Christmas Mission Trip 12/2-3/13

It’s been way to long since we’ve been back here. Not by choice but by lack of funds. Frequent flyer miles kept us down here for about a year and a half so we are back footing the bill. It is so important to be here nourishing our relationships. Anyone who reads this blog can share with the world that we need frequent flyer miles to help us move forward. As I left Miami I truly felt a little lost. To pick up pieces of Haiti can be hard and I knew I had a tough task ahead. Not to sound so cliche but I know Gods got a plan. The moment we reached the Haitian landscape by air an unbelievable peace came over me and a sense of direction seemed to fill my eyes and mind. As always the faithful Harry was there along with Cherie to scoop me up from the total chaos of the airport madness and rush me to the waiting vehicle driven from my good friend Sem. What a blessing it is to be dialed in with these guys. On to the guest house for some killer grub and rest.
Wow! I’m not sure I slept much last night because there was work outside my window all night long. I once got up and through hand gestures ask the worker dudes to turn down their version of music. Me wanting the music turned down, now that’s strange. Of course if it was Jimi Hendrix it would have been no bother but that stuff had to go. They obliged with a smile and attempted to get the boom box to obey. Good try, oh well. Nothing coffee, eggs and spam can’t cure. To say that this wound up being a strange day in Haiti is like saying the suns always out here. It’s always out and it’s always strange here. As I made my way to the coffee I met this gentleman in his late seventies and he asked me to join him for breakfast. He is from Canada. As we talked I could tell he really needed to chat with someone about Haiti in general. I shared with him about some of my adventures down here and as he began to talk I could tell he had been beat up by this place. Which is something I can totally relate to. It always ain’t Haitians but gringos are pretty good at beating you up to. But this guy had been taken advantage of by some locals and he was totally ready to throw in the towel. We talked for about three hours and I was glad I was there for him to share with me. He was leaving today and I found him to be a very interesting man. Strange how you come to a place for getting Christmas gifts ready for 200 kids and God totally derails your plans. Needless to say I got a very late start to do Christmas shopping. We went to the Tabarre market which is an outside market that looks more like a roller derby on steroids. We do have a connection in this very confusing market place who helped us gather our supplies to finish out our gifts. I only know her as the market lady. This place is very amusing and dangerous. Once again we are fortunate to have built a relationship here to help us avoid the danger. I never made it to the school because of my encounter with the Canadian. No pics today due to the fact that folks in the market place just don’t dig it and I didn’t need the hassle. Praise God from whom all blessings flow.

Kenny
GMSM