Haiti Take-aways . . .

Our day began in the most amazing way.  We traveled to Grace Church, just down the hill from Grace Village - home of beautiful children being given a chance at a brighter future.  What struck us so much at Grace Church today was that those with so little were giving so much to God.  They put on their Sunday best clothes and they openly and freely shouted their faith to the mountain tops.  The music was upbeat and inspiring and we were all smiles as we left the church for one last day in the tap tap, which has been our reliable transportation this entire week.  After church, we drove through Port-au-Prince, up the mountain while shopping along the way.  Being a group of all women, no one complained about shopping! 

We supported the Haitian culture by purchasing many hand-made goods.  We counted out our dollars, leaving most if not all of our cash in Haiti.  Some were better at bartering than others.  It was fun to get a deal, but even more fun to see the smiles from those we bought from.  Being efficient shoppers, we still had time for a quick dip in the pool once we were back at the guest house.  As we reflected on our week in Haiti, we each identified one word to describe our feelings here.  Below is our inspirational words of the week painted on rocks from the beach.   A reflection from this week is that no matter whether it was working to make and sell goods, doing daily chores like getting water and food for the day, or worshiping - we observed many Haitians did it together as a family or as a community AND with smiles on their faces.  We can learn a lot from the Haitian people!

Written by Megan R. & Barb B.