Tuesday, September 10, 2013
When it rains in Jubilee....
...it pours! Most of the time, Jubilee looks like a desert. When it doesn't look like a desert, it looks like a lake!
Monday, September 9, 2013
School days, school days
Although the students have not started school yet, today was the first day for all of the teachers at Académie La Saline! This week, and part of next, is teacher training and teacher preparation.
Myself and the other American's will take turns leading various training sessions for our fellow Haitian teachers. We will also spend time in our classrooms preparing for the start of school. The students start on Wednesday the 18th. Please join me in praying for them and their families!
Myself and the other American's will take turns leading various training sessions for our fellow Haitian teachers. We will also spend time in our classrooms preparing for the start of school. The students start on Wednesday the 18th. Please join me in praying for them and their families!
Saturday, September 7, 2013
Dlo
Dlo, or water in English, is a precious commodity that is taken for granted far, far too often in the United States. I am always reminded of its importance when I am in Haiti. Carrying water is a common chore for most Haitian children. Depending on their proximity to a well, they often times have to carry water a long distance.
At the Safe House, we have this electric pump.
When we have electricity and when it is functioning properly, it pulls water from the well behind the house and takes it to the roof where there is a large plastic tank. Then, gravity carries the water through the pipes to the house. Over the summer when the house was vacant, someone cut the pipe that goes down into the well.
Until the pipe gets fixed, I have to use a backup method for getting water. I like to refer to it as "Haitian style".
I take this 5 gallon bucket.
And I walk downstairs and outside to the hand pump. Many people on our street use this well to get their water, so I usually have to wait my turn.
When it is my turn, I have to pump the handle up and down about thirty times until the bucket is full. Usually with small children watching and commenting with surprise saying things like, "Oh wow, the white girl knows how to pump water"
When the bucket is full, I carry it up this flight of stairs...
And take it into my house to empty it into this "doum" or barrel that sits next to the door.
Then, I repeat this process about five to ten more times until the doum is finally full again. I actually kind of enjoy this process as crazy as that sounds, and I'm not really in a rush to get the pipes fixed (remind me that I said this when school starts and I'm too worn out to carry water). It gives me a chance to chat with the neighbors, it makes me feel more Haitian, it is a good work out, and it helps cut down on water usage.
Once the doum is full, I use a pitcher to get water for whatever I need. When washing dishes, I have two "kivet" or basins in the sink. One with soapy water for washing and one with bleach water for rinsing.
When the water is dirty, instead of dumping it down the drain, it is dumped into this bucket in the bathroom.
Then, I use that water to force flush the toilet after using the restroom.
When it comes to showering, you have to take what we call a "bucket bath". We keep a bucket of water in the shower along with a basin. When showering, you stand in the basin so that it catches the dirty water so that it can be saved for flushing.
This process is nothing new for me. I've had to use this method many times over the past three years living in Haiti. However, over the summer many of you requested that I blog more often. Frequently, I don't post about things because they seem normal and mundane to me. I forget that everyone at home doesn't get to experience all of these parts of life.
Hopefully now, you will truly appreciate your washers, hot showers, and flushing toilets and keep those people in mind that have to walk long distances everyday to get water for their families.
At the Safe House, we have this electric pump.
When we have electricity and when it is functioning properly, it pulls water from the well behind the house and takes it to the roof where there is a large plastic tank. Then, gravity carries the water through the pipes to the house. Over the summer when the house was vacant, someone cut the pipe that goes down into the well.
Until the pipe gets fixed, I have to use a backup method for getting water. I like to refer to it as "Haitian style".
I take this 5 gallon bucket.
And I walk downstairs and outside to the hand pump. Many people on our street use this well to get their water, so I usually have to wait my turn.
When the bucket is full, I carry it up this flight of stairs...
And take it into my house to empty it into this "doum" or barrel that sits next to the door.
Then, I repeat this process about five to ten more times until the doum is finally full again. I actually kind of enjoy this process as crazy as that sounds, and I'm not really in a rush to get the pipes fixed (remind me that I said this when school starts and I'm too worn out to carry water). It gives me a chance to chat with the neighbors, it makes me feel more Haitian, it is a good work out, and it helps cut down on water usage.
Once the doum is full, I use a pitcher to get water for whatever I need. When washing dishes, I have two "kivet" or basins in the sink. One with soapy water for washing and one with bleach water for rinsing.
When the water is dirty, instead of dumping it down the drain, it is dumped into this bucket in the bathroom.
Then, I use that water to force flush the toilet after using the restroom.
When it comes to showering, you have to take what we call a "bucket bath". We keep a bucket of water in the shower along with a basin. When showering, you stand in the basin so that it catches the dirty water so that it can be saved for flushing.
 |
| please ignore the creepy lighting, the power was out so it was dark |
Hopefully now, you will truly appreciate your washers, hot showers, and flushing toilets and keep those people in mind that have to walk long distances everyday to get water for their families.
Friday, September 6, 2013
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!
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!
Wednesday, September 4, 2013
The Safe House
I moved to a new apartment last week. The decision to move was made last spring when my two friends, Chris and Grace got engaged. Grace was living in an apartment with my friend Keziah and planned to move to a new house with her hubby after getting married. That meant that Kez needed a roommate. So, she asked me to move in with her!
However, plans changed slightly a few weeks before we came back to Haiti. Kez called me to let me know that a friend of hers has terminal cancer. That friend is our age and has no family to take care of her. Being the amazing woman that she is, Kez decided to remain in the United States indefinitely to be with her friend. (Please keep them both in your prayers over the coming months).
That threw a slight wrench in our plans to live together. Since it was so last minute, we couldn't find anyone to fill her space at the apartment. So, until Kez can come back to Haiti, I am living here alone.
Thankfully, I have five American and Canadian friends that live right next door, I have great Haitian neighbors, and in October two other American friends will be moving into the apartment directly above me. So, I'm not really alone.
Monday, my lovely friends helped me move all of my belongings from my old house to my new one. I didn't realize how much stuff I've accumulated until it was all sitting in one pile.
I've spent the better part of Tuesday and Wednesday unpacking, washing (its very dusty here), and organizing all my things. I really want to get all of this house work finished before I have to start school prep. I'm almost finished, and I am finally starting to see the floor of my living room again!
Oh and in case you were wondering why the title of this blog is "The Safe House", let me explain. We like to name our houses around here. With so many people living in them, it just makes it easier to keep track of....and, its more fun. Keziah and Grace named this apartment the safe house because of its proximity to the cemetery. Haitians are afraid of cemeteries and they believe that the dead can be raised and turned into zombies. Many Haitian friends even told them that they wouldn't visit because it was too close to the cemetery. That is where the name "The Safe House" was born.
In the future, I'd like to post a video tour of the apartment since many of you have expressed your curiosity as to what our houses are like here. But, I have to finish unpacking before I will video tape it!
However, plans changed slightly a few weeks before we came back to Haiti. Kez called me to let me know that a friend of hers has terminal cancer. That friend is our age and has no family to take care of her. Being the amazing woman that she is, Kez decided to remain in the United States indefinitely to be with her friend. (Please keep them both in your prayers over the coming months).
That threw a slight wrench in our plans to live together. Since it was so last minute, we couldn't find anyone to fill her space at the apartment. So, until Kez can come back to Haiti, I am living here alone.
Thankfully, I have five American and Canadian friends that live right next door, I have great Haitian neighbors, and in October two other American friends will be moving into the apartment directly above me. So, I'm not really alone.
Monday, my lovely friends helped me move all of my belongings from my old house to my new one. I didn't realize how much stuff I've accumulated until it was all sitting in one pile.
I've spent the better part of Tuesday and Wednesday unpacking, washing (its very dusty here), and organizing all my things. I really want to get all of this house work finished before I have to start school prep. I'm almost finished, and I am finally starting to see the floor of my living room again!
Oh and in case you were wondering why the title of this blog is "The Safe House", let me explain. We like to name our houses around here. With so many people living in them, it just makes it easier to keep track of....and, its more fun. Keziah and Grace named this apartment the safe house because of its proximity to the cemetery. Haitians are afraid of cemeteries and they believe that the dead can be raised and turned into zombies. Many Haitian friends even told them that they wouldn't visit because it was too close to the cemetery. That is where the name "The Safe House" was born.
In the future, I'd like to post a video tour of the apartment since many of you have expressed your curiosity as to what our houses are like here. But, I have to finish unpacking before I will video tape it!
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