Little things....

The mountains on the other side of the bay.  It was very hard to see these mountains during the first couple days I was here, but in the morning, the sun comes up from behind them and they look so beautiful.

Mrs. Schmidt grinding the grain.  And no, this is not normal procedure.  Normally, the boys would do all the grinding, but we were trying to get it done quickly.

December 28^th

Poor little Jason got hives this morning. I noticed when I sat down to feed him that he had a spot like a bug bite on each cheek close to his nose. They looked very similar to mosquito bites. A little later he was scratching his legs and arms. This got my attention, and I called JoHannah's attention to it. We both thought that he must have had ants in his bed. It looked like they'd eaten him up. These ants are all over the place. They seem similar to sugar ants, but they bite. If we leave food uncovered, or not well covered, on the table for too long, they get into it, and are all over the place. She called her parents, and Josh and Jeremy examined him too. A few minutes later, bumps had appeared all over his legs and arms, and we could see that it wasn't ant bites at all, and Mr. Schmidt soon realized it was hives. I thought that I had Benadryll in my bag, but I didn't. Mr. S. couldn't find any either. Jeremy had been looking for some tape in the drawers that the first-aid supplies are kept in, and I had been looking for the Benadryll in them at the same time and had seen a bottle of allergy relief pills there. We gave Jason one, and put anti-itch cream on his legs, and though he was a grump, the itching seemed to have diminished greatly. He is asleep now in his bed.

I am typing this on the kitchen floor, because Mr. Schmidt has one of the generators running, but it isn't powerful enough to provide electricity to the house. Instead, it's hooked up to an extension cord, and a power strip is plugged into that. So, my computer is plugged in in the kitchen along with two others, and as I don't have anything pressing to do at the moment, and want to conserve my battery for when the generator's not running, I'm writing this now.

The boys are grinding grain with a manual grain mill. When they have enough flour ground, Jo and I will make bread, and hopefully cinnamon rolls too. JoHannah and Mrs. Schmidt are seated at the other end of the kitchen table going over a story that JoHannah is writing for the Vision Forum essay contest. I entered it a couple weeks ago, and mentioned that when we were talking about writing. Mrs. Schmidt looked it up online, and I think that I and whoever else has entered it just got some serious competition. I haven't read it yet, but I saw a few bits and pieces of JoHannah's other stories, and they look good. I'll be very interested to read this one.

December 29^th

Jason is back to normal now, but the medicine we gave him made him really sleepy, and he slept most of yesterday, and was very grouchy the rest of the time. Poor little guy, he felt so sick he didn't even want to eat. Right now though (12:35) he's happily playing in the walker after gobbling his lunch.

     Yesterday JoHannah and I made bread.  This is the second time.  I had never made bread by hand until I came here.  Since there isn't any electricity, we had to grind the flour by hand.  We all (JoHannah, the boys, Mrs. Schmidt and I) took turns grinding.  Mrs. Schmidt seemed to really get a kick out of seeing how fast she could grind.  It was kind of funny watching her.  I snapped a few photos so we'd be able to remember it.

A little history...

OK, so I said a while back that I'd explain who the Schmidts are, and why I'm in Haiti helping them. So far I haven't gotten a chance to do that, but now I'll try to, and also to say a little something about the children.

Tom and Ginger Schmidt were missionaries in Haiti for about seven years. They came home “for good” in '99, but after the earthquake felt called to return and open a home for disabled children- specifically those that had lost limbs as a result of the quake. They came back, found a piece of property, and now have the four children. My understanding is that another little girl should be coming some time in the near future, but I haven't heard anything about that since we got here, so don't know when that will be. Betty is for adoption- though this is not the Schmidts' policy- they are caring for her for someone else. They believe that Haiti needs to be changed from the inside out, and to do this the children must be raised in the fear of the Lord. Of course, the Schmidts know that they alone cannot make the children Christians, it has to be God working in their hearts. But the biggest problem in Haiti is undoubtedly Voodoo. The people are held in bondage to it. They are afraid to go out too far to fish because they think the water spirits will get them. If a mother has twins, they are afraid to let them both live. If a handicapped child is born, they view it as a curse from the devil whom they serve, and will throw in on a garbage heap to be eaten by rats and die. I know that I'm being graphic here, but this is what the Haitians believe. How can a country with these beliefs grow? That is why they need the Gospel so desperately, but simply sending missionaries isn't enough. The upcoming generation must be taught to love and honor God, and that is why what the Schmidts are doing is so important. These children are being taught about God- they are included in family devotions in the morning and often evening, they are prayed with before meals and bedtime, and they have the example that we are setting them. They may not understand much at this point, but the Schmidts are trusting God that these things will have an effect on their lives. One thing that is always included in the prayers is that each child will come to know the Lord.

Although I understand why people would think it best that the children be adopted out of the country, and though I would certainly have no problem with that in the case of these handicapped children, I appreciate the Schmidts long-term vision for raising a godly future generation to change Haiti.

A few more photos...

Miss Betty.  For some reason, I was having problems with this photo in the last post...

The veiw from the seaward side of the house.

The backyard.

Photos, and Sunday in "Port"

Caleb- most needy of the four.  Can't do anything for himself as of yet, but we have hope for him- he's more alert, and seems to be trying to look at us now.  He has trouble seeing and hearing because he received no stimulation when he was younger.  These senses seem to have deteriorated because they haven't been used for so long.



Maurice- quite thin, loves to eat, and has trouble holding his head up.  Is now reaching for items and grabbing things though.




Public transportation... oh, I almost forgot, there are also busses, and these usually are not only packed, but people ride on top or hang off the sides too.



Jason

Sunday, December 26

We went to church today. Honestly, I was a bit disapointed with it.  The Schmidts don't usually go there. The drive is rather prohibitive, as I discovered today, and they are still trying to get organized. 1 ½ hours doesn't sound too bad, that's what my family drives to church, but an hour and a half drive in Haiti (about 45 min. of which is in Port Au Prince) is entirely different. For one thing, one feels as if one is moving really fast at 40- 60 mph on a “good” road. (Meaning one that is paved, and doesn't have too many or too big potholes.) Then there is the danger of big trucks running into you, of people, goats, cows, dogs, children, etc. etc, running out in front of you, and the road is full of bumps and potholes. It is also very dusty. In other words, it's pretty tough.

The drive through Port-Au-Prince was most interesting. Once more, we saw any number of goats, cows, and horses as we drove, while people lined the streets buying and selling. There are also great numbers of public conveyances all over the place. These look quite unusual. They are converted pickup trucks, having a sort of roof over the bed. I have a few photos of them. Most of them are very ornate. People cram into them, and there are two seats at the end on the tailgate. Usually there are about seven or eight people sitting on benches along the sides of the truck bed, and two more on the seats on the tailgate. Then of course, there are usually some live chickens, turkeys, or other kind of produce that the people take along with them. Of course, this is a rather full truck, but I've seen quite a few like this. Naturally, it looks like a tight fit.

Mr. Schmidt says that what I saw today is actually a comparatively small amount of commerce going on. If that's small, I wonder what big looks like- it must be crazy! Really it was crazy today, just it's usually crazier. So far, I haven't really seen anything real surprising so far. I suppose this is because I've seen so much footage (mainly in documentaries) of third-world countries, that I was expecting to see things like this.

This has definitely been a learning experience, and will continue to be so. It does take a little while to get used to taking “showers” with a bucket and cup, having to be careful not to get the water in one's mouth as it could carry disease, and brushing one's teeth with a cup of drinking water. There are other things I could think of really easily, but this is certainly showing how good we have it in America. 

Merry Christmas!

Jason and Mr. Sam.

Merry Christmas!!!

Merry Christmas everybody! Christmas here has been quite different so far- no tree, no lights, (no electric to run them, except when the generator's on!) no presents as of yet, and although it's a little different than other days so far, it's hard to realize that it's actually Christmas.

Yesterday, JoHannah and I made bread by hand, with flour that the boys ground using a manual grinder that fastens to the table. We turned half of it into sandwich rolls, and the other half into cinnamon rolls. We had the latter for breakfast this morning, so followed the traditional Christmas morning breakfast for my family.

     Later, Mr. Sam, one of the Schmidts friends, came over for lunch.  He is an older German man from Poland, and seemed to really enjoy his time with us.  He was vry nice, and loved Jason (who fully reciprocated the feeling) and it was quite interesting to listen to him talk, especially about his family, and all the Germans, in post-WW 2 Poland.

     Well, the children are fed, and will be in bed soon.  Looking forward to a nice evening with the Schmidts.  Hope you all had a Merry Christmas, and wish you a happy New Year!

In Haiti at last!

So, arrived in Haiti the afternoon of the 21^st. We had so many bags (big ones too!) that just getting out of our hotel room and down to the lobby with them on a cart was an adventure.  My (Evan's) bag was so long that it stuck going through the door, so we had to take it off, and I pulled it.  There were more people waiting to catch the shuttle to the airport than you'd think there would be at 4 AM.  Only one driver for the shuttle showed up, and he seemed a little on the grumpy side.  But he got us there, and all our bags out, so we were happy.  Going through customs and the airport went fine, but I discovered that flying doesn't agree with me too well. Too bad. Anyway, I apparently hadn't been drinking enough water the day before, so although I tried to drink a lot at the airport, between that, going to bed a bit on the late side, then getting up at four AM, and motion sickness I was feeling a bit light-headed when we finally arrived in Haiti. Mr. Schmidt met us at the airport, and drove us home.  On the way I saw lots of cattle and goats, some horses, a few pigs, and some donkeys.  I pretty much crashed as soon as we got to the orphanage, and so I'm afraid that I was absolutely no help to the Schmidts. The next morning I felt much better, though still a little dizzy at times, and after breakfast I organized the “pantry”- a shelving unit filled with food and some dishes.

    Before we ate breakfast, we fed the children. There are four of them right now. Jason is the oldest at around 5, then Caleb at about 4. These two were abandoned at a TB hospital, and were taken care of there for about a year and a half. The Schmidts got them a couple months ago, sometime in late October, early November I think. Then there is Maurice, then Betty. Betty is pretty much normal- in fact that is why they have her, so that the others will watch her and try to imitate her. She was severely burned on her legs though. Caleb is definitely the most needy- he is in what is often called a vegetable state. I think that next to him, Maurice needs the most taking care of. He was thrown on a trash heap, were he was found by a pastor's daughter. Jason is pretty mobile, and I think that he'll be walking soon. He is also usually a very happy and energetic fellow from what I've seen. None of them can talk or walk yet.

Last night after eating turkey sandwiches for supper, and of course, feeding the children, and putting them to bed, we talked for a little while, then listened to the first episode of an early Christmas present of JoHannah's, Jeremy's and Josh's- the most recent volume of Jonathan Park.

This morning Mr. Schmidt and the two boys, Jeremy and Joshua, went to give supplies to two other orphanages in a place called Gonaives. I fed Jason, JoHannah fed Maurice, and Mrs. Schmidt fed Betty and Caleb. We girls then ate corn flakes with milk (powdered milk and water that is) and then we read five Psalms. A verse in one of them (Psalm 113) particularly struck me- “He lifteth the poor out of the dust, and the needy out of the dunghill... and maketh him to sit among the princes of his people.” I had just heard the history of Maurice, and was sitting across from him as I read this verse. He certainly was needy, and had been literally lifted out of a “dunghill” or trash heap.

  I'll post photos as soon as possible.

Going to Haiti!

Well, as most of you already know, I am on my way to Haiti for at least two months to help in an orphanage, Shiloh Childrens Home.  I am going with a lady (Mrs. Schmidt) and her daughter to rejoin Mr. Schmidt and the rest of their family in Haiti.  They are the founders of the orphanage.  More of that when I get a chance.

 

     Right now I am sitting in a hotel room near the Orlando International Airport (OIA), and just said goodbye to my family  about two hours ago.  We drove from our house in the great me tropolis of Pierson to Orlando this afternoon, after a furious-last-minute-big-time-rush-packing flurry.  When we got to the hotel, we helped Mrs. Schmidt weed through all the stuff- a great deal of which was first aid supplies- and then ate pizza down in the lobby.  This is going to be interesting, and I believe fun, but right now I'm a little worried about going through the airport. 

More coming tomorrow!