Waking up in an unfamiliar place is always a little disorienting, but waking up in Haiti seemed particularly strange to me. Perhaps it was the fact that we had arrived in the dark and everything looked different in the daytime. Perhaps it was because we had lots of kids watching our every move from the time we first stepped out of our tents. Or perhaps it was just that I had traveled all day, slept all night, and gone to breakfast in the same set of clothing that I had put on yesterday morning… Whatever it was, the foreignness of this land was soon overwhelmed by a deep love for the kids and the missionaries that we had come to serve. I am thoroughly enjoying myself and am so thankful that God gave us this opportunity to come to Haiti!
After breakfasting on oatmeal in the large mess tent at 7am, Jasmine Martinson gave us a tour of the orphanage compound. Then she and Greg went over the rules, schedule, and possible work projects with us.
Before the earthquake on January 12th, the orphanage was located in a building that was just down the road a bit from the field that they are in now. That building was seriously damaged in the earthquake, so the Martinsons knew that they didn’t want to stay there. They ended up renting this field from someone they know, and have set up camp here. Although it is quite primitive, it is very safe and orderly compared to the rest of Haiti, from what we’ve seen.
At this point, the Martinsons, the girls, and the babies are all living in temporary buildings, which are constructed out of 2x4s and plywood. However, the boys are still in a tent. If the supplies arrive, we hope to be able to work on a building for them to sleep in. While we are here, we will be sleeping in tents too, so it looks like we’re in for an adventure.
As for bathroom facilities, this piece of land has a septic tank under it, which allowed the Martinsons to put in a nice double outhouse. There is also a well, which provides them with water for showers and laundry. However, in order to run the well pump, they must use a generator, which gets expensive. So, we’ll be taking some very short, but much appreciated showers.
After explaining everything to us, Jasmine encouraged us to spend the day getting to know the kids, rather than diving into big work projects. Since we had no work clothes and also because we wanted to play with the kids, Sarah, Courtney, Regina, and I decided that this was a great idea and prepared to do a craft with the kids in the classroom building. We spent hours making foam crowns, first with the girls and then with the boys. It was fun to call the kids princesses and princes and tell them how pretty or handsome they looked, and they seemed to have a wonderful time too. One neat thing about doing this on the first day was that crowns came with foam letters, and we helped the kids put their names on their crowns, which allowed us to start learning each of their names. After we finished that, we just spent time with the kids, playing around outside.
Although David, Donnie, Shane, and Josh also spent most of the day playing with kids, they also began on one of the work projects. Swinging picks and shovels, they cleared and enlarged some of the trenches that are around most of the tents. These channels are very important, since they collect the runoff from the almost daily rainstorms here. If the trenches aren’t there or they’re too small, the water collects in the middle of the tents, which disrupts everything, as you may well imagine.
Lunch was some yummy mashed potatoes and gravy, and then we spent more time loving on the kids in the afternoon.
In the midst of the craziness of our first day here, we had many moments to talk with Jasmine and Greg about all the ways that God has provided for them. One of the most amazing stories they told us was about how He supplied them with enough food and water to feed an army.
Soon after the earthquake, the Martinsons worked hard to get everything set up here in this field, with just a few tents and supplies, and whole lot of uncertainty ahead of them. They knew God would provide as He had before, but they had not an inkling of how He would do it.
One day, some Canadian military helicopters flew too low over the area where the orphanage is set up now, and they destroyed all of their tents. Discouraged and distraught over the loss of their shelters, the Martinsons just had to trust that God did know what He was doing.
The next day, the Canadian military showed up at the front gate of the orphanage, asking if there was anything that they could do to help. Day after day, these soldiers kept coming back, bringing new and larger tents, and enough bottled water and MREs to feed them for months – literally. They have been eating MREs for months already and they have several months worth left; the counter-tops in the kitchen and the benches in the church tent are all made of stacked MRE boxes. As for the bottled water, there are pallets and pallets of it lining the walls of the orphanage compound. It is amazing! In addition to bringing tents, food, and water, the Canadian military also set up plumbing and electricity for the orphanage.
Adding to the already extraordinary tale, Jasmine, who is Canadian, told us that she met a couple of her distant relatives among the soldiers. It really is a small world, isn’t it?
It was encouraging to hear how God has provided for the Martinsons and these kids, and we are continually amazed and amused by how God is providing for us while we are here without our luggage. When we were at the Port-au-Prince airport, waiting for our luggage, I remember thinking that it would be slightly funny if it never showed up. In actuality, although it is somewhat inconvenient, it has been a good experience so far. If one of us doesn’t have something that he or she needs, then either one of our teammates does or else the Martinsons do, and we are well taken care of. God is so good and He is providing for our every need!
This evening we began our study on the upper room discourse in John chapters 13-17, led by Shane. During this trip, we will be delving into this meaningful passage of scripture and I expect some great discussions to come out of it.
Tonight, we are again going to bed hot and tired, but excited to see how God will use us here in the next several days!
Hannah
The mess tent
The girls' tent
Daveson with his crown
No comments:
Post a Comment