The Haitian Experience

Well I have officially made it back to the states. I am now sitting in Atlanta with a couple of hours to kill. The last 24 hours has been hard. I had to say goodbye to all the wonderful people that I had met over the month of January. I came across this quote this morning and I thought I would share it with you.

"Travel isn't always pretty. It isn't always comfortable. Sometimes it hurts, it even breaks your heart. But thats okay. The journey changes you. It leaves marks on your memory, on your consciousness, on your heart, and on your body. You take something with you... Hopefully, you leave something good behind."-Anthony Bourdain

This quote is so true. Traveling pushes you to see life from a different perspective. It often shows you what is important in life and what is not so important. Traveling truly does change you as a person. It pushes you to your limits and is usually way out of your comfort zone. That is why I love to travel it helps me find myself. Through traveling I have found that I love working with children in poverty. Even though I can't provide these kids with the material need I can provide them with love and compassion. I believe having love and compassion from others is way more important than what you own. If you have never traveled I challenge you to go out of your comfort zone and do it. I also am not pushing you to go to an all inclusive resort. (sorry) I believe that going to an all inclusive resort you will not get the true feeling of being in a different culture. These resorts are Americanized. Last night we stayed at a nice hotel and I felt guilty. The night before I was sleeping in an orphanage and the next night I was in a nice clean hotel room.  Go to the little hotel that looks a little sketchy. Those are where you meet the truly amazing people. Meet the people who are walking trough the streets they have pretty amazing stories to tell. All of the people that I have traveled with are still close friends in my life. These people may look different on the outside but they are so nice. I already miss the people of Haiti. Every person I came across out there said Hello to me. I have been off the plane for over and an hour and not one person has said hello. Their kindness is indescribable.



With that being said I will also warn you that traveling is not easy. For the last twenty four hours I have been on and off crying. I wanted to run the complete opposite direction of the airport and go back to the kids. I wanted to give them all one last hug and tell them that everything is going to be okay. I can't even get myself to look at my pictures because I fear that if I do I will start crying again. Leaving a place that you fall in love with the culture and people is so hard. It changes you. You look at life differently. I have some really great memories from this trip along with some that I wish I could erase from my memory.

Before I had left for the trip I had added some new songs to my phone. One of the songs I added was "Do Something" By Matthew West. If you have never heard the song you should defiantly listen to it. It talks about how there is poverty and pain in this world. It questions why did God create this in this world. The song goes on to say he created you to help those people. This song hit me hard on my way  to Port Au Prince last night. I know that I left somewhat of an impact on those kids. Amazingly, I think they left more of an impact on me. Even though they have very little I have learned so much from them. In my final blog I encourage to do something. Follow your dreams. Don't let anything stop you. If it is meant to happen it will happen. Trust that God will lead you to where you want to go. He has a plan for you all you have to do is trust him. So go out and live you life and be happy! Don't worry about the little things they will all fall into place!

With Love,
Abby

Goodbye

Today was by far one of the hardest days I have had. I spent the morning and early afternoon at hotel getting everything taken care of and packing up. I was getting excited to head home but that soon changed after I headed to the orphanage. After loading the car we stopped by Sean and Carolines to say goodbye. They became really good friends over the last couple of weeks and I will miss seeing them everyday. As we were driving away from them I already had a lump in my throat. I couldn't even think about saying goodbye to the sweet little angels at the orphanage.

One of the hardest things for me is telling a kid that I am going to be leaving. Once you tell the kid that you are leaving they distance themselves from you in hopes that you wont leave them. This happens to me all the time with my nieces but its easier when it happens with my nieces. I know with them I will get to see them in a couple of months after saying goodbye. The orphan kids it was completely different. They kept asking when I was going to come back and all I could say was I am not sure. Many of the kids would not play with Haley and I and that made it so much harder. They also were not acting like normal. They were all really quiet and not nearly as energetic as normal. So I found myself a spot on a chair and just watched them. I was seeing what life was like for them when we are not around to play with them. I watched them carry water buckets across the yard so they could wash clothes. I watched the little ones play with sticks in the dirt. As I was sitting there it got harder and harder for me. Finally they said it was time for us to go! What happened next made it so much harder to leave.

The kids all sat outside on a sidewalk and sang to us for ten minutes. They sang all different kinds of songs that I once sang when I was in Sunday School. As they were singing it started to rain and I thought how fitting. Usually when the kids sing for us they are screaming and smiling and having a great time and today they just looked sad. As I was watching them sing the tears started rolling down my face. I was thinking about all the different memories I had with each of the kids. I was thinking about how I have no idea if I will ever be able to see them again. Ellsie gave us a huge hug and thanked us for all or help. I quickly went to the car because I didn't want the kids to see me crying.  Then they all moved beside the car yelling, "Haley, Abby, Haley, Abby." Its a moment I will never forget seeing them all waving goodbye and I couldn't even talk because I was lost for words. Out of the corner of the window I saw Indaina sucking her thumb and waving goodbye at me. I stuck my tongue out at her and she smiled. After that short moment we left the orphanage. I was happy to be leaving so the goodbye to the kids would be over.

As we were weaving throughout the mountains all I could think about was the sweet kids and all the memories I had with them. Sure enough, the tears would start falling again. Its crazy to think that over 3 short weeks this country could have such an impact on my life. I had no idea what I was getting into when I arrived! I also had no idea how hard it would be to say goodbye to them.

With Love,
Abby

A Night at the Orphanage

To start off our day we headed to the beautiful beach for the last time. Haley and I headed to the beach that we have pretty much lived at since we found it. The water had sea weed but that did not stop us from swimming. The waves were actually pretty big today and a couple of times took us under. One time Haley and I were talking and not paying attention and a wave totally took us under and we were laughing so hard and another wave came and took us under again. We both got our salt intake for the day. After a morning in the sun we headed back to the hotel to get ready to go to the orphanage. We were told at the beginning of the trip you don't get the true Haitian experience until you ride a tap-tap with chickens. Well we got to ride with for chickens today. Haley thought they were dead until one started squawking. It was pretty fun and interesting. 

We got back to the hotel and quick took showers so we could go hang out with the kids for a little while. We got to the orphanage and it was odd because none of the kids were outside playing. The girls were all waving for us to come into their dorm. We asked them why they couldn't come out and play with us. Apparently they were in trouble for something and were not allowed to leave their rooms. We went inside and played with the kids for awhile. The girls were constantly asking if we were still going to stay the night with them. They kept pointing to their bed and pointing for us to sleep with them in the bed. After spending the afternoon with them we headed back to eat some supper and pack some items.  

For supper we decided to head to Sean and Carolines to have our last meal with them. We ordered our meal from this barbeque chicken place up the street. We had this the very first night we were here and decided to have it out last night too! We had spicy chicken, plantains, salad and french fries. It was so good. I am really going to miss the fresh food that we get everyday. I don't think my digestive system will be ready for the processed food that we have at home. We also tried cashew juice and it was really good. The texture was different because it was blended up cashews. We played with the kids for awhile talking about all the different Disney movies we have seen. Soon it was time for the kids to head to bed and for us to go to the orphanage for the night.

Haley and I were heading back to our room to grab shells for Ryan and Riley. We had found a whole bunch at the beach one morning and did not have room for them in the suitcase. There is a very steep cement hill outside the hotel. You have to be careful when walking on it because it has a few holes and lots of rocks. Haley was not paying attention at all and fell really hard. I had saw the whole thing happen and could not stop laughing. I was crouched over on the side of the hill laughing. I caught up to Haley and apologized for laughing but it was so funny!!

In all honesty I was a little bit skeptical of staying at the orphanage. I had no idea what to expect since I have never done anything like this before. I was also very excited because it was something new that I have never tried before. If you can't tell already I love to try new things and not many things seem to scare me. :) I kept telling myself to just think that you are camping or that you are at wilderness camp.

We arrived at the orphanage and the kiddos were so excited. They ran up to us and were speaking a million miles an hour and I have no idea what they were saying to me. When we got there they were outside but soon we moved into the dorms. The girls were playing hide and seek with us along with showing us where they sleep. They also showed us the bed that we were going to be sleeping on. They gave us new sheets to sleep on! We were getting the royal treatment. 

All of the sudden the girls were pulling our hands and saying, " Pray, Pray, Pray." We headed towards the building where they have all their meals. We sat down at the large picnic tables and waited for all the kids to pile in. Once everyone was there they started singing a few songs in French. I could pick up the tune of the songs but could not put a name to them. After they sang we did a short prayer and message. They translated the message for us. They were talking about how we need to treat others the way that we wanted to be treated. Do unto others as you would want done to you. They talked about the importance of forgiving each other even when it is difficult to forgive. They also said that if they never see us again they hope that someday they will see us in heaven when were are away from all of this pain. This was so sweet and melted me to pieces. I will also never forget during the message I had girls holding my hands and some laying on my lap falling asleep. They have stolen my heart and they don't even know it.  It really made me sad thinking about leaving this place in a day. After they sang a few more songs the kids were dismissed to go to bed. Since it was later some of the younger kids fell asleep on the tables. They were so tired after the long day. We got back to the dorms and Haley and I soon realized if we didn't crawl into our beds they would never go to bed.

We both slept on the top bunk and were getting situated in our beds when they little ones came bringing us blankets. They were throwing them on our beds. They also gave us pillows. It was so sweet seeing how much they cared about us being comfortable for the night. I had a fan right above my bed and it felt really good because it was really hot in my room. Soon the girls came in and kept asking to turn the fan off and I said no its okay! Then they all made the action of me getting my head cut off. They thought if I slept so close to the fan my head my get chopped off! I told them it was okay and that I would be careful not to go near the fan. After that they all head to their own bed for the night.

So Haley had a fan by her bed and wanted to turn it on so we had more air movement in our room. We both thought the fan looked a little funny but were not too concerned about it. So she told me to get out of bed to turn the the fans on since she is scared of heights and did not want to get out of the bed. I got out of bed to turn the fan on and soon the one by Haley made a really funny noise. All the girls came running back to check on us and guess who got in trouble. Abby. Haley is the one who turned the dial on the fan but it had looked like I was the one who did. Haley thought it very comical that they all thought it was me who did it and not her. I guess it was payback for laughing at her when she fell earlier.

After all the commotion the girls went back to their beds and the lights were turned off for the night. I laid down and realized that they beds here were better then the beds we had at the hotel. About ten seconds after laying my head down the chickens started squawking. It took a little bit to get used of it. I bet their was at least fifteen chickens outside the window. In the middle of the night I woke up to the sound of what almost sounded like rain coming down. Soon I figured out it was pigeons on the roof. It sounded like they were sliding down the roof. At around 5:15 this morning I started hearing little footprints walking past our beds. They were trying to be so quiet and not wake us up. I was just laying their watching them all stumble outside to go brush their teeth. Each time they walked by they would look in the bed and smile at us! Even though they looked pretty tired they were all smiling and excited to see us. We said goodbye for the morning and they all said, "No." They thought


we were leaving for good and were really sad. We told them we would come back later to say goodbye.

I have been trying to absorb every last moment I have left in Haiti. It has been so awesome getting to know all these people and their culture. I have learned so much from them and they have made me look at life a little differently. I think I will be forever amazed by these kids work ethic. Even at 5:30 in the morning the kids start doing their chores without complaining. They all work together to keep the orphanage clean and running. Some days they make me feel real lazy. Many of these kids have already done chores before I even get out of bed in the morning. These kids are also so independent. They do everything on their own and rely on no one to help them. As the end is drawing near I am getting excited to head home but part of me is sad that I will be leaving. I just keep reminding myself that I am so lucky to have this opportunity and I should be happy that I was given the chance to get to know these kids and this culture!

I will have one more blog post not sure when I will have internet again but I will get it up as soon as possible! :)
With Love,
Abby

Do Something

First of all I am just going to say this but I am in no way complaining but it was HOT today. I mean it felt like a super hot summer day in the states and the Haitians told us that this has been a cold winter. I am a person who does not sweat easy or often. I have never sweat so much in my life. Haley and I went to the beach for a little bit this morning. We maybe could stay out of the water for twenty minutes before we would both have sweat pouring off of us. Once again I am not complaining I am just making a statement. In no way am I ready to face the cold that you guys have been dealing with all January. I would much rather take this weather but I am wondering what a summer would feel like here since this is a cold winter.

After spending the morning at the beach we went to the orphanage to spend the afternoon with the kids. I love walking up there and just having kids pile on my lap. Even though we can't communicate with each other by talking we find other ways to communicate. Today I played tag with Mary Loud and Indiana. I have never heard two girls giggle so much in my life. I love going there and just making the kids giggle. Usually when we walk in the kids look sad and bored and it kills me on the inside. So I do everything I can to get these kids smiling and giggling. I never knew how much enjoyment I could get out of getting so many kids giggling and smiling. I remember on my first day at the orphanage we could barely get any of the kids to smile. I maybe got one or two kids to smile. Now I can get almost all of them to smile and if they don't smile then I tickle them until they can't laugh anymore. I was taking some photos with the girls and soon they asked me to take a video of them. I have multiple videos of the girls singing songs and it seriously melts my heart. I know sometime in the near future I will be very happy to have those videos.

We also held a random dance party today. A couple of days ago the girls were asking if I had any music on my phone. One of the songs I play was the "Nae Nae." I showed the girls the dance to it on that same day. Today Indiana came running up to me saying, "Nae, Nae." So I pulled the song up on my phone and soon many girls were dancing along and giggling to the song. We also played the song "Party for Two." I don't think these girls ever get the opportunity to dance because they were having so much fun dancing around with us. It was fun seeing all the different dance moves the girls came up with.

We also informed the girls that we were going to be staying at the orphanage for our last night there. Haley and I decided the best way to spend our last night here was to spend it with the kids. This will be a true test. I am not sure how much sleep I will get but it will be worth it in the end. We literally told like two girls that we were going to be spending the night and soon like ten girls came running up and asking if we were staying. They all screamed and smiled when we told them that we were staying. I already had girls fighting over whose bed I was going to be sleeping in. For all I know I could have five girls sleeping in a bed with me and I would be totally okay with it! :) With that being said I will not have internet tomorrow night and the next day we are leaving for Port Au Prince so I am unsure if I will have internet at our hotel in Port Au Prince. So my blogs may not come up for a little awhile. Our flight leaves early on Friday morning so I will try and have it all up to date by sometime on Friday!

Leaving these kids is going to be one of the hardest things I have ever done. I keep telling myself to not think about it. The time is quickly fading away and our goodbye will be here before I know it. I think one of the hardest parts is knowing I can do so much more for these kids but I am just out of time. I am just trying to enjoy every last smile and giggle. It is literally going to break my heart when I leave the gates of this orphanage on Thursday.


With Love,
Abby

Tickles, French, and more

The days I have left in Haiti are slowly dwindling down. Honestly, each day gets a little harder. Its like a cloud is hanging over me as I think about the fact of leaving this country and all these kids. Each morning Haley and I always have a long talk about things we have seen so far. Some days the conversations we have can be really sad. We talk about all the different kids and how each one has something special about them. We are finally getting to really know the kids and their personalities. Each day when we walk into the orphanage kids come running up to us yelling Haley and Abby. Thinking about leaving this is a hard pill to swallow. These kids have truly been a blessing in my life. Each day I notice something new about the orphanage or the culture. The more I see of this country the more I realize how poor this country is. Some days it can be really hard seeing the homes these people live in. Often times my mom tells me and that was just a God thing. This morning I believe I had one of those moments. Haley and I were walking to go and get a tap-tap and both of us were sad about leaving and I believe our tap-tap ride was made to distract us from all those thoughts and to remind us to just live in the moment.

When the tap-tap pulled up to pick us up we both went oh no this one is very full. We are not a huge fan of jumping on full tap-taps. I let Haley hop on first so I could sit on her lap. The ceiling was very low so I was bent over on her lap. It was very uncomfortable. Soon someone got off and I was able to sit on a bench. We stopped to pick up another group and it was a bunch of school boys. We are getting used of the school boys pointing at us and making fun us. We have no idea what they are saying half the time. This one boy had no place to sit so Haley just pulled him down on her lap. This poor boy was so embarrassed because all of his friends were harassing him about. It was very entertaining because everyone was laughing but we have no idea what they were saying. We soon got to the place where we had to get off and I yelled in French so they would stop. Soon they all looked at each other and said oh no they know French. Little did they know we only know very little French so we have no idea what they said.

Once we arrived at the orphanage we observed in the morning and played with the kids in the afternoon. Haley and I headed to our normal sitting spot and waited for the kids to come near us. As always we started the afternoon off by playing tic-tac-toe and other random games the kids came up with. Most of these kids know how to juggle rocks and get a kick out of me attempting to juggle rocks. Indiana was hiding from me this morning so I decided to go near her bed to find her. When I got near her bed I started hearing this giggling. The little stinker was hiding under her bed from me. I finally caught her and laid her down on the bed and started tickling her. Soon four other girls hopped onto the bed and I just went down the line tickling them and chasing them around the room. Indiana was running away from me and slipped on a backpack and fell hard. So I quickly picked her up and sat down. After about ten minutes of rubbing her back she was out. I am really going to miss her sleeping on my lap in the afternoons. I might even miss the huge drool spots she tends to leave on my clothes.

Haley and I were sitting in our normal spot and this guy about our age came up to us. He started talking to us and had asked us if we knew any French/Creole. We told him that we only know the basics but wished we had knew more. He then pulled out a piece of chalk and started writing on the wall of one of the buildings. He taught us all different types of phrases in both French and Creole. He had a friend with him and they both got a kick out of us trying to pronounce the words. They talk so fast and it is so hard to catch onto what they are trying to say to us. Over time Haley and I slowly started to pick up on it. He told us that he would come back tomorrow to try and teach us a little more. Of course we would meet someone who is willing to teach us right before we head back home!

When leaving the orphanage we soon found out that we were out of money. With no other option we decided that we would have to walk back to our hotel. It was around a three mile walk back to the room. It was nice to walk down the streets and say hello to the Haitians. Its very entertaining to see their face when we start talking in French since they expect us to only speak in English. We also really got to see the houses they live in when walking down the streets. We had like three close calls where Haley and I thought that we were going to be hit by a car. We have learned to just trust that the Haitians know what they are doing.

We also found out that the people that were chasing us yesterday were putting on a show in attempt to raise money for the upcoming carnival. The carnival starts the week after we leave so we won't be able to see it.

Please keep us in your thoughts and prayers as we are getting ready to say goodbye and neither of us are near ready for this!

With Love,
Abby

Technology in Haiti

Since it was the weekend we spent the last two days relaxing at the beach. After being around the kids all this time it can be a little overwhelming. So Haley and I decided we needed to get away from them to clear our minds a little bit. We loved sitting on the beach but all we could talk about was the fact that we have to leave in less then a week and we are not ready for that yet. At the beach today we think that an orphanage took some kids to the beach. It was so fun to watch the little ones play in the water. They were so happy and having so much fun with it. The group also gave them all pops. The pop out here is served in glass bottles it was very entertaining. They had pure enjoyment from the pop and a day at the beach.

We also met an interesting lady at the beach today. She had told us that she traveled to Haiti because she thought that Haiti would be a cheap country to travel through. She then told us that on her flight over she was annoyed with some of the people because they were here on a mission trip. She's like these people live a low quality life but they could just change it themselves if they wanted to. She said that Haiti could change themselves if they wanted to. I don't think she has really dived into this culture. These people need someone to show them the way out of poverty. They need to be shown life skills to help break this cycle of poverty. She finally ended the conversation saying maybe next time I travel I will just go to all inclusive. It will be a lot easier and cleaner. Haley and I both left and were surprised by this lady. I think we were both frustrated with what she was saying so we just walked away from the conversation.

One of the things that I have noticed since being out here is the use of technology. In the states you see everyone on their phone. One of my favorite things about traveling is putting my phone away and not letting it be a distraction in my life. The first days of not using it can be tough but soon I forget about it all together. I rarely see people on their phones out here and I have maybe seen a dozen iPhones since I got here. Its kind of nice to be disconnected from the world and just talking to people. Haley and I get so excited when someone speaks in English and we can actually hold a conversation with them. We also like the fact that we can talk about whatever we want on the tap-tap because no one will know what we are talking about.

Speaking of tap-taps we had an interesting ride back to our hotel today. Our tap-tap all of the sudden stopped in the middle of the road today. All the people that were on the tap-tap with us pulled us forward so that we were sitting in the middle of it. Soon all these guys walked past us and they had painted themselves black with charcoal. They were also singing/chanting. We think the ladies pulled us forward because they didn't want them to touch us with the charcoal. We started slowly driving when a guy with a mask started chasing our tap-tap and slapped Haley and I on the leg. It was one of the creepiest things I have ever happened to me. I have not been scared on this trip but that scared me a little. We had this happen at three different times on our way back to the hotel. Tomorrow we plan on asking locals what it means when they do that!


Technology is also used by kids all the time in the states. Wherever you go you also see a little kid using technology. I think that technology can be used to an extent. If you have a long car ride or some situation like that. Kids also need the opportunity to go outside and explore. The best way for kids to learn is by exploring on their own. Many of the kids I see here are playing soccer. These kids are also in really good shape I have never seen so many six packs in my life at a beach. I mean some of these kids are really built. I think that part of the reason they are so built is many of them are carrying water buckets to and from their house everyday. These kids also do not have technology so they go outside and play and get a ton of exercise.

Sometimes I wish that we could take technology away. Technology is making us unsocial, many people lack social skills because the only way they communicate with people is through their phones. When communicating with phones you may also read the message in the wrong way and get offended by it. I think that in the states we should go back to building relationships through face to face conversations. When sitting down for meals put the phone away and actually talk to someone. Haley and I have had so many interesting conversations because we don't have our phones at the dinner table.

With Love,
Abby

Reality Check

After being in Haiti for two weeks the reality of it all is starting to hit me. I remember at the beginning of the trip I had multiple people ask me how are you doing? Is Haiti overwhelming you? I had thought no I am fine. After two weeks my opinion on this question has completely changed. I have noticed that the first week I was very oblivious to certain things. I didn't realize the harsh reality of living in Haiti. As I am staying at the hotel I am not even experiencing the reality of Haiti. I was walking down the streets today and seeing the homes they live in. I was noticing the lifestyle that they live.

I was sitting at the orphanage today and noticing the daily struggle these kids go through. First of all they don't have a parent. They have no one to comfort them when they are having a bad day or no way to praise them on the good days. One of the little girls today had the flu. I looked over and saw her crying because her head hurt and she didn't feel well. A little while later I saw her outside throwing up. My heart absolutely broke and melted at the same time. All of the little girls were around her trying to comfort her but she didn't have a parent there to help her.  Haley and I headed over to where she was and tucked her into a bed. All the other orphan girls were around her wrapping her in a blanket and cleaning up her vomit. We gave her some medicine in hopes that it may make her feel better. It was hard because what happens when we leave? I wish someone was there to comfort her through the night. Being sick is no fun. Being sick at an orphanage cannot make it any better.

Today we also saw them take baths for the first time. They do not have running water at the orphanage so they take baths with a sponge and a bucket. A couple of days ago I was complaining about the fact that I had to take a cold shower and all I wanted was a nice warm shower. These kids have never had a shower. It breaks my heart thinking about that. As I looked over at them showering I noticed that the two girls were laughing and giggling and that part melted my heart. I mean these kids come from nothing but they make the most of every situation. They honestly make me feel guilty about all the things that I have. I feel like I have no right to complain about the life I live. I want to show them the life I have!

So far this trip has been a truly eye opening experience. It has shown me to take nothing for granted. It has shown me to make the most of every situation. It has shown me that the life that I live is amazing. I have been blessed beyond belief. I have a family that is always there for me. I have parents that have never gave up on me and have been by my side even when I wanted to give up on life. Somedays I walk away from the orphanage wanting to cry. I just want to take all these kids home and give them a great life. Reality check. I really can't take them all home but for the time being I can show them love. I can be there when they are having a bad day. I can play games with them. Its so hard seeing the kids just sit there bored with nothing to do. I just want to take them home and give them all the toys they need. I never realized how blessed I was when I was growing up.

As I look back on all that I have experienced I have realized how blessed I have been. As I look towards the future I am scared. I don't know how I am ever going to say goodbye to these sweet little faces in a week. I don't know how I am going to be able to return back to normal life without thinking about them. It has made me realize that I need to appreciate the opportunity I have been given and learn from these kids. I will add pictures later the internet is real slow tonight!

With Love,
Abby

Endless smiles

Well today Haley and I look like complete lobsters. We spent most of the day outside in the sun and the sun is defiantly stronger out here. In the morning we observed in the classroom and we are slowly getting used of the craziness in the classroom. Today Haley and I had so much fun playing with the kids at the orphanage. We took a bunch of the little ones out to the soccer field. First we started holding their hands in spinning in a circle. They loved doing that but not me. I was so dizzy I had to go and sit down for awhile. We also played tag with them. I have never seen so many kids screaming and laughing. They were having the time of their life. It was so fun to just spend the afternoon with them and play. Today Indaina would stick her head out of a door and yell my name and hid. After she yelled my name I ran to where she was and went in the room to find her. I scared the poor girl she jumped like a foot off the ground and then she realized it was me and sat down on the floor and just giggled. It was funny watching her face when I walked in the room.

After playing with them for a while some of older boys started yelling my name. They wanted to play tic-tac-toe with me again. I literally have like 10 kids sitting around me yelling in French what next move I should make and I have no idea what they are saying. Sometimes I think that it is a good thing that I can't understand what they are saying to me. They just point and yell at me telling me what move I need to make. They also will keep score for me. This helps me work on my French counting!  I bet that we played tic-tac-toe for over a half hour.  I don't think these boys will ever get sick of playing this game.

We are officially half way through our trip and it is very bittersweet. Overall, I am ready for some American things. For example I am excited to sit on an airplane seat because it has cushion. I have not had a cushion on my chair since I left. I am also very excited for a shower that I don't have to worry about getting water in my mouth and that has warm water. The showers here are about hose water temperature which is fine since it is warm here. I will also enjoy constantly having electricity and not having random power outages. For example I was showering the other day and the lights went out and I had to finish my shower in the dark. I will miss the chicken. The chicken is so good and fresh. I will also miss the fresh fruit. The fruit here is delicious. I will also miss all the friends I have made so far on the trip. I have met some truly amazing people in Haiti. The people at the orphanage have been so welcoming and helpful to us. They have given us rides around the city and showed us how to get around on our own. We have also met some great people at hotel. Since we are not at a touristy place most of the people here are doing similar trip as us. Its fun to exchange stories about our days and its nice to have people to talk to when we get back for the night. This trip so far has changed my outlook on life and taught me so many life lessons.

Communication is key

This morning we headed over to the school for our morning of teaching. One of my biggest regrets of this trip so far is not being able to speak the language. The teachers are also unable to speak English. Elisse is able to translate for us but sometimes he does not understand what we are saying. This makes teaching very difficult. One of the things I think that would be very beneficial for this school is to get a translator. This way the teachers would be able to understand what we want the students to do. The teachers out here truly do an amazing job with what they got. The noise levels in these classrooms is insane. I mean one of the rooms has three different classes going on at once with only a chalkboard separating the classes. So just imagine three teachers speaking loudly trying teach plus fifty kids in the classroom. That is a challenge. Haley and I were sitting in a class just observing and we couldn't focus to save our lives. There were kids running around outside poking their little heads in the classroom and giggling. There were multiple people talking trying to conduct a lesson but somehow these kids seem to be able to learn in this environment. On the right is one of the kindergarten girls!

This morning Haley and I had the opportunity to teach the kindergarten class. This kids are so stinking adorable but they can also be a little bit naughty. The kindergarten teachers do an awesome job of classroom management. These kids listen to the teacher very well, better then in the states. Haley and I started teaching and it was like the blind leading the blind. We tried teaching them the alphabet the students knew the song but were unable to recognize the words. We tried multiple methods of trying to teach them and none of them were working. Haley and I walked out of the lesson so frustrated because the kids had no idea what we were asking and we had no idea what they were saying. On the left is one of the kindergarten classrooms.

We sat in on a couple other classes today too. We watched a fifth grade history lesson. I found out that I have no problem with reading French. The teacher wrote all the notes on the board and I understood what he was writing about. He started reading the board and that is when I lost him. They enunciate totally different parts of the word and there sentence structure is set up differently. Slowly but surely I am catching onto to this language.

After the school day was finished Haley and I got asked to tutor. There were three nurses that are trying to learn English. They are coming to the states in March to observe hospitals in the states. In order for them understand what is going on they need to learn English. They had a dictionary with all the hospital terms they need to learn. First we pronounced all the words with them and then started doing a little role playing. That is when it got interesting. I have no nursing background so to hold a medical conversation in English was interesting. I was trying to remember all the things my mom always talks about along with what I have seen on Grey's Anatomy. Haley and I finally got the hang of it and they were able to speak a couple of complete sentences. On the left is Michelle giving me a ride on a moto he lives and works at the orphanage.

Once we completed the tutoring we headed up to where the orphan kids were playing. I love going up there and just hanging out with the kids. These kids get so excited when we come and play with them. When we walked up most of the kids were just playing with rocks. They don't have toys to play with so more often then not we see them playing with rocks, sticks, or garbage. When we come up they have so much fun just because they are getting attention. I can also tell that they are warming up to us because they talk a lot more when they are around us. Indiana the girl who always hangs around me fell asleep on me again today. I feel bad for her because she should be getting naps throughout the day but that just doesn't happen here. Whenever I come and visit she always falls asleep on my lap. Today the poor thing was so tired that she left a huge drool spot on my skirt. On the right Indiana is holding my hand. After school she grabbed my hand and would not let go.

I think after today I can finally say that I have used all forms of transportation in Haiti. Today we used what is called a people mover. This is like a motorcycle but it has three wheels. It has a little box in the back kind of like a bed of a pick up where people can ride. So when all got into the back we headed back to the hotel. This was probably the most uncomfortable ride I have had so far. I sat on like a two inch wide bar and hung on for dear life as we bounced along the Haiti roads. On the left is a people mover.

Tonight we headed over to Sean and Carolines house tonight. It is so nice having a house we can go to whenever we want. This way we can get a change of scenery instead of being at the hotel all the time. I also like being able to talk to them. They are doing about the same things we are doing each day so we can compare stories and relate to what we have been doing. We also help each other think of ideas to help make the orphanage better. There kids are also adorable and fun to play with!

With

Love,
Abby

Remembering the earthquake

This morning we were informed that school was going to be cancelled today. Many of the schools in Haiti cancelled because January 12 is such a significant date out here. In the states January 12 is just an other ordinary day for us. In Haiti this date in 2010 changed their lives forever. It was just like any other ordinary January day until an earthquake came later in the afternoon. I can't even remember what I was doing on this dat and I barely remember hearing about this quake. People had no idea that this quake was coming and had no way of preparing for the damage it was going to leave on them. This morning I read a little bit about the earthquake since I didn't know a whole lot about. The quake hit Port Au Prince the worse. That is the town that we flew into. You could see that most of the town was damaged and most of the buildings were ruined. In the Haiti they do not have building codes. So most of the buildings are not built very strong or on level ground. When the quake came many of the buildings could not with stand the vibrations.  The quake had also hit Jacmel which is the town I have been staying in throughout this trip. The orphanage that we are working at was once in Port Au Prince but the damage that was done to the buildings and the space they had was not big enough.

This is where Rick and Barb come into play.  They came and saw the orphanage and the living quarters and decided it was not acceptable. So they moved the orphanage to Jacmel and built a place that would be beneficial for the kids. As I was reading the facts about the quake it was heartbreaking. There were points where I wanted to stop reading because being here made it all feel so real. For days after the quake they were still pulling the deceased out of houses that had collapsed. It felt like a genocide because the streets were filled with people that were killed. Can you imagine walking through what was once your home and seeing family and friends just laying there? They said the smell was horrible because the heat made the bodies smell. Amidst this pain and devastation you could here people singing in the streets. They were singing hymns. Even though these people were hurting they still found the courage to praise. I cannot even fathom what these people have been through. They have been fighting for their lives since day one. Many Haitians lost their homes and families due to this earthquake. Haitians slept in the streets and away from all the buildings in fear that they may collapse on them again. I see kids at the beach each morning picking up shells just so they can sell them to get enough money for food and school. Yet I catch myself complaining about school or how the food I have isn't good enough. Every time I saw someone today I was wondering what the day was like for them and how it had affected their life.

This afternoon we got an opportunity to go to a deaf school. Their are some retired teachers at our hotel who are teaching at the deaf school and invited us to go and visit the school. It was an eye- opening experience. I have had very little experience with the deaf population so I was excited to see what the school was like. The retired teachers were doing a professional development for the teachers at the school. They were giving them the resources to be successful in the classroom. It was interesting to see a sign classroom. I was also amazed by the teachers. They were so into the professional development. They were so excited to learn about teaching these kids. Haitians have such a passion to learn. The picture to the right is at the deaf school.

On our way down to the school we hopped onto a very full tap-tap. There was no place to sit so Haley and I were standing on the bumper of the tap-tap. This is a small little pick up. We had three garbage bags of food on there along with two chairs in the bed of the pick up. We had all that stuff in the pick up along with twenty people in the truck! It was a little squished. On the way back to the hotel we decided to take the moto! I love riding these things and it was really nice to not be crowded for once. When we got back to our room I had a little visitor in my room. I saw gecko running across the ceiling of my room. After a little screaming and laughing we got one of the workers to come into our room and get him out. I will not miss these little critters when I get home! The picture on the right is the gecko that was in my room.

With Love,
Abby

We took Ryan to the beach today and took some more pictures. While taking one of the pictures a wave come up and we nearly went under water!

Life as a teacher

The van was finally fixed today so we got to travel by car but in reality I didn't really like it. I would rather have the fresh air.  I was so excited on the car ride over to the school to see the kids. One of my favorite parts of being a teacher is walking into the classroom and hearing the kids yell Miss Abby. The kids at the orphanage have just started doing that and seriously just melts me heart every time. These kids also look adorable in their little orange school uniforms.

One of the main things we are taught as pre-service teachers is to be prepared for anything. We are also told that we need to be able to think on our feet when lessons don't go as planned. In Haiti we do not create lesson plans we just do our lessons based on what we think the kids need to know. I feel so unprepared when walking into these classrooms but I just go with it and try to teach as best as possible. One of the hardest things is the language barrier but they want us to fully immerse the kids in the language. I don't know how many times Haley and I have looked at each other and thought what the heck are we supposed to be doing! We are slowly learning and getting an understanding for how the school is runs.

One of the cutest things happened today at the school. So the kindergarten class was outside playing. One of the girls picked something off of the ground and ate it. Soon the teacher was asking the little girl what she put in her mouth. She just stood there and acted completely innocent. The teacher just kept asking and asking. After asking the little girl stuck her tongue out and she ate a piece of chalk. The teacher in me was saying don't laugh but I couldn't help but laugh because her tongue was all white and it had gotten on her lips. Chalk is very special out here. They have a limited supply of it and we have been told to never let go of it because the kids will take it. I guess they will also eat it!

When we got into the kindergarten classroom one of teachers showed us an art craft she wanted us to do for class. She literally had picked one of the hardest things to do. It was a flower that was more like origami. I would maybe do it with a fourth grade class but we were doing it with kindergarten. It was asking us to cut out over 300 squares to create the flower for the students to make and they gave us ten minutes to get prepared. So just imagine 21 kindergartners running around the room while Haley and I frantically cut out squares. Let's just say the craft was a disaster.

In the other classes that we were teaching today they told us to teach the kids how to type. For anyone who has seen me type I am not the greatest typer nor do I have any idea on how to teach typing. The teachers also did not tell us that we were going to be teaching typing today so they literally just threw us to the wolves. For not having a clue of what we were supposed to be doing I would say we did pretty well. Tonight we both looked up activities for the kids to do to work on typing so hopefully tomorrow will go a little better. It was also very hard because there was only one computer per three kids. So the two kids who were just sitting were getting distracted and bugging other students.

Haley and I decided to go to the beach today. (shocker) I don't think I could ever get sick of going to the beach. I love reading and listening to my music on the beach. We had one heck of a tap-tap ride back. First of it was all younger guys on the ride. Just put that together. We were very happy to get off when it was over.

Before coming on this trip I had all these intentions of changing the school and really helping these teachers. As we are on week two of the trip I am realizing that there is way too much that needs to be done in this school. There is no way we can accomplish that in the three weeks that we are here. As much as I want to help the school you can't do everything we are only human. My main goal is to love on these kids because they love the attention. I just love how they are becoming so comfortable with us. I am starting to catch onto all of their personalities and what they like to do.

With Love,
Abby

Exploring Jacmel

First of all the meal last night was so good! We had a buffet style meal with chicken, steak, plantains, rice, fish, and fresh salad. It was so good! I have never been so full in my life. I might gain like ten pounds by the time I get back.

Today we decided that we wanted to go visit the boardwalk in Jacmel. We took a tap-tap to downtown and Haley and I were not entirely sure where we were so we just headed towards the ocean. After walking for like twenty minutes we finally came across the boardwalk. It is so weird because the boardwalk was so pretty. There were mosaics on the ground and all the walls. It was absolutely gorgeous but no one was there. We maybe saw ten people on the boardwalk and that I was it. I love the raw beauty that this town has and that it is not a tourist attraction. After walking we headed over to a coffee shop for the a drink. I tried the passion fruit juice. It was very refreshing. I am going to have a really hard time drinking our sugary drinks when I come back home. The fruit juices taste so different because they don't add sugar. After our drinks we headed back on the tap-tap. Haley and I had a little incident on the tap-tap today. So the tap-tap was very crowded and Haley had to sit on my lap. On tap-taps they slam on the breaks a lot. I wasn't paying attention and lost balance and Haley slid of my lap onto an older Haitian gentlemen. Thankfully everyone on the tap-tap thought it was funny and laughed with us!

After exploring the boardwalk we headed back to the beach that we went to yesterday. Its nice to go somewhere besides our hotel and this beach is a lot bigger! I spent the afternoon listening to music, reading my book, and watching people on the beach. One of the observations I made on the beach is that Haitians are really good at soccer and they are almost mean. They are throwing elbows at each other and pushing. It was fun to watch and I was wishing I knew how to play soccer so I could join in! Secondly, a group of American tourist came and it was very entertaining to watch them at the beach. They came out of their van with fanny packs and cameras in a hand. It was fun to watch them explore the beach and try to speak the language. We had a little boy come up to us to sell us items. We kept saying no to him and then he goes this helps me pay for my schooling. That literally broke my heart into a million pieces. Its like he knew that we were teachers. Haley and I felt so bad because he was trying so hard to get money to try and pay for his schooling.

We headed back to our hotel by tap-tap again. The tap-tap ride back was a little interesting. All the benches were taken so Haley had to stand in the back. There is nothing that hold you into these tap-taps and we had like nothing to hang on to. I was just praying Haley and I didn't fly out of the back but the Haiti people were holding onto to us making sure that we didn't fall out. I think I will be forever amazed by the kindness these people have while riding on the tap-tap. I think that traveling by tap-tap is one of the best ways to travel in this country. It is a super cheap way to travel and you really get to feel the culture. I mean we get the opportunity to interact with the Haitians. We also get to see so many sights. I love that when you ride in them that you are constantly getting fresh air and you get to experience all the smells. When traveling through the market there tends to be some nasty smells. We smelt some bad things that brought us to the point of almost gagging. I feel like all these Haitians watch out for each other even if they don't know you. They are like a family out here. If you are having car trouble you see like 10 or 15 Haitians surrounding the vehicle trying to help you fix it. When walking down the streets they always say hello and smile at you.

Tomorrow schools starts up again and I can't wait to see the kids again and spend the day with them! :)

With Love,
Abby

New friends and new adventures

We had our first day off from the orphanage and we took full advantage of that. Earlier in the week we met some English teachers that work at a local school. They told us they would love to show us all the places around Haiti. They met us in the morning and we all ate breakfast at our hotel. Shad, Jaci, and Jessica are all elementary teachers who have been in Haiti all school year.

After breakfast we all got onto a tap-tap and headed toward a different beach. We rode the tap-tap for about twenty minutes and then got dropped off at the beach. The tap-tap ride to the beach cost us about 75 cents. It is so nice to travel for so cheap around here. I am always surprised at how welcoming the people are when we get on the tap-tap. They are always smiling and making room for you.



This beach was so pretty. The water was clearer then pool water and it had sand. When you were in the water you could see the mountains in the back ground. The beach did not have very many people at all. It was nice to get away from our hotel and see some other parts of Haiti. The beach we went to was called Kabik. We spent most of the afternoon floating in the water and exchanging travel stories. They also told us of all the places we need to visit while on the island. Haley and I are so excited to visit all these places. It was so nice to hang out with people our age and who had the same interests. After a long week of absorbing this country and feeling a million emotions it was nice to just relax. We both said we finally had a day where our minds weren't running a million miles thinking about all the ways we can help! It was a great ending to our first week. Tonight we are heading into town to go try out a restaurant that apparently has beef. I am so excited I have not had meat since I left home and I am craving it so bad!

With Love,
Abby

Patience

Today we got the opportunity to sleep in but sleeping in for us was 7. It very hard to sleep in here just because the sun rises so early. Also their are lots of animals outside our room we are always hearing chickens and dogs in the morning. We had our breakfast oceanside and then headed over to the orphanage and we took the tap-tap today. We were the only people on the tap-tap ride so that was really nice. We arrived at the orphanage and the kids were doing their morning chores. They are trying to teach the kids to pick up there trash and that they don't just leave it laying around. Many people just throw their trash out in Haiti. This is a very dirty country.

Once the kids were finished with their morning chores we brought out the chalk for them to play. They swarmed around us trying to get pieces of chalk. These kids are so eager to learn they were all working on their counting and writing out number lines on the sidewalk. They would say the numbers in both French and English. We also take some books out and read to the kids. They loved being read to and repeated every word that we said to them. These kids are so motivated to learn English and speak our language. All the little boys came up to me today and asked me to play tic-tac-toe with them. They get so excited over such a simple game. I am also going two days straight of being the tic-tac-toe champion. These little boys are so competitive and so am I.

Later on in the morning the older girls started playing a new game that involved singing. They would say a letter and then you had to think of a song that starts with that letter. The girls sang in French while the others sang in English. It was a lot of fun even though we didn't understand what other people were saying we had a lot fun singing and laughing at each other. We also pulled out a phone and started playing music and English and had a little dance party. After playing with the kids we headed back to our hotel. Our tap-tap ride back was a little more interesting. The tap-tap was full when we got on and some Haitian just pulled me down to sit down on his lap. While Haley was standing right in front me with no room to move. We also could not see out of this one so we were hoping the driver remembered where we were supposed to be dropped off. We made it back safely! We are truly getting to experience the Haitian culture on this trip.I wouldn't change that though because we are really getting an understanding of their lifestyle. Haley and I did some homework and then headed to the beach for about an hour.

The beach that we go to is not like a beach in the states. Its very very small maybe twenty people could fit on this beach. The beach is also very rocky and we take like ten steps into the water and then swim because the rocks hurt our feet so bad. We have also realized this beach is common place for Haitian's to bathe. It makes you feel real guilty when you are just going to the beach to relax and all of these people are going because its the only way they can get clean. You never truly realize how much you have until you see the life that other people are living.

On Friday nights our hotel has pizza night! We were all so excited to finally have pizza but man did it take forever to get our food. We had not had food since 7:30 this morning so by 5 we decided we couldn't wait any longer for our food. We ordered our food and waited this is very typical in Haiti it normally takes us and hour or two to get our food. After ordering our food it had been about an hour and we were getting impatient. One of the servers came over and said they did not have the ingredients for the pizza we wanted... So we then ordered a new pizza and did not get our food until 6:30. Let me tell you by that point in the day my patience was running so thin. All I wanted was food!  This whole Haitian time can be tough some times for us. We are so used to getting food when we want it in the states.

I am still amazed by the kindness by all of these people. They are so kind to us. We may look completely different then them but they are so welcoming to us. Walking down the street people are always saying hello and French and smiling to us. I sometimes wish that everyone was this friendly when we are in the states.

With Love,
Abby

I got to ride a moto!! :)

After having all that time yesterday to sit and reflect on the trip I was excited to go to the orphanage and see the kids today! Our van is still not working so we had to use other forms of transportation today. I was very excited about this because Sean (He lives here and his family helps with Love Takes Root they are from Okoboji!) wanted to take a moto. I was so excited when he told me that and Haley just looked at me like I was slightly crazy. We first had to find someone to give us a ride which did not take long at all. In Haiti they like to pile people on their moto's I usually see three to five people squished on to them. So Haley and I and our young Haitian driver set out on our drive. Haley was hanging on to me for dear life and kept saying "Just don't think about it, just don't think about." I on the other hand was sitting their giggling have the time of my life. I was enjoying all the sights you can really see a lot when riding on the moto. The only part that was a little scary was when we got on the gravel road it was super bumpy! I think that our Haitian driver also enjoy driving us around. He was waving at the younger guys and being like "Hey look who is riding my moto." Not often in Haiti do you see white college girls BUT on the rare occasion do you see white college girls riding on a moto. I think he enjoyed giving us the ride and all the attention fellow Haitians gave him. Below is Haley and I on our moto ride! I also took a video while riding and I can show you guys when I get back!

Today we had decided that we wanted to see the school that Sean's children attend. This school does half of the day in French and the other half in English. It is a very small school with only four teachers but oh my goodness. This school really knows what they are doing. It was such a relief to walk into a classroom and see them teaching in English! I could understand what the kids where talking about too. These students are so smart. One girl told me she could count to ten in ten different languages. I mean that is just crazy. I am so impressed with how many languages these people can speak. Haley and I also got a chance to speak to the director of the school. She is an amazing lady. She was telling us how in Haiti these teachers do no lesson planning at all. Which is hard for me to understand because we do so much lesson planning in our college courses. Most of the teachers also do not have college education and also have not completed high school. This school is also set up differently then many Haitian schools. In Haiti they use corporal punishment in the classroom. I have a very hard time with that. In this school they teach like we do and use love and compassion towards the students. I believe that has helped these students so much. They listen to the teachers and respect the teacher.

After spending the morning observing this school we took a short walk over to Love Takes Root. When we walked in we didn't see any of the kids. So Haley and I decided to walk down to the supply room and start looking at the supplies to see what crafts we could do with the kids. Let me tell you they have one shelf of supplies and it is very hard to think of crafts with only one shelf of supplies for the students. Haley and I have been thinking all day about ways that we can use the limited supplies that we have.

Once we looked at supplies we headed over to see if the kids were done with their chores. Sure enough they were out playing so we went and sat by them for awhile. I had a little boy pull my arm and he had handed me three rocks and he had three rocks. He sat down on the tile and put one rock down and then told me to put a rock down. So I figured out they were using this as a tic-tac-toe board. So I said tic-tac-toe and the kids freaked out. It was amazing to see that they had limited resources but they still found new ways to play games. They also take their tic-tac-toe very serious out here. I had many kids yelling at me and telling me what move I should make next.

While playing the game a little boy had gotten hurt and was sitting on the ground crying and no one was going to help him. I couldn't just sit there so I went over picked him up and comforted him. While I was sitting holding him this little girl came up to me with a children's Bible. She kept pointing at it so I started reading, soon I had kids hovering over me. One little girl was laying on my legs sucking her thumb half asleep. I just kept reading and reading. These kids just wanted someone to read to them. They loved the fact that I took time out of my day and read to them. I bet that I read for over a half hour and they just sat their and listening. It was so comforting being surrounded by kids and just reading to them! Below is when I was reading to the kids!

After a morning of hanging with the kids we headed back to the orphanage and we rode on the moto for the second time! (Sorry mom) I may have found my new favorite form of transportation! This driver drove way faster and weaved in and out of the traffic! I thought it was fun and Haley was not a huge fan! We got back to the resort and headed towards the beach. I am really starting to love my afternoons at the beach.

Haley and I get to a chance to reflect on the day and talk about what we think would be the best ways to help the school. One of our main topics we talk about is how we have to accept the fact that we are not going to change this school or these kids in three weeks. We need to make the most of each of these days. Give the students and teachers the resources that will help. But overall our main goal is to love on these kids. We know that it is going to be hard to say goodbye for us and them. We are just trying to do little things that will make a difference in these kids lives. Like today reading the Bible with the kids. They often do not have someone sit down and read a book to them and they were so excited to read. They didn't even have a clue as to what I was saying but just having the company and having someone care was enough for them.

With Love,
Abby

Looking Back

This morning we were informed that the van was broken down and we were not going to be going to the school. I was a little bummed that we were not going but I was also relieved because that meant we could have a day to just finally sit down and relax. Since we have arrived here I have not had a chance to just sit down. As I was sitting around today I had a lot of thoughts swimming through my head and I would like to share a few of those thoughts with you guys!

This morning Haley and I decided to venture out on our and walk down the streets of Jacmel. Last night Haley and I were looking up few things to see when we had some free time. We have a little travel book in our room and we were just flipping through the pages looking at sights. This book was for both the Haiti and the Dominican Republic. Last year I had the opportunity to travel to the Dominican and teach in a school and do some sight seeing around the island. I was showing pictures to Haley of all the different places we went to and what we all saw on our trip. One of the first things I said to Haley was I can't believe how clean the Dominican was. We were flipping through the pictures and seeing how clean the streets were. I also remembered that in the Dominican we never see people carrying buckets of water. I am still amazed that these people do this on a daily basis. So while we were walking the streets I was noticing just how poor this country is. Most of the people were staring at us as we were walking around. It might be because we are both very tall blondes who are wearing glasses. For those of you that don't know Haley she is 6 ft! It made me think about when we see people of a different race and how we just stare at them as they walk by. It is just our human instinct to stare when we see something that is out of the ordinary. We are all humans so why do we stare and make people feel so uncomfortable. Since we were getting stared at so much we decided to start saying hello to them in French. That helped so much. They were all so friendly and they would smile at us when we walked by.

This afternoon Haley and I decided to go lay down by the beach for a while. With nothing but the ocean in front of us I had plenty of time to process what had happened so far on this trip. There were two little Haitian girls playing on the beach with a sponsor parent. It reminded me of the kids from the orphanage and I was wondering how they were doing today. Yesterday the kids were sad because all of the nursing students were leaving today so they were saying goodbye to the kids. As I was watching them say goodbye and made me think about how sometime soon I will have to being the same thing to these kids. These kids live a tough live. They have volunteers coming throughout the year. They get attached to these people for a couple of weeks and then they have to say goodbye to them. The kids are not used to having a constant support in their lives. They don't have parents or families to support them to be by there side whenever them. It reminded me of how lucky I am. I have had a family their for me supporting me through my lowest lows and my highest highs. One hundred percent of the time I know that I can talk to them and they will always be there to listen to me. They will be there to help me when the times get tough. These kids have the weekly or monthly support they get from volunteers. They get to know people and become attached and soon they have to say goodbye to this people.

These kids don't have someone to fall back on when times get tough. Whenever I am having a bad day or just need someone to talk to I know that I can always call my mom. We may both be having a bad day but somehow whenever we talk we can cheer each other up. Orphans don't get that. They don't have a mom there kiss their knees when they get hurt. They don't have a mom their to help them get through a tough break up. They don't have a mom their to support them as they are going through the college experience. Its hard for me to even imagine what that would be like. I would not be the same person that I am if it wasn't for the support I receive from my family and friends. I know that this is also a problem we have back home. Its just hard because these kids have absolutely nothing. It reminds me of my little thumb sucking friend. When I am watching her play with other kids she can be mean towards them. I think she does this because she is trying to get attention from other people. She doesn't get much attention and she is little and needs that attention. As I have been playing with her each and every day she has defiantly been warming up to me. The first day I could not get her to smile at all. She would not smile she looked so sad and lost. The second day was a complete turn around she came up to me and sat on my lap. I started tickling her and she giggled. It was seriously the cutest giggle I have ever heard in my life. It made me so happy to see her finally smiling and playing around. This little girl just needs to be loved she just needs to have a constant figure in her life.

This brings me to my final thought for the day. All of the kids at the orphanage have a sponsor we found out. These kids are also all up for adoption if someone were to be interested in adopting one of them. I was talking to Haley and her mom about how these sponsors could be a constant in their life. Lisa had said something about how they are a constant for these kids but not really. I mean they are giving the kids money each month which is great don't get me wrong. Some of the sponsors are sending the kids pictures and colorings along with letters and the kids know that they will always have that support. Not all of the sponsors are doing that nor do the kids get an opportunity to meet their sponsors. How well do these kids really know their sponsors. So in essence these people are almost like a dream like to these kids. They know about them and they help them. I know many of the people who sponsor don't have the time write the kids letters and I understand that because we are often to busy with our own life. But.......Are we not being called to help others? Are we not being called to love one another? So why are we living a mundane life where we are doing the same thing day in and day out? Why are we not reaching out to the people who are struggling? Every person is going through a struggle each day. I know each person has their own personal problems to deal with. How can we make life better for each other? I really don't want to offend anyone but I mean what is the true meaning in life? Someday we are all going to die and leave all these material things on earth. Are you going to be satisfied with your life if you just have material things or are you going to make relationships and help people out? I get so much more out of my day when I spend time talking to people helping people then when I spend my day watching Netflix and laying around. It makes me wonder how I can make a difference in someones life. How can I change a life? How can I be person that someone can rely on when times get tough and they have no where to turn?

I know this blog is deep and makes you really think about your life. I think it is important that we don't lose focus on the true meaning of life when our lives start to get busy. I would like to share a few verses that came to my mind while writing this blog:

Ephesians 5:2 " Live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God."

1 John 2:17 " The world and its desires pass away but the man who does the will of God lives forever."

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 " Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances."

With Love,
Abby