HAITI!! DAY 5

Thursday, October 29, 2009  Day 5

 

            Morning came once again, as God spared us through another night in sleeping outdoors in Haiti.  The morning was spent helping Alexandra and George get their things around before breakfast, because they were to get back to the states today, as their jobs would not allow them to stay the entire week with us.  Growing close to these people over the past few days, made it hard to say goodbye, but knew we had to. 

            We all ate the eggs for breakfast together, and then fellowshipped a bit before their ride took off for the capital city.  During the week, Alexandra had been talking of doing a tapping technique on me, that she does with her patients back home.  Being unsure if it was voodoo, I kept telling her I didn’t know if I wanted her to do it, but finally, she talked me into it and I put my trust into her.  She did her think and it relaxed me amazingly, which prepared me for the day and continuation of the day.  Through this, we conversed getting on the topic of ADHD, in which I told her I was a self diagnosed ADHD.  We talked a while about this, telling her I had never scene a doctor, because it seemed like a waste of money to be told something I already knew.  She responded with, “Well, I am an MD and I don’t even need to make an appointment for you.  I have been observing you and you are definitely ADHD!”  It was no surprise to me, but what was is what happened next.  I told her that I had always wanted to try Ritalin, the medicine that supposedly calms you down and makes you focus.  Oddly enough, she had brought some with her, but had it packed up to go home.  She pulled it out, placed a tablet in my hand, in which I popped into my mouth and swallowed.  We were experimenting!  I gave her a hug and thanked her and she went on her way with Valentine and George down the long bumpy road.

            The rest of us continued to open the clinic short two Creole speaking people.  This was a very big loss, as we now only had one bilingual person in the languages of English and Creole.  But, with a will, there is a way, and it happened.  We arranged ourselves in what we thought was the best position and opened the gates.  Once again, the clinic was rushed with people, crowding the waiting room, and a constant buzz all day.  After we decided to try and fix this major problem, Mr. Beauregard wanted me to be at the stairs which led to the waiting room, not allowing people up.  “Just stand there and when someone want up, put your hand out and say ‘tun.’  It means ‘stay.’  That is all you have to say.  If they don’t, put it up again and raise your voice.  They will know that you mean business.”  Therefore, I slowly walked down, as I hate doing this.  I am not a fan of acting like a know a language by saying one word.  Then they think I know Creole and break into conversation.

            I finally got myself in place and two ladies with a small child and a baby walked up.  I did the directed motions and words, however, the mom did not pay attention to what I said, yet, thought I was reaching for her baby.  She thrust the young girl right into my hands and continued to walk up the stairs.  Instantly, my job description went from ‘bouncer’ to ‘babysitter.’  With no other options, I sat down and put the baby on my legs, bouncing her up and down.  By this time, Mr. Beauregard sent the mom downstairs with the other child, so she came and sat by us, but did not take the baby.  I noticed the baby had a rash across her whole body that looked something like ringworm.  Quickly, I removed all skin contact, as I tried to hold this baby up with my two index fingers; one in the middle of her back and one on her sternum.  Trouble was, she was a fairly new baby and she kept letting her head fall backwards and forwards making me very nervous.  Once control was maintained, I started bouncing her again, and when I looked down, I noticed her jeans were very weird looking.  The insides of her legs were a navy color, while the outsides were light denim.  I lifted her up and noticed she had transferred the weird colors to me, making half of my shorts a very dark brown and leaving the rest a nice khaki color.  It was at this moment that I realized I had been the victim of a crime.  A crime so bad that jail time should be considered.  That mom knew exactly what had happened, and used her brain to figure out how to make it happen on someone other than her.  Of course her baby had to pee like a racehorse.  She had just fed it.  I kindly smiled and laughed, but gave the baby back and walked stiff-legged up stairs, trying not to let the wet parts touch my skin.  I changed my clothes immediately, and went back to the clinic to see how things were going. 

            I grabbed a book that I needed to read for my DOOR assignments, and sat in a rocking chair.  About this time, the meds were kicking in and I started feeling very relaxed, and focused on everything.  My constant moving around and turret-like jolts were easing as I sat still and opened my book.  About 5 short hours later, I turned the last page in the book and read the ending.  As it sounds like a read for a straight 5 hours, it is a bit deceiving.  I was also doing the work that I was in place for.  Another mission we are doing with the clinic is serving a free meal to each person who visits.  We found a company that donates as much food as we need to make sure this is possible at the clinic.  It is a simple rice meal, but one that they would not have if they didn’t come, so it is a great thing.  I was responsible for filling the bowls that came.  We are not allowed to hand out paper plates, as they will all end up on the side of the streets instead of in the proper place of the trashcan.  Today there was not many people with bowls, as we hadnt’t really advertised this much, but that was soon to change in the days to come.  While reading and jumping up every now and then to get food, it was amazing how still, focused and calm I was for the afternoon.  I love narcotics!

            I went downstairs to see what was happening, as the clinic was wrapping up for the day.  I found three boys at the gate, and decided to strike up a conversation with them.  In English.  Of course they looked at me weird, but we made signals and finally started talking.  Just very slowly.  They taught me words in Creole and I did the same for them in English.  It was fun to finally get the chance to try this, as most the adults in the clinic had no interest in it.

            After the clinic closed, since our car was with the ones in Port au Prince, we decided to walk the neighborhoods together, familiarizing ourselves with the community around us.  We walked for an hour or so, through the countryside seeing all different sorts of houses from the obvious rich to the poorest of poor.  It certainly was an amazing experience to see the people in their natural environment, instead of at a clinic or from the windows of our flying car.  Watching the kids play soccer in their backyards as their dad was mowing with a machete was a picture worth taking and remembering for eternity.  The laughter heard while passing was a sign that their worry-free life was fine for them.  They were not worried about buying bigger and better things like we all are, but were more focused on scoring a goal by their brothers and sisters and they pretended they were playing for Haiti in the World Cup.

            We returned and ate the typical fried plantains and pikliz once again.  May sound old after eating it every day, but it never does get old.  However, something was different about this batch of pikliz.  The cook had used twice the amount of habanero peppers, as Mr. Beauregard placed the order saying the others were not hot enough.  It was instant burning in the stomach, which led once again to liquefied ‘business’ (as I will call it) for the remainder of the trip.  It set my stomach for a spin for sure, but the taste was still worth what I went through.  

            Since everyone was no longer with us to have the party outside every night, I took the place of sleeping on the one bed we had upstairs inside, and stayed in away from the mosquitoes and guaranteed dew in the morning. Instead, since the mattress of the bed was outside being used, I slept on the boxspring with wooden bars going across ever foot and a half.  It made for an interesting night as I would wake up with a wooden stick in all different parts of my body, but waking up to this was a blessing to waking up with a mosquito so fat from blood that it can no longer fly, sitting on your arm.  While I didn’t get the experience of the stars sleeping inside, I did get the experience of sleeping in a bit, as the sun was finally blocked from the walls!