Summer in the States

The summer has been filled with many activities including my congregation's general chapter, visits with family, friends, and sisters in various places.  Retreat, which was a wonderful time to pray, reflect, reconnect with  God and enjoy creation.  I spent three weekends in Ohio speaking at parishes as part of the mission cooperative, where I spoke about the work my congregation is doing in Burkina Faso.  It is always a gift when I can reconnect with old friends and meet new people along the way.  I am grateful for all of the experiences of the summer so far.  Now, I am looking forward to returning to Haiti in less than a month.    

Taking pictures became my hobby during the past two years or so in Haiti. Options of what I could do on my day off were limited, so I started taking pictures in the yard at Leocaide Convent.  Now, I take my camera with me when I travel.  Let me share some summer images with you,  all were taken since my previous blog entry.    

Taken in Covington, LA during Chapter

Taken on a nature trail during chapter

This picture and the one below were both taken at Jean Lafitte National Park Barataria Trail, in Louisiana

Narragansett Bay, North Kingstown RI

North Kingstown, RI

This photo and the one below were both taken in Villa Maria, PA when I was on retreat.  

This one and the one below were taken in Huntington Valley, PA 

Taken at my great aunt's house in New Jersey

North Kingstown, RI

I took this one today,  NK, RI

I hope that you are enjoying the summer.  Take care.   Many blessings!  

Pentecost & Chapter Preparation

Sunday was a long day; it was one day that seems three days.  We had a joyful liturgy in our local parish for the Feast of Pentecost that morning. Many of the children from the orphanage were at the mass, so I said good-bye to them for the summer at the end of liturgy and did not return to the orphanage with them as I have typically done.  One of the postulants who lives at Lecaide Convent received the sacrament of confirmation at the cathedral that day as well; I did not attend that mass.  I was present for the wonderful community celebration at our house that afternoon; the food was delicious.  After the meal, I went to the airport.  Since my previous trip to the US, the time of the only flight (on a major carrier) out of Okap had changed from early afternoon to 5:34 in the evening.  Now instead of having a long layover in Miami I just barely had enough time in between flights; my suitcase did not have enough time to get to the second plane in time, but I did (the suitcase was delivered the next day.)

The first few days back in the USA are always interesting.  These are the days when what once seemed typical seems odd.  During a walk through this  New Orleans neighborhood, I found myself admiring sidewalks.  There are great sidewalks here, but nobody is using them.  I am used to walking in a place where there are no sidewalks, but there are always people outside walking from one place to another.  It also seems so strange to pass so many houses and see so few people.

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From Tuesday through Thursday I had the privilege of participating in discernment days with several other sisters in preparation for our Marianite General Chapter.  This short pre-chapter retreat to discern about leadership possibilities was held in Franklinton Louisiana, on a beautiful piece of property. That is where the pictures included in this week's update were taken. During chapter, the direction of the congregation for the next five years is determined and leadership will be elected.  Please pray for us, the Marianites of Holy Cross, during our chapter which begins tomorrow and ends on the following Sunday.  Your prayers are greatly appreciated!  

During the next couple of months, I will most likely update this blog less frequently and will resume weekly updates again when I return to Haiti in August.  Enjoy the summer!  Take care.  Many blessings!  
       

Literacy and Gratitude

Today's update is dedicated to all those who are unable to read it.

It happened again!  Suddenly I was made aware of how fortunate I am, of how I had come to take great gifts for granted, and of how some people through no fault of their own have been unjustly denied opportunities that should be available to everyone.  A few hard working adults that  I encountered recently were unable to sign their names, though they are not at all lacking in intelligence, ability, or motivation.  They simply were never given the possibility to learn even basic functional literacy skills.  They were never even given an opportunity to attend even a poor, overcrowded school.  As I write this, I thank God that I am able to write and pray for those who can not.   Let us find ways to share our gifts and to advocate for change until everyone is given the opportunity of a decent education.

Sunday was Mother's Day here in Haiti.  We had a wonderful celebration for the "mothers" who care for the children at the orphanage.  Everyone ate together.  A few children performed songs and dances or read poems to show their gratitude.  It was good that we took the time to show our appreciation for these wonderful women since their jobs are difficult.  At the celebration, much to my surprise, I was given a gift for my three years of service at the orphanage and the children thanked me.  It was very touching.  

Thank you, for taking the time to read this, and thank God that you can!          

Mèsi Madanm

I was really touched when a stranger, a woman riding a tap-tap into the city, spoke up for me a complete stranger and a foreigner.  The man collecting the money did not want to give me my change at all and then attempted to give me less than he was supposed to.  At first I simply held out my hand waiting for the change. I had watched as others paid and knew that he held enough change for what he owed me.  Once the first woman spoke, other women told him the same thing.   He seemed quite surprised when I told him in Creole that I know how much change I am supposed to get and that this was not my first time on a tap-tap. The kindness of the woman was so much more inspiring than was the guy trying to cheat me out of a very small amount of money bothersome.  The woman could have remained silent, she could have decided that it was not her business.  She had courage and then others agreed with her who may have otherwise been silent too.  I hope I can learn from her example.

Have a good week.  Many blessings!

Pilat, Premye Kominyon, Panèl Solè

Sunset in Pilat

Pilat
The remainder of the week in Pilat went well.  It was a pleasure to work with the preschool children and their teachers. On Friday there was a special program for the youngest children, in which they were given a chance to play freely. They pretended to be merchants selling their wares, doctors and nurses, and mothers.  They also painted and played with playdough.

One day when I went for a walk after school, some older children who had stayed late walked along and chatted with me.  After a while, when we arrived at a bend in the river they took off their shoes and I watched them cross the flowing river; the water was nearly to their knees. They still had a distance to walk on the other side of the river too.

Very early in the morning on Sunday, I left Pilat; there was no driver available on Saturday as I had hoped.    

Premye Kominyon
On Sunday three girls who reside at the orphanage received the sacrament of First Holy Communion.  Since the mass had already started by the time I arrived in Okap, and I had attended liturgy on Saturday evening in Pilat, I went to the orphanage in the morning to help prepare for the party.  We had a joyful celebration! Relatives of the first communicants came for othe meal.  There was a lot of great food and delicious cake which the children all enjoyed.

Panèl Solè

While I was away, solar panels were installed on the roof of Leocaide Convent, where I live.  This will save on fuel costs. We are fortunate enough to be living in a place where there is electricity from the electric company, (many places in Haiti are not on the grid; many people do not have electricity.) The electricity from the company inconsistent and unpredictable and we may get a few hours of electricity a day.  We also use a generator which charges batteries on the inverter so that we have electricity whenever we need it.  We will not need to run the generator nearly as often with the solar panels.  We will continue to have times when the electricity is off such as during the night.   The major advantages include saving on fuel costs and of course the environmental benefits.

That is all my news for this week.  I hope you are doing well.  Thank you for taking the time to read my weekly update.  Have a good week. Many blessings!  

          

The Voice, Little Turtle, and Baby Egrets

Three Haitian Sisters of Holy Cross are celebrating jubilees this year.  They are celebrating 25, 50 and 60 years in religious life.  On Saturday evening there was a special mass of thanksgiving for their lives and commitment.  Liturgy was followed by a tasty dinner which was followed by the sister's rendition of the television show, "The Voice."  There are many talented singers in the congregation and the sisters who served as the judges really got into character making for a very entertaining evening.

On Sunday evening I arrived in Pilate, where I am working at the school this week mostly with the preschool children and their teachers.  Some of the children ask for the turtle puppet that I use for psycho-educational lessons as soon as they seem me.  If I don't happen to have the puppet on hand (literally) I tell them Little Turtle is sleeping, which seems to satisfy some of them.  It has been great to connect with the teachers and students again and to see how much the children have grown since my previous visit.  I had planned to visit several times since but for various reasons it had not worked out. We were lucky that the rain was not too heavy on Sunday, that the rivers were not too deep, that we were able to make the journey.  I am grateful that I am here this week.


There is a beautiful large old tree in the middle of the school yard where egrets nest and herons sleep.  This tree and the nesting birds fascinated me last year. This year I have actually seen a couple of babies in the egrets' nests and even got a a few photos!

Have a great week!  Many blessings!





        

Okap to Okay

Every year Leocadie Convent takes a community trip together to visit a different part of Hait.  This year we went to Okay which is located in the south, even further away than Jacmel where we went last year.  On Friday morning, the 15 of us who live here and our driver filled the convent mini-bus and departed just before 9:00 am; for that many people to be ready to go several minutes before schedule seemed to me to be a small miracle.  We stopped at the sister's beach house to eat food which the postulants had prepared on Thursday evening.  We arrived in Port-au-Prince late in the evening where we ate, visited with other sisters who were living or staying there and went to bed.

We departed well before the sun came out on Saturday morning.  The national road to Okay was impressively wide and well paved. It rained lightly much of the way.  When we arrived at the Botanical Garden which we had planned to visit, it appeared to be closed.  We called the number on the wall.  Although at that time it was only sprinkling lightly they were not sure if they were going to open due to the rain and mud. The sister explained that we had come all of the way from Cap-Haitian (really the other side of the country) to visit the garden.  They agreed to call us and let us know when they would open later in the day.

Next, we went to a convent to visit the Godmother of one of the sisters.  While we were there the rains increased.  The sister said that schools had been closed the day before because of all of the rain. We ate some snacks we had brought with us and drank some fresh fruit juice that the sister provided, and we were grateful for the bathroom.

Next, we went to a beach, where we walked around a bit.  I had hoped to swim but the rainy damp weather dissuaded me.  I took a few pictures instead.  Then we found an affordable restaurant that could accommodate our large group in downtown Okay.  We generally don't eat out, so this was a special treat indeed. It was raining quite heavily while we were at the restaurant, I was beginning to give up on the idea of visiting the garden when one of the sisters got a phone call saying that they were ready for us to come.



After our lunch, we headed back to the Botanical Garden, where we got a great tour even though it was raining.  We had to cross a swollen stream and of water and climb up a muddy hill to get to the actual garden; it was an adventure!   Because I wanted to hear what the tour guide was telling us, did not want my camera to get wet, and felt that it was important to stay with the group, I did not take as many pictures as I would have otherwise.  Our guide showed us trees, and a garden of medicinal plants pointed out various flowers and even explained why hibiscus is called "choublak" in Haitian Creole.  (Because a long time ago foreigners who must have spoken English used to use it to shine their black shoes.)  It was all very interesting and well worth the trip.  In addition to giving tours, they educate people about plants in Haiti, and preserve and study plants. They sell plants too; the sister who is the coordinator of our house bought one to plant in our yard. The stream of water separating the parking lot and garden had become wider and deeper during our tour; our tour guide literally carried our oldest community member across the water so that she would not fall.

 
      The postulants and sisters sang hymns most of the way back to PortauPrince.  Once we arrived in the capital we stopped to see a very nice school that is named after Fr. Moreau, the founder of the Holy Cross congregations; the school is sponsored by the men's congregation.  We chatted with a priest briefly.  It was late in the evening when we returned to the convent in the capital.  On Sunday morning after mass and breakfast, we made the journey back to Leocaide Convent in Cap-Haitian.  There was a traffic jam caused by a truck that was stuck in the mud on a windy mountainous road; they are working on the road hopefully one day it will be wide and well paved like the street to Okay.  It was a great community experience as well as a wonderful opportunity to see so much of the country, a truly beautiful place.

Yesterday, I learned that there is a lot of flooding in several areas of Haiti, especially in the south, the area that we visited; that is the same area that received a lot of damage last Fall as a result of Hurricane Mattew.  Let us be mindful of and pray for all those affected by the flooding.  As I write this it is starting to rain heavily here, probably just a passing thunderstorm.

Take care.  Many blessings!
 

Holy Week, Easter and Other Updates

Happy Easter!  

This year the sisters here all attended the Holy Week and Easter liturgies at new our local parish.  The neighborhood parish began last summer, so this was the first Tridium and Easter celebration for the parish community.  

I have always loved the image of Jesus washing the feet of his friends and followers during the last supper.  It challenges me to strive always to serve with greater humility.  Wearing sandals most days and walking or biking between the convent and the orphanage, I have a greater appreciation for the practical necessity of washing feet.  Since most of the roads I travel are not paved (as roads were not in Jesus time,) my feet become filthy with mud after there's been rain or dust when it is dry.  Many mornings I wash my feet upon arrival at the orphanage.  Like Peter, I likely would object if Jesus or anyone else offered to do this for me; "No, I'll do it myself, thank you."  There are times when I need to learn the humility that also comes with allowing others to serve me.    

My Good Friday thoughts have to do with the reality that the crucifixion is still happening to so many people in our world today in so many forms.  I was thinking too, that in each of us live all of the characters in the story of Jesus' death; we have probably each at one time or another played each part, even if only in a small way.  We have all probably been victims of injustice hanging on the cross, as well as those going along with the crowd who call out, "crucify him."  We have all been the betrayers as well as the betrayed.  Each of us has in one way or another nailed somone to a cross and helped people  to carry theirs, and we have felt the weight of our own.  We are the apostles who fled in fear and we are the women who stayed.   

The Easter vigil mass at our parish was scheduled to start at 10:00 pm but began a bit later.  It was completely dark when the liturgy began.  The fire was lit, then the paschal candle from which we lit the candles we had brought with us.  It was a beautiful ceremony, especially in the beginning.  In reality, it was a bit long for me as the homily which was essentially a recap of the many readings was a full 40 minutes.  At one point, I turned around to notice that many people had their heads down on the desks (we don't have pews) in front of them sleeping.  The music was lively at times and there was a wonderful sense of Eater Joy even if many were exhausted.  It was nearly 2 am when the mass ended. 

On Easter afternoon, we had a party for the children at the orphanage that included a special dinner, popcorn, and cake.  Later that evening many of the children and sisters went to a concert at the sisters' high school in the city.  Very talented students beautifully sang many French and two Spanish hymns.  (Personally, I wished they would have sung in Creole too.) The children from the orphanage enjoyed the outing.  They had never been to a concert before and a few after happily agreeing to go, but before we left, came to me and asked, "Ki sa konsè vle di?"  (What does concert mean?.)         

Other Updates: 

The three second-year postulants who were living at other convents since the fall, returned yesterday afternoon.  There are now 15 women residing here at Leocaide Convent.  We have had to rearrange the dining room tables so that we can all eat together.   

Today the children returned to school after nearly two weeks of Easter vacation.  

We are entering mango season once again.  Alleluia!  

May you experience the resurrection in your life during this joyful season of Easter.  Many blessings! 

Pizza

Instead of taking the time to write a reflective blog about any one of the many events of the past week (and getting all of the tasks on my Tuesday to-do list done,) I made pizza.  In the morning I took a tap-tap into the city where I bought Mozzarella cheese at a little store by the sea that sells imported products.  In the afternoon I made four pizzas.   The sisters and postulants really seemed to enjoy it.  You may have been expecting me to share a spiritual insight especially since it is Holy Week, but instead you're getting a picture of pizza, since this is all I have to offer at the moment.  I would share the actual pizza with you if it were possible to send it electronically; in reality I will be quite satisfied if I can actually post the picture because the internet connection is not stable at the moment.   

I do wish you many blessings during this holy week.  I will strive to write a more insightful post soon. Take care.     

Professional Peer Support & Photos

Children's homemade kites fly high in the Haitian sky

Professional Peer Support 
There is a Canadian School Psychologist visiting the orphanage and volunteering for a couple of weeks.  It is helpful to be able to connect with another therapist and share ideas and perspectives.  During my first year in here Cap-Haitian at times, I felt very professionally isolated.  Participating in on-line play therapy training this year and last through the Family & Play Therapy Center has been a great help.  Still having someone on-site even if only temporarily, who is interacting with the same children and seems to understand what I am doing and acknowledges the challenges I face has been very affirming and energizing.  I realize that having professional support is not a luxury, if I am to do my best work, it is a necassity.  Now, as I am discerning whether or not I will continue to work in Haiti next year, I am wondering if I do, how I can connect with other local mental health professionals for peer support possabilites.

Photos
On Friday evening as I was preparing to mount the convent bicycle to leave the orphanage for the day, I heard bird songs from a cluster of trees behind the orphanage covenant.  Taking my camera out of my backpack, I went to investigate. The plush tree contained five nests and flock of yellow boisterous birds.

  

  















Taking pictures has taught me to notice things (even when my camera is not readilyavalaible) that I previously may have missed.

Rising above an expansive pile of litter, a beautiful flower blooms.
Swimming in puddles of seeming roadside muck, transforming tadpoles.
The once discarded plastic bag blowing through the fields, now a child's treasure, a kite flying high, decorating the sky.

As I write this, I realize these are perfectly appropriate images for the liturgical season of Lent and the quickly approaching feast of Easter.  May I and each of us embrace the radical transformation that God invites us to.  Many blessings!