We welcomed 14 new children at Kay Saint Anne on Monday. Some of the young children looked scared and confused when they arrive to this new place and when the relatives who brought them left. It does not take long to love the new children, to realize that they all have unique personalities and preferences. A few were scared of the two puppies that now resided on the grounds of St. Anne, while one of the youngest toddlers to arrive was fascinated by them. Much time and energy this past week was spent helping the new children get used to the routines of the house.
As the walls in our little prefabricated volunteer houses do not go all the way to the ceiling three of us who live in the house hear everything (except if it is raining then the only thing you can hear is the rain on the metal roof.) One of the women I live with, told me she could hear me talking in my sleep recently but could not hear what I was saying. It would not surprise me if I was saying, "lave men ou apre ou itilize twalet (wash your hands after you go to the bathroom,) since I find myself saying that with great frequency most days. Of course when 36 children under the age of six live in one house, in a country that continues to have a cholera epidemic (or perhaps by now it may be endemic), I think it is important. When, I came to Haiti, at some level I knew that I would not really know what I would be doing until I was there, but somehow thought I would be doing more clinical social work, and had even been trained in EMDR (a therapy used in trauma treatment) before coming. I have been doing play therapy with several children, but I spent a lot more time encouraging basic things like hand washing especially at Kay St. Anne. Before coming I kept saying I felt called to go where the needs were the greatest, and even here once I arrived, what I thought would have been the greatest need (trauma therapy) could not take prescience over more basic needs such as safety and sanitation. When I see the great poverty and suffering that exists in this country I can't say I have done much to make any systemic changes or done anything that would appear significant overall. But I can say that now most of the time, most of the children at Kay Saint Anne wash their hands with soap after they use the bathroom and before meals. I am not sure if I truly convinced people that it is dangerous to store bleach in bottles that used to contain sugary soft drinks especially if the bottles are occasionally left on the ground especially in a house where up to 40 children under the age of six live at any one time, but even if there are people working in the house who are not fully convinced of the danger, it does not happen anymore which I think has to do with my persistence (although in this specific instance I must admit I was not always particularly patient.)
Yesterday after work, I went with a short term group of medical volunteers on a tour of the city. I had seen much of it before, but each time I go downtown, I see something different. I noticed that the rubble had been cleared from around and inside the existing broken shell that was the Catholic Cathedral of Portauprince. It appears too, that some of the remains of the presidential palace are being dismantled. In many places, there are still thousands of people living in tents, right across the street from the palace. Most tents have been reinforced with something perhaps scraps of wood or metal or have sturdy sticks holding them up, and many have extra tarps on them, probably to help keep out the rain. Event he tents here for our short term volunteers where I lived my first month here has a tarp on it now.
In less than one month I will be leaving Haiti. After a long prayerful discernment process, I have made a decision which has resulted in my leaving Haiti earlier than I initially planned, which I expected when I made the decision. I truly have a deep sense of peace and joy believing this is the right decision for me at this time in my life, although saying good bye to the children is going to be especially difficult.
Please continue to keep the people of Haiti in your prayers. Many Blessings!
Sunday, September 25, 2011
Sunday, September 18, 2011
Basic Updates
Since ten children from St. Anne had moved to St. Louie and the 15 new children will move in tomorrow, it was a calmer week at Kay St. Anne. I actually think the ratios this past week were more like what I would ideally want them to be all of the time, because smaller numbers allow for better supervision and more individual attention for the children. When there are so many needs and such limited resources, in a country like this I imagine, it is difficult for those in management positions to find the balance between taking in more children who are in desperate need, or serving fewer children while providing more intense services. We heard this week that there are currently budget concerns across programs. It really makes you realize how everything is connected, economic problems in the United States and Europe impact the amount of donations that organizations such as NPH receive, but the needs don't decrease and here in Haiti because of the earthquake and cholera needs have increased greatly. While this is not a fundraising blog, and I don't like asking I decided it is important enough to mention that if anyone reading this who may be interested in making a donation to NPH, if you would like you could ask that it specifically go to Haiti, and directly to the Father Wasson Angel of Light program, here is the link to the website of the fundraising arm of the organization: http://www.friendsoftheorphans.org/s/769/start.aspx
This week during activities at St. Anne, when I wanted to do something a little different, I taught some of the children a classic american children's game, only I called "kanna kanna zwa", instead of "duck duck goose." I was surprised that they enjoyed it so much, that several times later in the week the children got together and spontaneously played it themselves during their free time. I enjoyed watching some of the toddlers who did not fully understand the part of the game where you try to return to the other person's seat on the floor, but who took great pleasure in tapping the heads of other children and joyfully exclaiming, "kanna!"
On Friday I visited with the children who had moved from St. Anne to St. Louie last week. They all seem to have adjusted well and are doing fine.
Yesterday morning, I went with the other volunteer and a driver to visit the family of the child I had accompanied in the states last year, who died a couple of weeks ago. We were warmly welcomed into their small house, which was essentially one little room, with a couple of beds, a table, four plastic chairs, and a shelf with a small television. As I looked at the way the exposed wires hung from the ceiling, I wondered what my father (an electrician, who often comments on how things are wired when visiting a new place) would say; I suspect the wiring would have made him nervous. When the other volunteer needed to use the bathroom during the visit, she was apparently provided with a bucket. The child's mother, two brothers, and a cousin were there. One of his brothers resembled him quite a bit. Everyone in the immediate family seems to be relatively tall and quite thin, and each had a beautiful smile. I enjoyed visiting and talking with them. The family seemed appreciative of our presence, and of the donation we had brought to them, which I believe was from the Rotary Club in Florida which had sponsored the heart surgery last fall.
Hope you are doing well. Have a good week.
Sunday, September 11, 2011
Perspective
Perspectives
Since I have been in Haiti I have been stretched to realize that so much of what I see, could be seen so differently by people of different cultures, or who have had vastly different experiences. The other day when I was riding in the car to a liturgy in a mountain village called Fondwa, we were stuck in traffic on the way there. A large gasoline (tanker) truck was in the middle of the road turned over on its side, completely blocking the road, so that traffic could not pass in either direction. I fear that the driver was at least seriously injured if he survived at all, based on the condition of the cab. When I hear of gasoline leaking from a truck, my thought is of how dangerous this could be because it is flammable and the fumes are not good to breathe. Many of the people living nearby most of whom were very poor had a different perspective. People of all ages were carrying buckets, plastic water bottles, and pitchers, and containers every shape and size, filling them them to the brim with gasoline. I said to the other sister in the car, that all of these people can't have cars, or generators. She said they would probably sell it. We and all of the vehchiles in front of us, ended up driving through a nearby field as it was the only way around the truck. That same day in another location on the side of a large gas tank in English it said something like, "dangerous, contents are flammable, fumes can be harmful." I thought to myself anyone in Haiti who is educated enough to read those English words probably already knows that gasoline is flammable and the people who are least likely to read it are probably least likely to be aware of this.
Vow Ceremony
On the day I saw the tanker truck, I was accompanying another American sister, to the vow ceremony for a young congregation of Haitian sisters, the Franciscan Sisters of St. Antoinne of Fondwa (I hope I got there name right.) The American sister who works here at the hospital now, worked with the sisters there in a clinic prior to the earthquake. Fondwa is a rural village in the mountains. The liturgy was held in the temporary structure which stood on the foundation where the church was before it fell down in the quake. The current church was constructed of corrugated metal held together by beams of wood, which looked as though they had been used before, I wondered if the wood had been salvaged from the fallen church. There were sturdy chairs which had been handmade somewhere in the countryside. The decorations in the church were a couple of plants, some fake flowers and ribbons. The decorations outside were mostly hand made paper chains. There was profound beauty in the simplicity of it all. The bishop of Portauprince presided at the liturgy. Two sisters made final vows and two sisters made first vows; other than the two sisters who founded the congregation these were the first two sisters to make final vows. There was such joy among the sisters, their families, and the people from the village. After the mass, we were all invited to stay for a meal of delicious fresh Haitian food; the sister I was with said that the turkey was probably walking around earlier that morning. As people were finishing their meals there was the distant sound of thunder. Since many people from the village had walked, and even a couple came on horse or donkey, the party cleared out quickly as people attempted to get home before the heavy rains.
Kay St. Anne and Kay St. Louie
This morning ten of the children moved from St. Anne to St. Louie. They came to Sunday liturgy at St. Louie and were introduced to the other children after the mass ended. Then the children went to their new rooms, which are the shipping containers that each house about 16 children and a worker. I stayed around a short time afterwards. I was glad to see the children who had just moved in playing well with the children at St. Louie. Next week we expect to receive 15 new children at Kay St. Anne.
Since I have been in Haiti I have been stretched to realize that so much of what I see, could be seen so differently by people of different cultures, or who have had vastly different experiences. The other day when I was riding in the car to a liturgy in a mountain village called Fondwa, we were stuck in traffic on the way there. A large gasoline (tanker) truck was in the middle of the road turned over on its side, completely blocking the road, so that traffic could not pass in either direction. I fear that the driver was at least seriously injured if he survived at all, based on the condition of the cab. When I hear of gasoline leaking from a truck, my thought is of how dangerous this could be because it is flammable and the fumes are not good to breathe. Many of the people living nearby most of whom were very poor had a different perspective. People of all ages were carrying buckets, plastic water bottles, and pitchers, and containers every shape and size, filling them them to the brim with gasoline. I said to the other sister in the car, that all of these people can't have cars, or generators. She said they would probably sell it. We and all of the vehchiles in front of us, ended up driving through a nearby field as it was the only way around the truck. That same day in another location on the side of a large gas tank in English it said something like, "dangerous, contents are flammable, fumes can be harmful." I thought to myself anyone in Haiti who is educated enough to read those English words probably already knows that gasoline is flammable and the people who are least likely to read it are probably least likely to be aware of this.
Vow Ceremony
On the day I saw the tanker truck, I was accompanying another American sister, to the vow ceremony for a young congregation of Haitian sisters, the Franciscan Sisters of St. Antoinne of Fondwa (I hope I got there name right.) The American sister who works here at the hospital now, worked with the sisters there in a clinic prior to the earthquake. Fondwa is a rural village in the mountains. The liturgy was held in the temporary structure which stood on the foundation where the church was before it fell down in the quake. The current church was constructed of corrugated metal held together by beams of wood, which looked as though they had been used before, I wondered if the wood had been salvaged from the fallen church. There were sturdy chairs which had been handmade somewhere in the countryside. The decorations in the church were a couple of plants, some fake flowers and ribbons. The decorations outside were mostly hand made paper chains. There was profound beauty in the simplicity of it all. The bishop of Portauprince presided at the liturgy. Two sisters made final vows and two sisters made first vows; other than the two sisters who founded the congregation these were the first two sisters to make final vows. There was such joy among the sisters, their families, and the people from the village. After the mass, we were all invited to stay for a meal of delicious fresh Haitian food; the sister I was with said that the turkey was probably walking around earlier that morning. As people were finishing their meals there was the distant sound of thunder. Since many people from the village had walked, and even a couple came on horse or donkey, the party cleared out quickly as people attempted to get home before the heavy rains.
Kay St. Anne and Kay St. Louie
This morning ten of the children moved from St. Anne to St. Louie. They came to Sunday liturgy at St. Louie and were introduced to the other children after the mass ended. Then the children went to their new rooms, which are the shipping containers that each house about 16 children and a worker. I stayed around a short time afterwards. I was glad to see the children who had just moved in playing well with the children at St. Louie. Next week we expect to receive 15 new children at Kay St. Anne.
Sunday, September 4, 2011
Funerals, Activities. and a Wonderful Weekend
Funerals
Last weekend Fr. Rick returned to Haiti after some time in the states. Daily liturgy resumed here in the little chapel by the pediatric hospital. Apparently, someone had pointed out that we often had funerals for people that die in the cholera hospital and sometimes for people who did at the adult hospital but never for the children who die at St. Damien hospital. At some point, while I was away children who die at St. Damien began to be included in the funerals. On Monday there were many bodies of small children. During Fr. Rick's absence they had accumulated in the being held in a freezer now kept on the side of the chapel. Usually the dead are not people I knew personally; it is sad in a general way. Sometimes I wonder how many of those dead would have survived had they been born in the United States or Europe.
On Thursday night, I heard that the child who I had spent a week with in Florida last year had died. The other volunteer who has spent time with him called me. I walked to the front of the hospital to offer condolences to his grieving mother. We hugged for a moment, I said little; some situations are simply too sad for words. On Friday, the daily liturgy was like the funerals on the previous days that week in many ways, but it was more difficult and more meaningful because I knew and cared for one of thechildren whose body lay in a body bag on the chapel floor.
I had visited him in the hospital a few times since he was admitted. His death was not expected to be imminent and there was even some talk of possibly sending him back to the states for surgery. The last day I visited him was a couple of days before he died. To my untrained eyes, he appeared to be getting better. He was sitting in a chair by his bed, talking with me and shooing mosquitoes away. His young heart failed him; in my heart I carry memories of him. Please pray for his mother and family.
Activities
The government has changed the official start of the school year from early September to early October in order to make it possible to implement a plan so that when school does start more children in Haiti will be able to attend school for free. When the summer camp for the children in the Father Wasson Angels of Light ended a couple of weeks ago, we were expecting school to be starting soon. I have been involved in the planning of more structured activities for the children at St. Anne during the month of September. The new schedule starts tomorrow and I am looking forward to it.
Weekend
The organization planned a weekend at the beach for all interested long term volunteers in Haiti. The hotel where we stayed was lovely, and in a great location. It was wonderful to spend time swimming, playing in the water, reading, kayaking, hanging out with the other volunteers, and eating the delicious food at the hotel. The hotel even had hot running water for showers! Most of the time I am in Hait, I am not even aware of the reality that I am on an island; this weekend was a major exception. I included a few pictures in an attempt to share the beauty of the Haiti seaside with you. What a wonderful restful weekend!
This morning, while still at the hotel, I was sitting by the pool reading. A small group of people including some police and UN people. exited the conference building and walked by. In the mist of the group, wearing blue jeans and a dress shirt was President Martelly, the President of Haiti. Apparently there was some kind of a meeting taking place that had to do with the UN, at least that is what a young woman who was sunbathing by the pool told me. I was amazed at how little fanfare there seemed to be actually.
I hope that you had a wonderful weekend, and for those in the US celebrating Labor Day; may you have a blessed and enjoyable day.
Last weekend Fr. Rick returned to Haiti after some time in the states. Daily liturgy resumed here in the little chapel by the pediatric hospital. Apparently, someone had pointed out that we often had funerals for people that die in the cholera hospital and sometimes for people who did at the adult hospital but never for the children who die at St. Damien hospital. At some point, while I was away children who die at St. Damien began to be included in the funerals. On Monday there were many bodies of small children. During Fr. Rick's absence they had accumulated in the being held in a freezer now kept on the side of the chapel. Usually the dead are not people I knew personally; it is sad in a general way. Sometimes I wonder how many of those dead would have survived had they been born in the United States or Europe.
On Thursday night, I heard that the child who I had spent a week with in Florida last year had died. The other volunteer who has spent time with him called me. I walked to the front of the hospital to offer condolences to his grieving mother. We hugged for a moment, I said little; some situations are simply too sad for words. On Friday, the daily liturgy was like the funerals on the previous days that week in many ways, but it was more difficult and more meaningful because I knew and cared for one of thechildren whose body lay in a body bag on the chapel floor.
I had visited him in the hospital a few times since he was admitted. His death was not expected to be imminent and there was even some talk of possibly sending him back to the states for surgery. The last day I visited him was a couple of days before he died. To my untrained eyes, he appeared to be getting better. He was sitting in a chair by his bed, talking with me and shooing mosquitoes away. His young heart failed him; in my heart I carry memories of him. Please pray for his mother and family.
Activities
The government has changed the official start of the school year from early September to early October in order to make it possible to implement a plan so that when school does start more children in Haiti will be able to attend school for free. When the summer camp for the children in the Father Wasson Angels of Light ended a couple of weeks ago, we were expecting school to be starting soon. I have been involved in the planning of more structured activities for the children at St. Anne during the month of September. The new schedule starts tomorrow and I am looking forward to it.
Weekend
The organization planned a weekend at the beach for all interested long term volunteers in Haiti. The hotel where we stayed was lovely, and in a great location. It was wonderful to spend time swimming, playing in the water, reading, kayaking, hanging out with the other volunteers, and eating the delicious food at the hotel. The hotel even had hot running water for showers! Most of the time I am in Hait, I am not even aware of the reality that I am on an island; this weekend was a major exception. I included a few pictures in an attempt to share the beauty of the Haiti seaside with you. What a wonderful restful weekend!
This morning, while still at the hotel, I was sitting by the pool reading. A small group of people including some police and UN people. exited the conference building and walked by. In the mist of the group, wearing blue jeans and a dress shirt was President Martelly, the President of Haiti. Apparently there was some kind of a meeting taking place that had to do with the UN, at least that is what a young woman who was sunbathing by the pool told me. I was amazed at how little fanfare there seemed to be actually.
I hope that you had a wonderful weekend, and for those in the US celebrating Labor Day; may you have a blessed and enjoyable day.
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