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Haiti - Day 3

We woke up at 6:20 a.m..  We've been showering at night for 2 reasons:  1) It is hot, so it is a great way to cool down, and 2) we are nasty when we come back to our room, so we have to shower.  This has been helpful for the mornings though as our hair dries mostly during the night.  All we have to do is change and head out.





We rode the tap tap to breakfast and enjoyed the same eggs with onions and spices as the day before.  We also had mango, banana, peanut butter on bread and coffee.  I also had a small piece of cheese that was similar to farmer's cheese.  It was delicious.

After breakfast we met to discuss what project we'd be working on.  I chose to work on digging a trench to pour concrete in order to build an extension on one family's home.  Currently a mother, father and 3 or 4 children are living in a 2-room house.



The work was challenging but fulfilling.  I swung a pick ax and shoveled gravel and hard dirt.  I stopped for a few minutes to play with some kids.  I gave them stickers and let them run off with my iPhone and camera.  One boy discovered Robot Unicorn Attack and laughed and laughed as he played it.  I retrieved my camera long enough to take a video and thought of my brother-in-law and that, because of him (because he introduced it to me), kids in Haiti now love that game.



After several hours of work, we wet back to the church.  The kids were playing and we joined them for a minute.  They wanted me to hold their lands and lift them in their air.  My arms were exhausted from picking and shoveling but there is always enough strength left for that.

We headed to the Restoration House for lunch.  On the walk over, a boy kept saying "iPod? iPod?"  I smiled and then he said, "Justin?  Justin Bieber?"  I never wished so hard that I had Justin Bieber before on my phone.  Here is this kid, who may not have running water, but he knew what an iPod was and he knew who Justin Bieber is!  How cool is that!?!  A Restoration House, lunch was an amazing stew with beef, carrots, potatoes and dumplings.  We also enjoyed a Coke. :)

After lunch we went to the church to help with the feeding program.  Although it was a littel crazy, it was amazing seeing all the kids.  The best moment of my day was when I started asking for Rose, my sponsor child.  One child said that she was Rose's cousin and that he'd go find her.  A few minutes later he returned with a beautiful little girl in a blue and white dress.  It was Rose.  I said, "My name is Karen.  I am your sponsor."  She didn't understand and looked at her cousin.  He translated.  Her eyes got wide and she smiled.  She threw her arms around my neck.  It was like receiving a hug from an angel.  Best.  Feeling.  Ever.  I walked her back to the church and took pictures of her enjoying her lunch.  It is amazing to see that I really can make a difference in some one's life.



Rose left and I played with the other children.  We painted their nails and then one girl wanted to paint my nails too.  Some of the children ran off with my journal.  They drew pictures for me and wrote messages to me in it.  The children understand and respect things that we let them borrow.  I had no problem letting a child walk around the community earlier that day with my camera.  I didn't mind them wearing my back pack or sunglasses or playing with my phone.  I knew it would all come back to me.

After playing for a while it was time to go back to the hotel and prepare to go out to dinner.  We came back to the hotel and I called my mom and Christy.  Our group chatted in the lobby for a while and then went to our rooms to take showers.  We went to dinner in the city at a place called "Sesonet" (or something similar to that).  I had roasted goat with fried plantains, fried potatoes, tomatoes, cole slaw, rice & beans and water.  I was on the verge of panic before dinner because both Candice and Elena felt sick and I just knew that we were all coming down with the flu.  After dinner though, they felt much better and we determined it was due to the heat and over exerting themselves.




On the way back to the hotel we rode in the tap tap (instead of the van that we rode on coming to dinner).  Riding through the city while sitting on the roof of a pickup truck almost gave me a heart attack.  It was much different than the slow bumpy roads near Restoration House.  I was white-knuckled the whole time.  It was nuts!

We arrived at the hotel and had a brief devotional.  I tried to take a shower but the water was ll gone.  No shower for me.  :(  Also, that meant that the toilets didn't flush.  Fantastic.

Please visit Restore Haiti.  Learn how you can sponsor a child for only $30 per month.  For non-reoccurring donations, consider providing over 400 children with a chicken leg for $250 or a glass of milk for $150.

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