ARTICLE: Haiti could see the deadliest effects of Sandy...

Please read this article and take time to pray for the situation here.  It seems like our poor country never gets a break.  I've already noticed this week that in the market some of our food staples are more expensive and more scarce.  

The original article is found online here.

Haiti could see the deadliest effects of Sandy as food dwindles and cholera spikes

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti, Wednesday October 31, 2012 – As if the mud, misery, loss of life and homelessness in Hurricane Sandy’s wake weren’t bad enough, the worst may yet be to come for disaster-ravaged Haiti.

Massive crop damage throughout the southern third of the country, as well as the likelihood of a spike in cases of cholera and other water-borne diseases, could mean that the impoverished country will experience the deadliest effects of the storm’s havoc in the days and weeks ahead.

Sandy claimed the most lives in the Caribbean in Haiti, as swollen rivers and landslides resulted in a death toll of at least 52 persons, according to the country's Civil Protection office.

Over three days of continuous rain left roads and bridges heavily damaged, cutting off access to several towns and a key border crossing with the Dominican Republic, moreover.

According to Prime Minister Laurent Lamothe, "the economy took a huge hit" and the hurricane’s impact was devastating, "even by international standards". He added that Haiti was planning an appeal for emergency aid.

"Most of the agricultural crops that were left from Hurricane Isaac were destroyed during Sandy," Lamothe said, "so food security will be an issue."

The widespread loss of crops and supplies in the south, both for commercial growers and subsistence farmers, is a source of grave concern.

A series of nationwide protests and general strikes over the rising cost of living rocked the country even before Hurricane Sandy hit, and Jean Debalio Jean-Jacques, the Ministry of Agriculture's director for the southern department, said he worried that the massive crop loss "could aggravate the situation."

"The storm took everything away," he said. "Everything the peasants had in reserve - corn, tubers - all of it was devastated. Some people had already prepared their fields for winter crops and those were devastated."

On Haiti's south-western tip, the Abricots community was still recovering from the effects of Hurricane Tomas and a recent dry spell when Sandy struck.

"We'll have famine in the coming days," said Abricots Mayor Kechner Toussaint. "It's an agricultural disaster."

The main staples of the local diet, bananas and breadfruit, were ripped out by winds and ruined by heavy rains.

In Camp-Perrin, a mountainous region in the southwest peninsula, coffee planters lamented the loss of a harvest they were weeks away from collecting.

"Coffee is the bank account of the peasants," said Maurice Jean-Louis, a planter and head of a coffee growers' cooperative in Camp-Perrin. Rain flooded many storage areas as well, soaking coffee beans that were set aside for export. He called the damage "incalculable."

In Port-au-Prince, Sandy destroyed concrete homes and tent camps alike, where 370,000 victims of the 2010 earthquake are still living. Authorities said 18,000 families were left homeless in the disaster.

Adding to the despair, a sharp rise in suspected cholera cases has been reported by aid organizations in several departments.

At least 86 new cases have come from Port-au-Prince's earthquake survivor camps alone, according to Dr. Juan Carlos Gustavo Alonso of the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO). Many communities are still cut off and only accessible by helicopter, he said, so the broader rise in cholera was "still too early to tell."

Cholera has sickened almost 600,000 people and killed more than 7,400 since October 2010 in Haiti.

The state and international aid organizations have been distributing food, water and other items to affected camps and communities, including personal distributions by President Michel Martelly.

"These stocks are running dangerously low," said George Ngwa, spokesman for OCHA, a humanitarian coordinating body in Haiti. "After Tropical Storm Isaac in August, these stocks have not been replenished. What we're doing is scraping the bottom." 

Read more: http://www.caribbean360.com/index.php/news/haiti_news/629783.html#ixzz2BGTNN6WG

Meet Henry!

If you know me or have been reading my blog for a while, you know that I have a Haitian dog named Jake.  I found Jake when he was only about a month old.  He had a broken leg, was covered in lice and mites, and he was nearly dead.  I rescued him, patched him up, and he's been my most loyal friend ever since.  He even moved with me to the United States.  Unfortunately, I came back to Haiti and he did not.  He now lives with my mom and dad.  Of course, when I'm visiting, he knows that he's still my boy.  Any dog lover knows how much they become a part of your family.  I miss Jake as much almost as much my friends and family when I'm here in Haiti.

Jake and I 

Here in Gonaives, I share a house with another American, Julie.  She and I talked about getting a pet for our new house.  She suggested a puppy, but I remember how much work and commitment dogs take.  With my busy teaching schedule and lack of free time, I didn't think I was up for all that.  So, I suggested a cat.  It would be great for catching rodents and cockroaches and good company.  However, Julie hates cats.  Unable to come to an agreement, we let the idea of a pet go for a little while.

The week of my birthday, April (the principal of our school) asked me if I could puppy-sit the school's ten week old "watch dog" for a weekend.  She needed to go to Port and had no one to watch Rex, the Haitian puppy.  Wanting to help (and being a dog lover), I agreed.  When I took him home, I specifically had to remind myself not to get attached to him since he was not actually my dog.  April's trip to Port kept getting extended and with each passing day, I got more and more attached to the feisty little guy.  I ended up watching Rex for a week and by the time that April got back to Gonaives, I was very sad to say goodbye to him.

He found a box to sleep in while I was teaching

Luckily for me, April and Lala heard how much I loved the puppy.  So, they came back from Port with a leash and collar, and they gave Rex to me for my birthday!  However, there was a slight problem.  The reason that April went to Port was to pick up HER birthday present from the airport.  Someone sent her a Rhodesian Ridgeback puppy named Dexter.  She calls him Dex for short.  Having Dex and Rex play together was not only confusing for the puppies, but also for all the people around!

So, I decided to change Rex's name.  After lots of deliberation, Julie and I decided to name our puppy, Henry.  Why you ask?  No reason in particular.  All the names that I liked, she didn't like.  And all the names she liked, I didn't like.  Our little pup is sweet and loving but he has a feisty spirit about him.  Before we became his owners, he was accidentally dropped off of a second story building by a four year old (who shall remain nameless).  If that isn't bad enough, he was also stolen three times in Jubilee.  Thankfully, he was able to run away and find his way back to the school each time!  That being said, we thought that he needed a strong sounding name.  I didn't know the meaning of the name Henry until after I named him: home ruler.  I might be in trouble! So without further ado, I would like to introduce you all to the newest addition!  Meet Henry!

He is cuddly and very playful.  He is already mostly potty trained, and he has mastered the treacherous steps up to our house (this is no lie, our steps are steep high...everyone complains).

When I take him for walks, nearly everyone we pass says, "Blan, ba'm yon kado ti chen an"  Which means, "White person, give me your little dog as a gift."  I have several responses to that request such as: No, I love him, too much and I would cry if I gave him to you. or  No, he's a Haitian dog and there are plenty more exactly like him so just go find a different one in the street.  People usually like the humor and stop bugging me after they hear my response.

Henry rides on the back of a motorcycle with me almost everyday to get to school and rides home on a tap-tap after school.  Yes, I'm serious.  And yes, everyone laughs at us.  I even have a little cardboard crate that April made for him in my classroom, although he's not really a fan of it.

My students love him and whenever I don't bring him with me, they always ask about him.

Henry hanging out with his mama in my classroom.

I fell asleep on the floor and he decided to snuggle up with me.  Thanks to Julie for the picture!

I still miss Jake and no other dog will ever take his place, but it sure is nice to have the company of Henry and he is earning his own little place in my heart!

Five simple words

Five simple words that can change lives.  Five simple words that can create impossible friendships.  Five simple words that break down walls.  Five simple words that can bring the Kingdom of Heaven here on earth...........Can I pray for you?  

Rewind back to over two years ago.  I was preparing to move to Haiti.  A close family friend/pastor spoke some prophetic words over me, as did my sister.  The Lord told them that when I went to Haiti, there would be healing.  I was told that God wanted me to go to Haiti expecting healing instead of asking for it.   

During my past two years in Haiti, I have prayed for many people and I've seen very little obvious results from those prayers.  I've prayed for pain and sickness.   I've prayed for children with AIDS.  I've prayed for legs to grow out.  I've prayed for crippled body parts.  I've laid hands on the dead and prayed for them to be raised up again.  In all of those prayers, I saw ONE healed back.  It was incredible that God healed a man's back after I prayed, but I've wanted more.  Just one is not enough.  God always does something when we pray, but it has not looked like what I expected.  I've been frustrated to say the least.  

I also deal with the frustrations of how I am treated here in Gonaives on a daily basis. I have written about the struggles of being a white person here.  I've explained how incredibly difficult it is to walk home from Jubilee.  I am made fun of, harassed, begged for money, and hit on.  I often ask for patience and for the presence of God to rest upon me and for His light to be seen, but on most days, by the time I get home I'm tired, frustrated, and grumpy.

On an average day, the walk home from school is my least favorite part of the day.  Not because I don't like walking, but because of the way I am treated.  Friday, I was in a good mood all day and God had been blessing me with supernatural amounts of patience.  So, I decided to do something different.  Instead of letting myself get hurt by people or frustrated, I decided that when people yelled to me or said things about me, I would stop and talk to each them.  

I passed by dozens of people on the street yelling at me and asking for things.  For some people I just said a simple, "Bonswa" and for others I stopped and had conversations.  One man obnoxiously yelled to me from the opposite side of the road, "Hey white girl!  Come talk to me!"  I said, "Bonswa, how are you?"  He was taken aback.  I crossed the road to speak to him and he began telling me how nice it was for me to talk to him.  He thanked me for not embarrassing him by walking on past.  He said that he liked the way I interacted, and he complimented my Creole.  He asked if it was ok for him to greet me if we pass in the street again.  He did NOT hit on me, make sexual comments, tell me I was pretty, or ask for my phone number.  It was a BEAUTIFUL encounter.  

I had several other great conversations as I walked.  By the time that I arrived at the town square, I had a spring in my step.  In the square is a huge Catholic church.

This is the square in Gonaives.  You can see the huge A frame church on the right. (picture taken from Google since I didn't have a picture of it) it is not in this picture, but usually, this area is filled with people.

 As always, there were four old beggar ladies sitting along the fence in front of the church.  I knew they were going to beg from me if I walked by.  I thought to myself, "I've had a great walk so far.  I don't want to ruin it now."  I considered crossing the street before I passed them in order to avoid their begging (I'm not always a good person).  You see, any time that I tell someone I'm not going to give them anything, they get angry.  They yell at me and tell me that I'm selfish (among other things).  I really just wanted to avoid all of that.

Instead, I decided to walk past them.  As expected, they held out their hands to beg.  I stopped in front of them and kindly said, "I'm not going to give you money, but I'd love to just talk to you if you would like."  Their faces lit up.  They all four jumped up off the ground and gave me huge toothless smiles.  The were skin and bones.  When I asked them how they were doing, they responded, "Not good at all.  We got really muddy and wet last night in the hurricane."  I said, "Oh, I'm sorry.  Did the rain come in your house?"  The all shook their heads and said, "No, we don't have houses.  We live under a tree.  We are homeless."  I was floored.  I didn't even know what to say.  They only thing I could think of was, "Can I pray for you?"  

I'm glad that was the only thing I could think to say because their response was so surprising.  "YES!  Please pray for us!"  they excitedly said.  However, the woman closest to my left said, "Well, before you can pray, what church do you go to?"  I told her, "Well, I go to different places and sometimes I just worship God at my house instead of in a church."  She didn't seem pleased with that answer and she cut me off before I could even finish speaking.  "So, you don't go to this Catholic church," she asked me motioning towards the church behind her.  "No, I don't." I responded.  She sat down and said, "Oh.  Well, then I don't want you to pray for me."  

I smiled at her and then gently said, "That's no problem, madame.  However, I believe that it does not matter what church we go to.  If we are all in agreement that we love God, if we all worship him, and we all pray to him, I believe that we we can all pray together."  The three women standing next to me all nodded their heads in agreement and said, "AMEN!"  She still did not want prayer.  So, I put my arm around the three woman still standing and I began to pray.  Instantly as I started praying, the woman who had said she didn't want prayer stood up.  She came beside me and put her arm around me.  I knew in that moment that God was doing something important there.  He was moving.  He was present and He had planned that meeting.  We began to pray together right there in the middle of the busiest part of the city.

After praying a short prayer of blessing and provision for the women, people were starring at me as they passed by.  I realized that I already looked like a crazy person.  I figured that I might as well make it worthwhile and keep praying!  By looking at skinny fragile bodies, I realized I was about to ask a redundant question: Do any of you have pain or sickness that I can pray for specifically?

Immediately, they were all speaking at once.  I could barely understand what they were saying, but I could tell they most definitely wanted and needed more prayer.  One woman literally said, "My entire body hurts.  Pray for everything in my body.  It is all bad."  I started with the woman to my left (the one who originally didn't want prayer at all).  "Pray for my son," she said, "He's wicked.  He steals and lies.  He has murdered people and he has raped women.  He is an embarrassment to me and I don't know what to do." Before praying, I warned them that I don't often pray in Creole since it is not the language of my heart.  They didn't mind and they just urged me to pray.  I prayed a prayer of life and love over her.  I asked God for her son to see his sin and turn to God.  After praying for her son, I prayed for various parts of her body that were in pain.  

When I finished praying for her, I realized that somehow the small group of four people had suddenly multiplied.  People were slowly starting to crowd around me.  Some were just whispering and asking, "What is that white girl doing??"  As I prayed, I heard shouts of "Amen!  Thank you, Jesus!" coming from different places in the crowd.  When I finished praying for the four original women, people started to argue and shove their way towards me to get prayer.  They were literally, arguing about who was there first.  It was insane.  NEVER has that happened to me before.  Usually, people yell at me and tell me I'm selfish.  I've been called Satan and I've been told to leave the country.  But, this time, they were fighting to receive prayer from me.  I tried not to laugh as I told them, "Don't worry!  I have lots of time.  I will stay as long as it takes to pray for each of you."

I cannot tell you how many people I prayed for.  There were at least 15 people that approached me for prayer.  I was laying hands on crippled arms and legs.  I was laying hands on blind eyes.  I was laying hands on bad backs.  I laid hands on hurting heads, arthritic hands, chest pain, rashes and various other pains in the body.  It was incredible.  I stopped and warned the people multiple times that I might not be praying very well in Creole, but I know that God knows in my heart what I mean to say.  Eventually after about 20 minutes of praying on the street corner, the crowd thinned and I was able to continue home.  As soon as I was home, I was overwhelmed with tears of joy.  All that had happened because I took the time to say good afternoon to some outcasts.  All that had happened because of five simple words. 

Later that night, I shared my story with everyone over dinner.  Everyone was blown away by what I described.  But, Keziah and Grace's response affected me the most.  They told me, "We prayed for you this morning.  We prayed that God would show you something today.  We prayed that He would give you a visible sign of the work you are doing here in Haiti.  We prayed that you would see things to encourage you and help you understand the impact that you are making here."  I was overwhelmed by joy and I just wept.  God's promise to me really was true after all.  Great things are only just beginning to happen.  I just have to continue being patient with God and with everyone around me.

Acts 3:2-10

Now a man who was lame from birthwas being carried to the temple gate called Beautiful, where he was put every day to beg from those going into the temple courts. When he saw Peter and John about to enter, he asked them for money. Peter looked straight at him, as did John. Then Peter said, “Look at us!” So the man gave them his attention, expecting to get something from them.

Then Peter said, “Silver or gold I do not have, but what I do have I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk.” Taking him by the right hand, he helped him up, and instantly the man’s feet and ankles became strong. He jumped to his feet and began to walk. Then he went with them into the temple courts, walking and jumping, and praising God. When all the people saw him walking and praising God, they recognized him as the same man who used to sit begging at the temple gate called Beautiful, and they were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him.

Rain, rain, rain

Until it was cloudy and rainy, I had no idea that a hurricane was on its way past Haiti.  Luckily for us, we only got the "tropical storm" effects of Sandy: rain, cooler temperatures, and lots of clouds.  In all honesty, it has been lovely weather.

On a typical day here, the sun is blazing hot and the temperatures are in the 90's.  So, when the clouds rolled in and the temperatures dropped into the 70's, we broke out our pants, long sleeves, blankets, and made hot chocolate.  Then, the rains started on Tuesday and they have not stopped yet.  In a city that doesn't get rain more than once a month, this is grand occasion.

Rainy days in Haiti are similar to snow days in Pennsylvania.  The streets are empty, businesses and schools close, and the students are unfocused and wild.  This morning, I rode to Jubilee on the back of a motorcycle, in the rain, holding a small puppy.  Thankfully, I had my purple rain boots on because my moto driver did not want to drive me all the way to the school because of the water and mud.



Despite the government announcing that schools were closed today, we pressed on and kept our school open.  Students arrived with soggy uniforms, but with smiles on their faces.  Only three of my thirteen kindergarteners came, but most of the other classes had at least half of the students.

It is still raining as I write this, and while I am thankful for this weather, I pray that flooding does not get worse.

One of the roads through Jubilee

This canal in Jubilee is probably about five feet deep, it was overflowing today

Water has been leaking from Julie's ceiling and from the door to the roof.  So, we have buckets and pots in various places around our house collecting water.  However, That's nothing compared to the many people who are living in low lying areas.

I've heard that the rain is supposed to continue through tomorrow, so please keep us in your prayers.

Birthday!

Yesterday was my 25th birthday.  Thanks to all of my loved ones here in Haiti, it was an extra special birthday.

In the morning, Keziah, Grace and Chris invited me to their house to have birthday breakfast.  They treated me to delicious scrambled eggs, fried potatoes, and banana bread.  It was a special treat compared to my usual breakfast of toast, and the company was great!

After breakfast, I met up with Casey, Youvendjy, Becca, Julie, Emma, and Kara to go to a beach we call "pebble beach".  The road there goes over mountains and is quite bumpy so we called our favorite moto drivers and the seven of us loaded up onto four motorcycles.  The drive is about 45 minutes long with beautiful scenery the entire way.

We spent several hours relaxing in the blue water, jumping off rocks, and throwing pebbles at Julie :)

After the beach, we all went home to get ready for my birthday dinner.  Since we spend so much time together as it is, we have been having theme parties for all of our special occasions.  It makes things more interesting, and gives us something fun to do.  When brainstorming ideas for my party theme, someone asked me, "What did you do for birthday parties as a kid?"  I explained that each year I would go to my grandparents for my birthday dinner with my family.  I have lots of great memories spent with my grandparents.  "That it!" they said, "That is your theme: grandparents"

So, we all did our best to scrounge up some "old person clothes" and renamed ourselves things like, Opal, Ethel, Hershel, Clarence, and Cecelia.

Ethel and Opal

We had my favorite Haitian dish, diri a sos pwa (rice and black bean sauce) for dinner and Julie made me cheesecake for desert.  It was a VERY special treat!  For birthdays, the tradition here is that we do essays.  Everyone is given a piece of paper and ten minutes on the clock.  You must write about the birthday girl or boy.  It can be sentimental, funny, a poem, a rap, etc.  There are not really any rules to how you write.  I felt so loved by all the sweet words that everyone shared.  Chris's essay definitely made me laugh the most.  He decided to stay in character as "Clarence" for his essay.  He even wrote it in shaky old man handwriting:

"Dear Ethel, I remember when we first met, it was two day ago at the social, during the meet and greet. I noticed you taking Rupert's medicine while you pretended to wipe the mustard off his face.  That's when I knew we would be friends.  Happy birthday, doll.  Here's to a few more good years.

-Clarence C. Byrum"

Chris and Jake aka Clarence and Hershel

It was a birthday to remember, and I'm so thankful for everyone here that made it extra special.  I love you all!