Beach Day

Our last day at the beach was my favorite beach time!  We went with our normal arsenal of equipment  -  soccer balls, footballs, and Frisbees. Also, in our van was some leftover VBS supplies that we planned to donate to the church. Upon getting to the beach though we decided to break out some of the leftover books from VBS and let the kids draw and color. It was incredible to see the kids stop playing with the athletic equipment and come over to sit in the sand with us and draw.  A grown man who was riding his motorcycle stopped and drew with us for at least 30 minutes.  When he completed his drawing, he showed it around to all of us and we could see how proud he was to have created something of his own. 

My favorite part of this beach day was when one of the meanest boys  from our time in Haiti joined us to color.  This boy had injured different people throughout the week and he appeared to have some severe anger issues: he had chucked a football at Brandi’s head, tried to break my finger, and he had even been involved in a fight at VBS the day before.  I tried to reach out to this boy and try to find something good amongst the bad. Maille-Maille, our translator, asked him what his name was.  We discovered his name was Stevenson and I showed him how to write it down.  He had never written his name down before and therefore he didn’t know how to spell it.  (I hope I showed  him the correct spelling!). After realizing that names could be written down, he asked me how to write down everyone else’s name on the beach.  It was amazing to see his calm demeanor!  We spent some time playing tic tac toe in the sand together and he was proud each time he won. 

At the end of this beach day we decided to let this boy be one of the select few to receive a Frisbee. Later, we talked in the van about  how we loved to see him learning and not being so competitive.  We’ll never know if he has been to school. We’ll never know if he has parents. We’ll never know what makes him so angry.  However, we do know that he has a loving side and we know his name is Stevenson.  

~Molly

Last Day of VBS

Sorry we took a day off from blogging. We joked about blaming our lapse on a spotty internet connection, but thou shalt not lie, right?

We've been having too much fun and togetherness to slow down to write something.

The last two days have been phenomenal. We've kept the same schedule of beach soccer in the morning and VBS at the church in the afternoon.

We've tried to mix it up with the kids to make it fun and different each day. The girls at the beach went crazy (in a good way) when we brought out the nail polish. There's a mess of little girls running around Jacmel with fab pink manicures. One of our team members had the brilliant idea of bringing embroidery thread for making friendship bracelets, and today the kids took breaks between soccer and frisbee games to make them. Even the guys loved them; I spent a good 20 minutes this morning holding thread while a teenage boy concentrated hard on making his red-and-white bracelet. Remember those awesome multi-colored parachutes from P.E. class? It was a hit with the kids at VBS this afternoon. I hope we caught it on video to share with you, because it was wild.

Today was our last day of VBS. Due to some travel issues that came up, we're unable to teach the fourth day as planned. Our talented lesson planners, Molly and LetaAnn, did a bit of rewriting to leave the kids on a high note, and the new lesson went unbelievably well. They really seemed to understand what we were trying to tell them how to share, pray, help, and tell their neighbor about Jesus. We ended the lesson by sharing the Easter story and salvation with the Evangicube. We initially thought the cube was cheesy, but the Haitian kids have loved them. The simple pictures are universal.

Tonight we went to a revival service at the church. We sang a few songs, which was fun, and Shannon said a few words about how there is no language barrier when Christians come together in worship. I recognized a few hymns they sang, but we still couldn't understand what they were saying. Still, the worship was powerful. I couldn't help myself from turning around in my seat to watch the church members sing. It was beautiful to see their love for God on their faces and to hear it from their lips.

-Laura

Beach Kids

We want to tell you about our first day in Jacmel!  This morning, we went to the beach and played with the "beach kids."  Most of these "kids" don't have the opportunity to attend school because they cannot afford the fees that are required.  These children appeared when we got there and were ready to play! As the number of kids grew, starting with 5 and growing to around 40, we never saw any parents and some of the kids were running around in their underwear.  On the beach (which is littered and rocky) we played soccer, (big kid team and little kid team), football, and frisbee.   We were also able to introduce them to an American football.  They saw the football and attempted to bounce it because they didn't know how else it could be used.  The temperatures were around 90 degrees and as we sweated profusely on the beach we eyed the cool Caribbean Sea. In an effort to cool off, we started playing tag near the water's edge which eventually led into a game of the kids tackling us, tagging us, and asking for piggyback rides. We had a great time and once we were covered from head to toe in sand, we headed back to our hotel to shower and prep for VBS.  

As we were prepping, our leader received a phone call from the pastor at the church that our VBS was located within.  When asked how many kids were there, his response was, "You can't even imagine! I am entertaining them now by singing."  We got to the church and the kids filled the whole back section, numbering around 70. It was interesting to teach a lesson through translators.  Our translators Elmye and Meshak were really wonderful with leading the kids in songs and helping us to organize them.  Things turned out well and we already have a more active game plan for tomorrow's lesson.

Of the experiences we have had so far, the most striking difference can be seen in the kids' "survival mode."  In our debrief session tonight we discussed how the children aren't shy about asking for things such as our watches, sunglasses, etc., even such basic things as water.  We can see their desire for basic needs and wants and that they struggle to obtain the things that we more than take for granted.  How can these children's parents provide for their basic needs when they can't afford school and 85% of the country is unemployed? 

Elmye, our translator, said it best over lunch: "Some people see our country as so poor. We are poor and we might not have all the same opportunities as other countries but I know we really aren't poor.  In fact, because of Jesus, I am rich."

~ Megan and Molly

First Impressions

Our trip to Haiti started with quite an eventful travel experience speckled with fun and not so fun.  After leaving 12 Stone at 04:10am we made it to our first gate around 06:30.  Then, we landed in Miami at 10:00 and enjoyed our 4 hour layover by meeting some Haitians at the gate that were kind enough to help us translate words for our VBS lessons.  Once we boarded our flight at 13:30, we were geared up and ready for Jacmel!  Or so we thought.  Due to some last minute mechanical adjustments, paper work processing and a shift in the tailwinds, our wheels finally left the Miami ground at 17:00.  Good thing the plane was full of other mission groups, teams anywhere from Alabama to Minnesota, or American Airlines would have had some more issues to deal with (on top of all the luggage we witness dropping on the tarmac).  We then landed in Haiti at 18:30.  Here we met the kind and gracious Kerry (our World Hope Connection who happens to be a 12 stoner as well).  She showed us to our bus where we experienced our first 'change in plans'.  Since we got in so late, and we didn't want to battle the Saturday night traffic to Jacmel, Tony (World Hope Coordinator) was generous enough to allow us to spend the night in his house.  Writing about the kindness of Tony and his story is enough to fill up a whole other blog post.  He suggested we go in to town and eat.  So we unpacked our bags, and then went into the town of Pigeonville (Port Au Prince suburb) to grab some Haitian grub.  With tummies full and exhaustation from traveling, we headed home, debriefed, and went to bed.

- Sam/Molly

Our trip to Haiti started out with little to no sleep and an early flight.  After leaving the church we had an easy trip until we got to Miami.  We had a 4 hour layover in Miami where we were able to interact with some awesome people.  A group of Haitians were listening to music and helped us translate some of the stuff for VBS.  After the layover we boarded the plane, but  ended up sitting in the plane for about 2 1/2 hours before we were able to take off.  Once we finally got in the air,  I was able to have a conversation with a man who played soccer for Haiti back in 1989.  He told me something that really has ressonated with me so far, " Our country is very beautiful despite what the media has made it out to be.  Not necessarily because of the  buildings and material things but because we are beautiful people."  He also told me that Jacmel was one of the most beautiful places in Haiti. The Haitian people are very hospitipal and very welcoming.  Tony from World Hope opened his home to us and also took us out for a local dinner because we couldn't make to to Jacmel last night due to the delay. Today we are finally headed to our destination in Jacmel.  I'm excited to see what God has in store for all of us on this trip.

Brandi

Beauty is a word that really sticks out to me when thinking about our first glimpse of Haiti. Our first day of VBS  will focus on "beauty" and how God made EVERYTHING and made it purposefully and beautifully. When we were interacting with Hatians on the airport and on the plane, that was something they expressed. Haiti is a beautiful country with so much beauty within. As we were flying over and landing, I knew they were right. Haiti is beautiful. Then, you get closer and closer and see their struggles, which is hard to see. However, there is so much heart and love within Haiti, and that is comforting. I am so excited for what is to come and to see more of the love and beauty within Haiti and to share my heart and love for Jesus with the Haitians.

LetaAnn

There are a lot of thoughts running through my mind right now, most I'm unable to put into words. I can say that it has finally hit home what Ryan said at the All-mission team gathering that missions are not about me and what I can do. Seeing this life I call impoverished- crumbling buildings, no electricity, dirty water- there is nothing I can do. I could sell everything I own tomorrow and that little bit of money wouldn't even be a drop in the bucket of need. It's only God that can make a change, and because he's had this plan since creation, I can do nothing but come along for the ride. That's why it doesn't matter we're only here for one week. God and his work is always here changing people's lives and hearts.

-Laura

God forgot to send our team the memo to wear BRIGHT colored shirts that say HAITI on the front!!! I miss my iPhone, the shower and the sound of the toilet flushing.

~Hannah

gotta go! The bus is here to pick us up for Jacmel!  -Lauren