How does your garden grow?

Many of you asked me that question this summer, and until I got back to Haiti, I wasn't sure how it was doing.  I have news for you!  The garden is growing wonderfully!!!!  It truly is a miracle!

When I arrived back in Gonaives, one of the first things I did was go out to Jubilee to visit and to see the progress of the garden.  It was even better than I had hoped!

Although most of the original trees that the kids planted did not make it, Josh, his mom, and our Haitian friend JB worked hard all summer long to plant new trees.

They planted 9 trees in June.  One was stolen, but the other 8 trees are not only still alive....they are GROWING!

Of the original 75 trees, I am happy to report that a few of them are still hanging in there despite the odds.  Trying to grow this garden in Jubilee is difficult in so many ways.  Basically every obstacle possible is present: wind, no shade, salty ground, periods of no rain, then periods of VERY heavy hard rain.  If that isn't enough, our biggest obstacles are the fact that people like to steal the trees and goats like to get in the garden and eat them!

Over the summer, two goats snuck into the garden and ate ALL the leaves off of the trees that my students planted.  Miraculously, the trees are still alive and the leaves are growing back.

I have a renewed hope and I am overjoyed at how well the garden looks.  I would like to ask all of you to praise God for this man proudly standing in the middle of the bean sprouts that he planted in the garden.

This is JB.  He is the reason that our garden is still alive.  From day one, he has been there morning and night tirelessly caring for the trees.  All summer long while we Americans were visiting the US, he took care of the garden.  We don't pay him.  We didn't ask him to do this for us.  He does it because he has a dream and a vision.  He told me once, "When I as a kid, Jubilee was bad.  It was really bad.  If I had to rate it, I would have given it a two out of ten.  It was ugly and dangerous.  It was so bad that my parents sent me to live with someone in Port au Prince because they were scared for my safety.  But now, since you have all come to help us, Jubilee is a seven out of ten!  I want to help, too.  I want Jubilee to be safe and beautiful.  I want people to come to Jubilee and sit under our trees.  It will happen!  I know the trees will grow!"

On days when I wanted to give up because our trees kept dying, JB gave me encouragement and he was always positive.  He works so hard to make his dream...our dream...a reality for Jubilee.  Please keep him and our garden in your prayers!