katie loves haiti: A Week Recap

Oh my, where do I begin?? First of all let me apologize in advance if this post is hard to follow. I am very tired, emotional, and I have way too much to try and remember to put into this post. I suppose since I only had the opportunity to post on my blog once this past week, I need to do a recap for all of you. This week seems like such a blur. Time in Haiti seems as if it passes so slowly and yet the days and the weeks are a blur.

Although I know this week was difficult for some of my family members, it was also great. We were able to play with the kids at Dorothy's house, see various parts of the city, repaint and clean Dorothy's living room, paint a mural on the wall of my classroom (mostly done by Kara and Aunt Kathy), help at feeding program, visit “The Apparent Project”, and move all of my belongings into my new apartment. A lot was accomplished in about five days.

I know that for my family, the heat was one of the biggest struggles. It was INCREDIBLY hot here this week. The majority of the time at Dorothy's was spent without electricity. We were fortunate that only one or two nights were spent trying to sleep without fans. I admit that the heat this week was (and still is) miserable, but it did not seem to bother me as much as everyone else. I think that because I know I am staying here for so long, I am in a different mindset than others that are only staying here for a week.

The kids were very happy to play with all of us and spend time with us. We were so busy bouncing from place to place or from Dorothy's house to my apartment that quite honestly I didn't feel as if we spent as much time with the kids as I am used to.

Last night (my family's last night here) we took six of the kids from Dorothy's out for pizza along with my friend Marc. So in total, we ended up having 7 adults and 6 children piled in a pick-up truck (driven by yours truly). I think that the adults enjoyed the delicious pizza as much as the kids. Chacha managed to eat 4 pieces of pizza and even three year old Lovensky ate three whole pieces!

We decided that for my family's last night here in PAP some of them would stay with me at my apartment so that I wouldn't have to be there alone for my first night. Mom and Dad decided to stay at Dorothy's while my cousin Kara, my Aunt Kathy, and my sister Abby all came to sleep over with me. Because I only have one full sized bed in my apartment, Kara offered to sleep on the floor, Aunt Kat took the couch, and Abby and I shared my bed. It was pretty cozy in my little place! I got a great night's sleep and I'm thankful to have such a beautiful little apartment to live in.

Today, my family left. I will be honest and say that it was difficult for me. Being left behind in a foreign country, no matter how much I love this country, is always hard for me. Saying goodbye to my entire family and watching them get on a plane home without me is hard. Dorothy's driver Samuel drove us all to the airport to drop them off. After quickly saying our goodbyes on the curb in front of the airport, I got back in the truck with Samuel. I was fighting tears and didn't say a word as I waved goodbye to my family. Samuel simply said, “Miss Katie, I know it is very difficult for you to say goodbye to the people you love. It is ok if you don't want to talk on the way home.” I was very thankful for that.

When I arrived back at Dorothy's I had a sinking (almost sick) feeling in the pit of my stomach. I knew that her house was no longer home for me, and with my family gone it seemed even more strange there. It was too quite and I was wishing that they were still there with me. I was still fighting tears, and I just did not have the energy or enthusiasm to go play with the children. So I talked with Dorothy for a little while, then decided to gather up the rest of my belongings and take them to my apartment.

After carrying my things to my apartment, I unsuccessfully tried to e-mail my family (even though I knew they were still on the plane). The internet was not working, and I wanted something to get my mind off of the fact that I was all alone. Cleaning and organizing my apartment and classroom was not going to be enough to take my mind off of things. I knew that if I did that, I would just think about my family while I did it. So, I called Dorothy's driver, Samuel. I asked him to call me when he was finished with work so that he could teach me how to “tap-tap”.

In Haiti, a tap-tap is a Haitian taxi. It is a small pick-up truck with a cap over the bed of the truck. In the bed, there are two benches welded in place (one across each side). There is no limit to how many people can fit in a tap-tap. The running jokes is: Question- How many people can you fit in a tap-tap? Answer- One more! Since I am living on my own now without a vehicle, I want to learn to get around like the Haitians do. I want to be able to be independent. So, I walked with Samuel from my apartment to the nearest tap-tap route. We flagged down a passing tap-tap and squeezed inside. It was about as comfortable as you would imagine riding in the back of a stuffy pick-up with 13 other grown adults to be (in other words not comfortable at all). We rode that tap-tap to the end of its route, got off, and paid the driver 10 goudes for each of us (roughly 25 cents US). From there, we walked the remainder of the way to the grocery store where I went shopping. From there, Samuel had to take one more tap-tap ride, a bus ride, and a motorcycle ride to get all the way to his house on the mountain.

At the grocery store, I only purchased as much as I could fit into my backpack because I knew that I would have to carry everything home. For about $35 US I bought a small bottle of cooking oil, butter, spaghetti, tomato sauce, salad dressing, yogurt, a small package of powdered dish washing detergent, a scrub brush, a toilet brush, and four rolls of toilet paper. Don't worry, I am not going to starve! I already have a few things in my fridge besides that. Not to mention the heat really affects my appetite. I feel like I've barely eaten all week. Shopping on my own today made me realize how much more expensive things are here in Haiti. I already knew that in theory, but shopping today really brought that to light. I won't be having very many gourmet meals here at my apartment, ha!

After paying for my groceries, I loaded up my backpack. Since Samuel was on his way up the mountain I was on my own. I walked from the grocery store to the nearest tap-tap station. I loaded up with 12 other people, paid my ten goudes, and road to my stop at Rue Catalpa. Then from there, I walked the remainder of the way to my little apartment. I really appreciate Samuel helping me, he is a very nice man. I called him as soon as I got home because he wanted to make sure that everything went ok for me on the tap-tap alone. To be honest, I could easily walk the entire way from my apartment to the grocery store. But, I wanted to practice riding a tap-tap (and it is really hot out, too).

Everything went well, and I am back safe and sound. It is raining lightly right now which has cooled things off a little. The puppy at the orphanage next door does not seem to be enjoying it. He is yipping and whining and it is making me miss my doggie, Jake. I am praying that my family is safe on their flight. They should be landing soon in New Jersey. I am praying that the internet will work so that I can actually post this blog (I'm typing it in Word right now). I am praying that the heaviness on my heart will lift as I settle back into life here in Haiti. I am praying that I will not feel alone. I am praying that if God is calling anyone to Haiti, that they will hear and obey His calling despite their own desires. I am praying for protection and guidance as I learn to live on my own here.

To end this blog post, I would like to share some of the highlights of my week:

-when our flight touched down in Haiti

-when I got to see “my kids” again

-having my family here in Haiti with me

-knowing what a leap of faith it was for my aunt and cousin to come to Haiti with me

-seeing the joy in my Dad's face throughout the entire week

-watching my mom work hard all week

-my sister being so easy going (like always) and just going with the flow no matter what we were doing

-my cousin, Kara, being so happy-go-lucky all the time and always brightening the room

-my aunt toughing it out despite being homesick and not feeling the greatest

-Kara and Aunt Kathy painting such a beautiful mural on my classroom wall

-Dad traveling “Haitian style” with Samuel for one whole day. He rode on two tap-taps, a bus, and a 125 cc motorcycle with two other grown men (if only I could have see that with my own eyes!)

-knowing that God's hand was in every part of this week

-seeing everyone in my family interacting with and loving on the kids

-having my family with me for this big transition into my own apartment

-having my family sleepover with me on my first night at the apartment

-listening to my dad attempting to speak Creole and building relationships with the nannies at Dorothy's

And now for the funniest sayings of the week (mostly from Kara):

-”Are you going to drink a Preggers, Steve?” (she was confused and reffering to a “Prestige” which is a Haitian beer. Needless to say we all looked at her funny and were a little confused)

-”Livingston” (Kara accidentally called Lovensky “Livingston”)

-”Wilmington” (again, Kara accidentally called Wilmerson “Wilmington”)

-”Wilkerton” (another one of Kara's names for Wilmerson)

-”Stinky” (Kara's name for Stripey, Dorothy's dog)

-”I wish I had diarrhea” (Abby after not being bound up for nearly the entire week) **hopefully this doesn't offend you**

-”Oh, I don't need anything to eat I still have a little bit of reserve fat on my love handles that I am living off of” (Kara after we hadn't eaten all day)

***I apologize for the poor quality pictures. I left my camera transfer cord in the US so I cannot put any of the pictures from my camera online or on my computer. So, I have resorted to using my iPod to take pictures (no flash)....it is better than nothing though!

My classroom (view facing doorway and chalkboard)

My classroom

Kara petting the poor little starving puppy that we found

poor baby :(

If only we could save every dog that looks like this...there are just too many

walking to Dorothy's from my apartment

walking

handmade paper beads at "The Apparent Project" in my neighborhood

Kara picking out jewelry to sell in her shop. All the proceeds go to the Haitian men and women who made the jewlery

Abby checking out the jewelry and purses

My cousin Kara and my Aunt Kathy priming the wall of my classroom to paint a mural

Kara sketching the mural onto the wall

Starting to paint!

Abby and Kara painting

the almost finished mural...it is BEAUTIFUL!

in my apartment--the view from the kitchen into the living room...the bedroom is behind the living room and the bathroom is to the right of the kitchen