Happy Month-a-versary!

Can you believe that it’s been a month since I arrived in Haiti? I miss most of you a lot! To celebrate I give you my longest post to date! In some ways it feels like the time has just flown by, but I’ve learned so much, a lot has happened, a lot of people have come and gone, I’ve adjusted quite a bit, so in that regard, it seems like I’ve been here forever.

It would be a bold-faced lie if I said that everything was peachy, but you weren’t expecting that were you? This week has brought a lot of changes to the hospital so there’s a lot of tension and uneasiness all around. God’s in control, only he knows how this is going to play out. For my sanity hopefully this week will bring some clarity and a sense of direction.

[I apologize for the “vagueness” of the last paragraph. That’s all I’m comfortable sharing publically. Please continue to pray about the situation here at the hospital and for the people of Haiti.]

I’m still getting settled in my new responsibilities with supply and transportation. Friday I went to the airport to pick up a larger group (the first of 5 team Ukiah’s). As I held the “TEAM UKIAH” sign and stood outside the gates I reviewed last week’s airport escapades and tried to come up with a better method. I developed a game called “Get to the bus with as little trouble as possible” GTTBWALTAP for short! The goal? Get to the bus with as little trouble as possible. Avoiding trouble means: losing luggage, getting mobbed by porters, losing people in the crowd, and of course not getting to the bus. There are three rules. 1. Follow David to the bus. 2. Don’t let go of your stuff. 3. Don’t give anyone money. David will take care of it (and collect from you later). Team Ukiah followed rules 1 and 3 perfectly, rule 2 was bent a little, but in the end everyone made it to the bus safely without too much trouble. Porters were paid and we enjoyed a “scenic” ride to the hospital. FTW!

\(^o^)/

If you were a good blog reader you followed the link to my Facebook “Ayiti” album and saw the picture of me and the six kids that help me with lunch, (No, not the little ones outside that made everyone go “awww”). It’s reeeeeeeeeeeediculous how quickly they get attached to me and a lot of the foreign volunteers. They want me to follow me everywhere and want me to hang out with them every spare moment I have. I made the mistake of giving them my phone number so I get calls every day. It’s endearing, but sometimes bothersome. It’s okay, we’re all brothers in Jesus.
You might be wondering, “Why are they hanging out at the hospital all the time? Don’t their parents send them to school?” Those two seemingly simple questions have fairly complex answers. A lot of schools have started, others haven’t. Lack of teachers and a school building/tent have been major obstacles. School also requires $$$. To attend each student must have their own books and uniforms. Coming up with that money has been difficult. I haven’t got the full story on each of them, but of the six kids pictured only one of them has two living parents.

For the longest time they’ve been insisting that I come to their “houses”, I keep telling them soon. Today may be the day.

Molly Blair McCary wrote me a 3 page e-mail!!!!! Normally that’d be worthy of a shout-out but unfortunately for Molly, it’s Mother’s Day! (How many of you thought I was going to forget?) To all you moms out there, HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY!
I love you Mom!