Simple, but Profound

Day 3 (March 11, 2015)

The day started for some of the group with 6:30 a.m. mass in the dark at the Missionaries of Charity chapel.  It was like so many of the experiences thus far in Haiti, simple, but profound.  Not a pew or kneeler in the place, but as sacred as any cathedral.  Fr. Tom spoke of the natural order – 1.Right to life.  2. Right of possession (in this order).  He also spoke of the three dimensions that must be present to be fully human – Love of God, Love of others and Love of self.  Anything less is to be less than fully human.

This was a day of constant change, but as our group has quickly acclimated to the Haitian pace and culture, the day turned out 
wonderfully.  Despite the best-laid plans, it turned out that several planned stops for the day changed.  (Some of the words of the day, included resourceful, adaptive, flexible and go with the flow.)  We were even turned away from our first DeliMarket stop.  Our Haitian escorts, Jonas and Maxim, and our trip leaders, Ann and Rebecca, persevered to make the day a special one.  We eventually found our way to another DeliMarket and were able to stock up on supplies for our stop later this week to an Elderly Care facility.  Our first visit included a tour of a home for sick and dying babies where dedicated nuns serve our God through their baby care ministry.  We met a little baby that had been burned that barely had enough energy to cry because she was in so much pain and could only loosely cling to a finger.  We were able to hold a number of babies in the various rooms and share some loving.  Some of us relearned our diaper changing skills and helped air dry some babies after their sink baths.  All walked away with a deep respect for these special nuns and their vocation.

During the middle of the day, our group visited the Papillon Enterprise, where the future of Haiti can be seen today.  This company is bringing opportunity to hundreds of Haitians through the manufacturing of various products (jewelry, pottery, handbags, hanging ornamentals and much more) onsite.  By working with global designers, this company is showing that a local Haitian company can compete on the world stage.

Our last visit of the day ended at an orphanage, where we rewarded with the opportunity to be with several kids that each tugged on our hearts in their own special way.  I met a little three year-old girl named Christie that ambled into my arms and did not want to let go for the next couple of hours.  I learned some Creole (Ki jan ou rele – What is your name?) and Christie learned some English (“high five”, “chalk” and “God bless”), but mostly we communicated through the universal language of laughter and smiles.  Through these visits our group learned again the power of holding a baby and what the experience can teach us about life, those around us and ourselves – simple, but profound.

During our trip back to our Haitian home, while Maxim navigated around a bad spot in the road by moving to the left side of the road, the truck coming at us automatically moved to the opposite of the road.   Both passed each other uneventfully, no accidents.  Simple, but profound - especially for the nearly twenty people in the two trucks.

We are all excited for what awaits us during the rest of our visit to this most intriguing country as we learn about the Haitian people and culture, our fellow group members and ourselves in both simple and profound ways.

Gary Noel on behalf of the March, 2015 Reiser Relief Team