Day #3–Up in the Village

Today was our first real day of work in the village. But before we left we got the chance to buy some souvenirs from local vendors. There were some really nice pictures and a beautiful table, but I’m not sure how I was supposed to get the table back on the plane so I stuck with some jewelry.

Going up the mountain was an adventure. It always is, but it rained last night so it was pretty slippery in the truck. Almost everyone had an assignment for the day, and mine was painting the school. The only problem was it was too wet to paint. So with no specific job I just went wherever I was needed. It was interesting, when I‘m at home I’m always the one with a plan. I usually need to know exactly what is going to happen, but that was pretty much impossible today.

I started the day in the computer lab making exam kits for the students. It’s exam week here so the students each got a pencil, a blue pen, and some colored pencils just for fun. The youngest kids got crayons. I learned that in Haiti, you have to write your exams with blue ink pens and that every student learns cursive, even the youngest ones. Some of the team members taught a science lesson today and needed help setting up, so I left the pencil project in capable hands and helped them set up. I also got a chance to see the demonstration and help test the cool science tools they brought over.
With the science project set up I went up to the clinic to help in the store room. The medical team is leaving Wednesday morning and they needed help organizing and doing inventory. It was nice to get to work with some different people.
Lunch was next and we ate at the school with the students, beans and rice. It was pretty good. This was also about the time the science team members asked me to help with the afternoon science lesson. I’m so glad I went. The students here have never had a lab before. Even some of the teachers had never seen one. The lesson was pretty simple, there were three known powders and one mystery one and they had to figure out what it was. It was so cool to see how interested the students, and even the teachers were. I also got the opportunity to talk to some of the teachers about the school and classes and our families. It really made me realize how blessed I am in America.

We cleaned up the lab materials and I headed back up to the computer lab and my pencil project, but some of the 8th grade boys here finished most of it for me. So I just sat and watched them look at Mountain Top Ministry on Google Earth with Strom (they thought it was awesome – which it was!). Some of us were able to leave early and decided to walk back to the house. The walk down wasn’t so bad, but the walk up is very, very steep. There were some places where I was literally climbing with my hands and feet. But it was worth it. The mountain is just so beautiful, it’s hard to describe in words.

I’m really grateful for this opportunity. I’ve only been here two days, but I’ve learned so much about myself and the love God has for us. I also learned that sometimes you just have to adapt and be able to go with the flow. Hopefully this lesson is one that stays with me forever!
-Roxanne