness we realized that things looked different before we got too far. I was laughing about getting lost in Haiti. We got back to Dorothy's and loved on the kids for a while longer and then went back to Jim and Debbie's.
Back at the house we helped the guys finish up a project, took naps and then we all got showers. Another mission team staying down the road at Sherrie's - she runs the Christian Light School and Children's Home - was going to come over after dinner for snacks, games, singing, etc. We didn't get to games, but we had some really good snacks and then went up on the roof for some singing. They brought guitars and we sang for over an hour.
Then at 11:30 Randall and Dan led us in a communion service on the rooftop and at midnight we watched fireworks all over the mountainside. A very very nice way to bring in the new year! Allyson said the fireworks were not as grandiose as they saw from Dorothy's roof last year, but we saw enough to make it worthwhile! Donna shared a devotion about us having to be broken in order to really shine the light of Christ. She used glow sticks as an example. We all got one and broke it to make it shine in the dark of the night - the same way we need to shine Christ's love into the darkness of this world.
At 1:15 am when I was writing about the day in my journal, the music and partying was going strong - and LOUD - we girls put in earplugs and took a sleep aid to help us sleep through that because it went all.night.long. Not only was it New Year's, but Jan. 1 is Haiti's Independence Day as well - so it was party week in Haiti!
NEW YEAR'S EVE - In Haiti!! Cool huh?
Today started out with the guys of the group doing some projects around Jim and Debbie's: Building more bunk beds, making screens for the windows, installing a hot water heater for the kitchen sink, installing a washing machine, etc.
We girls went to Dorothy's orphanage. The Faith Hope Love Infant Rescue orphanage. This is the place that stole Allyson's heart way back in 2009 when she first visited Haiti. Dorothy nurses malnourished and special needs infants back to health and then returns them to their families. She also provides permanent care for children with HIV and/or special needs. There are currently over 25 children there, all hungry for attention and love. I was so excited to finally meet Dorothy and all of the kids that Allyson has fallen in love with and Samuel, Dorothy's driver too!
(Dorothy and Lovensky)
You could hear the kids chanting "Cassie-Allyson! Cassie-Allyson!" as we pulled into the driveway. Allyson couldn't get out of the truck and into that yard fast enough. I followed her out to hear the chanting first hand! They were all so excited to see "Cassie-Allyson". They, of course, were excited to see all of us too and before we could even get down 2 steps we had 3 children climbing on us! Johnny, Allyson's favorite, gave me a HUGE hug and was not shy at all. When Allyson told him I was her Mama, he looked at us both with a sheepish little grin. After the initial onslaught, we went back inside to see the babies and Allyson introduced all of them to me. I met Tamara, the little girl with OI who broke her femur last time Allyson was there. She has the most expressive eyes of any child I have ever seen. Her break from last May is all healed now and that child can go where ever she wants to by scooting around on her elbows and knees. I gathered that she is the "leader" in the baby room. There was a new baby - Mathieu. He is 3 months old and is only at Dorothy's because his mother died during childbirth and his grandmother cannot raise him. So sweet!!
 |
| (Amy and Tamara) |
 | |
| Me and Baby Mathieu |
Another missionary who Allyson became friends with last time there - and who helped her out with Tamara's broken leg - was there awaiting a ride to Gonaives where she is now serving. Her name is Katie. Katie walked us down to The Apparent Project to do a little bit of shopping. The Apparent Project is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization that empowers poor Hatian families. It allows them to work a trade to make money for food. They make some of the most beautiful jewelry - out of magazines and cereal boxes! You should check out their website: http://apparentproject.org/
 |
| Shopping at The Apparent Project |
Katie left us there to walk back by ourselves. Allyson said she knew the way. Well, on our way back we took a wrong turn at a fork in the road. Thank goodness we realized that things looked different before we got too far. I was laughing about getting lost in Haiti. We got back to Dorothy's and loved on the kids for a while longer and then went back to Jim and Debbie's.
Back at the house we helped the guys finish up a project, took naps and then we all got showers. Another mission team staying down the road at Sherrie's - she runs the Christian Light School and Children's Home - was going to come over after dinner for snacks, games, singing, etc. We didn't get to games, but we had some really good snacks and then went up on the roof for some singing. They brought guitars and we sang for over an hour.
Then at 11:30 Randall and Dan led us in a communion service on the rooftop and at midnight we watched fireworks all over the mountainside. A very very nice way to bring in the new year! Allyson said the fireworks were not as grandiose as they saw from Dorothy's roof last year, but we saw enough to make it worthwhile! Donna shared a devotion about us having to be broken in order to really shine the light of Christ. She used glow sticks as an example. We all got one and broke it to make it shine in the dark of the night - the same way we need to shine Christ's love into the darkness of this world.
At 1:15 am when I was writing about the day in my journal, the music and partying was going strong - and LOUD - we girls put in earplugs and took a sleep aid to help us sleep through that because it went all.night.long. Not only was it New Year's, but Jan. 1 is Haiti's Independence Day as well - so it was party week in Haiti!
Tuesday, January 8, 2013
Haiti - Day 2
Sunday - December 30, 2012
We awoke at 6 am to a wonderful breakfast and then headed out to Pastor Ceynor's church. This is the church that Grey Stone has helped so much with. He used to be referred to as "the rooftop church", but that building was damaged in the earthquake so he had to move locations. Below is a picture from his current location looking out over the hillside and his former location was out there somewhere. He pointed out where, but I never fully understood where he was talking about.
Pastor Ceynor is a wonderful man of God. I liked him immediately!! It was very cool listening to this Hatian congregation singing in a different language. They had an electric guitar and drums and a very expressive worship leader! I wish now that I'd taken some video of the worship service - note to self: Do this next time you go!! It was also VERY LOUD. I found out later; however, that the reason is so that the message is heard all over the mountainside for those that are unable to physically attend. And not to mention, those that would not attend are also hearing the message!! I sang 2 songs for them and Randall preached.
At the end of the service Pastor Ceynor had 3 ladies and an older couple come up front for Randall to pray specifically for. At the time we did not know the individual stories of these folks, but after the service when Pastor Ceynor was showing us the school area, he told us about the ladies. They were all involved in prostitution. They told Pastor Ceynor that they cannot be baptized because of this sin in their lives, but they cannot stop either. One of the ladies in particular is basically a prostitute slave to a married man. He pays her $100 a week (I believe) and that is how she feeds her family which consists of herself and several siblings. If she were to break it off with this man, she would have to uproot her family and move very far away because he might kill her. In trying to put his heartache into English words for us he said "I have tears in my heart." What an incredible description of heartache. I cannot fathom the magnitude of desperation that is to prostitute yourself just to put food on the table.
Every single person in that congregation came by to shake our hands, hug us, and even the children kissed our cheeks to let us know they were glad we were there. I felt very welcome! While Pastor Ceynor was showing us around the church property, which consisted of a couple of homes and a school, a couple of the ladies that lived in one of the homes came over and was rubbing my hair. They did the same to Allyson's as well. I think the liked the softness and the feel of it. It was hilarious!! I would never walk up to a stranger from another country and just start rubbing their head!! I didn't mind - I just thought it very funny!!! I wish someone had taken a picture of that!
Pastor Ceynor just hugged me in a big 'ole bear hug and told me how much my singing had blessed him. I could sing for him all the time! Below are some more pictures around Pastor Ceynor's church:
This afternoon we went to the Phillipine UN place. I'm not exactly sure of the name of it. The military folks there had just arrived a few days before and will be there for 6 - 9 months. Pastor Lenny (whom we did not get to meet because he was out of the country) is a Phillipino pastor in Haiti. He and Jim Hambrick work with the folks at the UN location. We went and led a worship service for them. I sang again and Dan Curry, our college/young adult pastor, preached. They all speak English, so this was more "normal" for us.
The funny thing was that they all wanted to have their picture taken with us - - but not all of us - just the ladies - and Pastor Dan. Ha! Then outside Allyson, Amanda, and Cassie were posing to have their picture taken and each of the Phillipino guys wanted to jump in - individually - and have their picture taken with them. It was hilarious!! Allyson said who knows where their pictures are going to end up!! All over Facebook!! Ha!
We went back to Jim and Debbie's for dinner and games. NOTE: Dan is funny when he is tired! Enough said.
Monday, January 7, 2013
Haiti - Day 1
(NOTE: These Haiti blogs are being written after the trip because I could not get onto a piece of technology due to the fact that everyone.else.had.one and was on it constantly. I just need to invest in my own for my next trip.)
Saturday, December 29, 2012
Departure day for Haiti. I did not sleep well the night before. Part excitement and part scared that I would oversleep. My night went like this:
10:30 - go to bed
11:30 - look @ clock
1:00 - look @ clock, get up and go to bathroom
2:00 - look @ clock
3:30 - look @ clock
4:00 - ALARM! (now I'm sleeping good - go figure!)
Allyson and I arrive at church at 5:00 (our meeting time) and we're the last ones there - again, go figure (Strike 1). We get our luggage on the bus, have a prayer, and head out to the airport. We all get checked in and through security. I stop at the bathroom. When I come out Allyson, Cassie & Amanda have stopped to get a muffin, so I wait for them. We are walking to our gate when we here Randall saying "Run!!! They are about to close the door to the plane!!" Seriously? I had no idea we were THAT close to time. (Strike 2). We did, of course, make it and found out that they'd been calling our names!!!! OMG! None of us heard our names. HA HA HA! Wouldn't THAT have been something if we'd missed our flight! I don't even want to think about it!
I guess because of the last minute rushing, etc., Allyson gets hot and light headed on the plane. I had somehow ended up with her breakfast and we were not sitting anywhere close to each other. When the pilot finally turned off the seat belt sing, I asked Ken to take the breakfast to Allyson since he was in the aisle seat. He came back and said he thought she was sick because she had the barf bag out. Mama worry for her baby came out then. I could see her and kept an eye on her the rest of the flight. I think the water and muffin helped. From there on out we were fine!!
We arrived in Haiti around 4pm. The airport in Haiti has been updated with air conditioning, a baggage conveyor belt. It is still behind the times compared to airports in the US, but Allyson was bummed that those of us who had never been to Haiti before did not get to experience the Haitian airport like it used to be!! We'd been warned about guys trying to help us with our luggage - they are all standing around in red shirts and look "official", but they are not and just want you to pay them. It wasn't as bad as I expected. Jim was waiting for us with a nice 12 passenger van. Again, Allyson and Danny both thought we were not getting the true Haitian experience since we didn't have to sit on our luggage in a tap-tap. I was good with the van.
Jim and Debbie's place is already amazing and it is going to be even better when it is all finished!! We got all settled in and had a wonderful spaghetti dinner. Jim' sister, Donna, is in Haiti with them and within the first 5 minutes they all made us feel so at home and it was as if we'd known them all our lives.
1ST IMPRESSIONS OF HAITI:
1. I would have been in a major culture shock overload if I had not already heard and seen Haiti through Allyson.
2. It is chaos! People everywhere, cars everywhere, if there are traffic laws - well . . .
3. They try to get money - especially from Americans - any way they can. I mentioned the lugged at the airport already, but on the streets when the van comes to a stop, the come from every corner and begin wiping down you vehicle wanting you to tip them. Jim just kept shaking his head no and would pull off when he could move again.
4. The roads are horrible. They beat you to death. Most of them are just dirt roads with major bumps and holes, etc. I don't know how Jim keeps tires on that van!
5. When we first got out of the van, there was this wonderful aroma. I thought it was our dinner!! I later learned it was the bakery next door - - oh my goodness!
After dinner we made plans for our next day. We got ready for bed with a cold shower (no hot water) - but after the initial shock, it felt good! We had screens on our door and windows and had a fan so I was pretty comfortable during the night. I slept pretty good being in a new strange place, but I think not sleeping the night before helped that as well. I went to sleep with big anticipation for the week!!
Saturday, December 29, 2012
Departure day for Haiti. I did not sleep well the night before. Part excitement and part scared that I would oversleep. My night went like this:
10:30 - go to bed
11:30 - look @ clock
1:00 - look @ clock, get up and go to bathroom
2:00 - look @ clock
3:30 - look @ clock
4:00 - ALARM! (now I'm sleeping good - go figure!)
Allyson and I arrive at church at 5:00 (our meeting time) and we're the last ones there - again, go figure (Strike 1). We get our luggage on the bus, have a prayer, and head out to the airport. We all get checked in and through security. I stop at the bathroom. When I come out Allyson, Cassie & Amanda have stopped to get a muffin, so I wait for them. We are walking to our gate when we here Randall saying "Run!!! They are about to close the door to the plane!!" Seriously? I had no idea we were THAT close to time. (Strike 2). We did, of course, make it and found out that they'd been calling our names!!!! OMG! None of us heard our names. HA HA HA! Wouldn't THAT have been something if we'd missed our flight! I don't even want to think about it!
I guess because of the last minute rushing, etc., Allyson gets hot and light headed on the plane. I had somehow ended up with her breakfast and we were not sitting anywhere close to each other. When the pilot finally turned off the seat belt sing, I asked Ken to take the breakfast to Allyson since he was in the aisle seat. He came back and said he thought she was sick because she had the barf bag out. Mama worry for her baby came out then. I could see her and kept an eye on her the rest of the flight. I think the water and muffin helped. From there on out we were fine!!
We arrived in Haiti around 4pm. The airport in Haiti has been updated with air conditioning, a baggage conveyor belt. It is still behind the times compared to airports in the US, but Allyson was bummed that those of us who had never been to Haiti before did not get to experience the Haitian airport like it used to be!! We'd been warned about guys trying to help us with our luggage - they are all standing around in red shirts and look "official", but they are not and just want you to pay them. It wasn't as bad as I expected. Jim was waiting for us with a nice 12 passenger van. Again, Allyson and Danny both thought we were not getting the true Haitian experience since we didn't have to sit on our luggage in a tap-tap. I was good with the van.
Jim and Debbie's place is already amazing and it is going to be even better when it is all finished!! We got all settled in and had a wonderful spaghetti dinner. Jim' sister, Donna, is in Haiti with them and within the first 5 minutes they all made us feel so at home and it was as if we'd known them all our lives.
1ST IMPRESSIONS OF HAITI:
1. I would have been in a major culture shock overload if I had not already heard and seen Haiti through Allyson.
2. It is chaos! People everywhere, cars everywhere, if there are traffic laws - well . . .
3. They try to get money - especially from Americans - any way they can. I mentioned the lugged at the airport already, but on the streets when the van comes to a stop, the come from every corner and begin wiping down you vehicle wanting you to tip them. Jim just kept shaking his head no and would pull off when he could move again.
4. The roads are horrible. They beat you to death. Most of them are just dirt roads with major bumps and holes, etc. I don't know how Jim keeps tires on that van!
5. When we first got out of the van, there was this wonderful aroma. I thought it was our dinner!! I later learned it was the bakery next door - - oh my goodness!
After dinner we made plans for our next day. We got ready for bed with a cold shower (no hot water) - but after the initial shock, it felt good! We had screens on our door and windows and had a fan so I was pretty comfortable during the night. I slept pretty good being in a new strange place, but I think not sleeping the night before helped that as well. I went to sleep with big anticipation for the week!!
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