Before heading to gather our luggage back up, for delivery to the airport, we decided to spend $1.80 on some artwork. The children of Poinciana UMC had displayed several of their creations on a bulletin board in the Fellowship Hall. Each was creative and beautiful, but even more so, inspirational. My favorite said "What Jesus did for us is not normal." :-) No, it is not. That is what makes our salvation so special. So at 60 cents each, I went all out and purchased three of them to decorate our girls room once reaching HAPI.
Soon we were on our way across the skies of Miami and into the skies of Haiti. The trip seemed shorter than prior years and the clouds were erratic and delightful. It was a joy to see a local band playing just off the tarmac near the entry doors to the airport. The flavor of the Haitian people was in the air! We were also happy to see continued improvements at the Port Au Prince airport. The long concrete wall along the backside of the airport had many large cracks and crumbling cement from the earthquake of two years ago. But it was being replaced and renewed with a fresh coat of concrete after repairs had been made. Inside, the movement through customs and baggage claim was smooth and professional. Our good friend Ulrick met us just beyond customs and handed out huge smiles and warm hugs to each and every one of us.
Before we knew it, we were outside soaking up the wonderful Haiti sun as we rolled all our luggage toward our third leg of the journey toward Mizak. The last leg would be the bumpiest of the three and would last nearly as long as the other two legs combined. After loading our slew of luggage into one van, we poured into the second for a long expected four hour trip through Port Au Prince, and out the other side southwest to one of the beautiful mountainous regions of Haiti. It is hard to describe the view other than spectacular. Vistas were continuous and breathtaking. Palms towered above any I've ever seen in the States and the other foliage simply adds to the richness. Markets were back to what I remember three and four years ago, pre-earthquake. The colors were vibrant, the textures were voluptuous, and the smells were... well... varied. The smell of roasted meats covered in spices was enticing, yet here and there we also encountered the stench of old rubbish and burning waste. The further out of the city we drove, the cleaner the air became...and the bumpier the road became.
Poor Kevin hit the side of his head, oh, I don't know, maybe 14 times?? Seriously. Each time the van was tossed from one side to the other as the rocky ground beneath us jutted upwards or dropped down from wash out. It's easy for necks to become stiff and backs to become tense. But then there is the view. Ahhhhh... the view. Every so often the trees would open up and the foliage would spread its wings just long enough for a glimpse of heaven on earth. If your camera was in hand and you already had your finger on the focus button, you had at least a chance of keeping that moment for years to come. If not, and the camera was on your lap or pointed elsewhere until the wings of opportunity were open, then your memory became a glimpse of the trees just past the pristine view.
Villagers walk all along the four hour drive that weaves right and left and right again, sometimes turning back on itself before turning in the opposite direction again. Most often we were near the edge of the mountain and rarely were there any guardrails between us and view below. The newbies were enamored with the ongoing beauty. No matter how many times we turned again, the next view was as breathtaking as the one before. It's hard to believe that the locals could ever "get used" to this.
The higher we headed up the mountain, the more our ears popped and the higher our butts were being lifted off the seats...and the more times we would hear poor Kevin seem shocked that he did it again...his head bouncing off the outer wall of the van. A potty stop and a cold mango-carrot bottle of juice later and the girls began their familiar giggles of excitement. They were well out of their seats and would have hung out the windows if they could have fit, I believe. It was about then I think it hit us all: Jaime is just around the bend...and we all began chanting "Jaime! Jaime! Jaime!" Jaime is one of our youth who has a long term heart for Haiti. It will not surprise me if she lives there full time one day. So this year she went down with our first team two weeks ago. When they left two days ago to return to the States, Jaime stayed with Pastor Paul and his family. Today, she will join our second team for the next two weeks...and begin her first stint as Co-Leader. I gave up the Team Leader position after last year, finding it harder to be responsible to all the tasks involved between the church, pastor's school, and the new Open Door Free Store. So Jaime took on the training and has joined Darryl as the two new leaders of this second team.
And there she was...and the screams couldn't be held any longer. All the girls were up and ready to jump out of the van the moment it came to a stop. And they did. There stood little Jaime girl with darkened skin and a crocheted cap drawn down over her recently braided hair. She looked at home. After the luggage was all unloaded and hugs were handed out to those present, we asked to go see the work site. Just a two minute walk behind the HAPI complex opened up to a huge-mongo ghost of a foundation that stretched 50 x 70 feet. A trench was already hand dug by shovel all around the perimeter and a cistern was already dug in solid rock. When I asked our guys the measurements on the cistern, they answered "real deep!" It holds something like 70,000 gallons of water. Wrap your head around that one.
We spent the rest of the evening reuniting with friends, laughing as they saw two "Darryl's" (his twin Dwain is along this time...), and enjoying each other's company. Before dinner the boys got in a good ruckus game of football (soccer) and the rest of us took a short walk toward the well to watch the sunset across the valley and behind the next row of mountains. Many photos were taken as each of us knew the days would quickly count down and the bumpy ride back down the mountain would come sooner than any of us could anticipate. Dinner was scrumptious and the card games have now begun. Local youth have come by one by one and joined the girls with back to back games of UNO. As I sit and type, they are all giggling and laughing as Darryl begins to yawn. I don't think it will be long before a few of us retire for the evening. The long two hour hike to Basin Bleu begins at 8 am.
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