June 18 - Hiking, Haiti Walmart?, VBS Fun

Team got up at 4:00 a.m. today to take a hike up to a mountain top village Lifeline supports.  Elevation: 2,200 ft. Steep climb!



Sites along the way.  Haitians passing them up in flip flops carrying 60 lb. loads on their heads.





Voodoo temple at the top of the mountain.





Coming down!




Walmart? A Haitian market.





Fish anyone?  Don't forget the flies.




Or would you prefer chicken or maybe a skinned goat head?





Zach with the team's dear friend and interpretor, Salvador.  What a blessing he was to the team; especially the teens.  He often talked to them about God and loving and respecting their parents.  He told them that God put him in Haiti.  He doesn't know why but He did and that he has to love and serve God in all he does in Haiti; eating, sleeping, loving his family, working, etc.  He told the teens that God put them in Michigan, not Haiti.  He encouraged them not to compare the living conditions and wonder why God put them in the U.S. and Salvador in Haiti.  But instead, love and serve God in all they do in Michigan or wherever God has them.  In their eating, sleeping, working, schooling, and play.  A very special man.




VBS at a Baptist orphanage.





Everyone is tired as we head back to the Mission.  Even John.  It was a very full day!





Dinner at the Cantina.  And a cold pop!



Today started out very early for some of the team.  All but three members arose at 4:00 a.m. to begin a hike up a mountain outside the Mission compound.  Elevation....2,200 feet!  The team's fearless leader for the hike, Logan, wasn't sure they were going to make it.  But they did.  At the top was a village and school that Lifeline supports.  Since it was Saturday, there were no children in the school.  They walked around a bit and also visited another voodoo temple.  The way down was even more difficult than the climb up.  One young team member made the comment when she returned that she felt like a failure.  Why?  Well, she shared that as she huffed and puffed her way up and down this mountain, that she was often passed by Haitians walking in flip flops and carrying 60 lb. loads on top of their heads!  More perspective for you!  Pete and Jay had a special time of prayer over a Haitian man they met along the way. "When Jesus saw him lying there and learned that he had been in this condition for a long time, he asked, 'Do you want to get well?' " John 5:6 In the late morning, the Bunse family arrived and joined the team.  They are adopting a little Haitian girl named Raymonda.  Three of the Bunse kids - Lily, PJ and Amanda, joined us on many of our adventures.  After a short rest and lunch, Donald wanted the team to experience a Haitian Walmart.  Well, to say the least it didn't resemble the Walmarts we knew back home.  He took us to an outdoor market where Haitians go to buy and sell anything such as livestock, clothing, food, toiletries, charcoal to cook with, cars.....you name it.  This is the place they buy and sell it.  The smells, the sights, the sounds, the heat, the closeness....it was almost overwhelming at different points.  Fish, meat, goat heads....covered in flies.  We walked through the market to the ocean side where fishing boats that look like they belong in time 2,000 years ago, bring charcoal over from the island off of Haiti.  Our feet and legs were black by the time we left there.  Danielle, Chris and Kim took turns carrying John.  As Danielle carried John, a few older Haitian women would go up to Danielle and touch her arm, look at John and tell Danielle, "God bless you".  We think they thought he was hers.  We were all very glad to see the yellow school bus and we climbed in a bit overwhelmed by what we had just experienced.  It was a good experience to see this part of their culture and how they have to shop.  It made us all appreciate the stores at home and how clean.....everything....compared to this place.  Then we headed off to an orphanage run by a Baptist Church.  This was a large, clean and very well built orphanage.  The team did another VBS at this orphanage and we had great fun here with the children.  After the lesson, craft and snack time happened, an indoor keep away game began with the older children of the orphanage and the "older children" of the team.....namely the dads! although the teens were involved as well.  But the dads were much more "vocal".  Much laughter!  After that we headed back to the Mission.  We were all very hot and tired after this day.  We had dinner in the Cantina that evening.  A Haitian dinner prepared by some of the women who arrive as early as 4:00 a.m. every morning to the Mission to cook the food that will be distributed that day to the various feeding stations.  The food they prepared and served was wonderful.  Especially the fried plantain.  We also received the treat of a cold pop in a glass bottle.  Wow!  That tasted good!  Donald's rule of thumb is that you aren't allowed to enjoy a cold pop in Haiti until you've been there for three days.  :-)  It was a very LONG day beginning at 4:00 a.m. and ending right after supper.  We skipped the time of worship, debrief and prayer.  Everyone was exhausted.  Great day though.  Saw God working in many ways in both team members and in the people around us!  Each day we've been blessed with "God incidences"...not coindences.