Tuesday, October 03, 2006
Weekend roundup
This weekend we all loaded in (and on) the truck and headed through Port au Prince and up a mountain to a scenic lookout point. PAP is bordered on 3 sides by mountains plus the sea. From the lookout point you could see all of the city including the Baie de Port au Prince (the bay). By my estimation, the PAP bay is considerably smaller than the Southern tip of Lake Michigan.
The drive through PAP provided an opportunity for experiencing (from the truck, anyway) some of the many more colorful aspects of Haiti. Speaking of colorful, almost all public transportation is accomplished through "tap-taps" - colorfully painted, independently-owned trucks and buses that Haitians simply flag down and jump on, then tap on the back when they want to get off. Most vehicles here are trucks due to the poor condition of most roads, and that fact that a large percentage of roads here are unpaved. To that measure, Wyclef Jean, an internationally-known hip hop musician, returns frequently to his native land of Haiti to use his celebrity to make the world aware of the conditions of the Haitian people and to personally share his good fortune. He funded the construction of a well-built street through a busy section of Port au Prince (I rode on it) and has created the organization Yéle Haiti to make a difference through projects in education, health, environment and humanitarian assistance.
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While driving through PAP, you can view the colorful local arts and crafts for sale. I read somewhere that most Haitians consider themselves an artist of some sort. I purchased a lively oil painting from a vendor at the scenic lookout. Other interesting things about Haiti - there are very few overweight people as many walk everywhere (in addition to the rampant malnutrition). And a frequent sight in rural PAP is women carrying things on their heads - heavy stuff too! Some women walk several miles to fill a 5 gallon bucket with water and then will walk back to her village with it on her head. Whew! Also a common sight is the presence of the U.N. (United Nations) everywhere due to the continuous violence and political unrest in the country. Apparently they are not very well received by the Haitian people.
I really enjoyed the morning church service this past Sunday. The morning services are in mostly Creole with some French. The Creole songs are easy to sing as they are phonetic and let me tell you, the Haitians put Americans to shame when worshipping! I think they sing out with every fibre of their being and it produces an awesome affect! Here are the lyrics to the chorus of a Creole hymn that seems to be pretty popular:
M-bézouin Jézu, m-bézouin Jézu M-bézouin Jézu koun yé a M-bézouin-l lè solèy kléré M-bézouin-l lè gran van souflé Chak monman sou rout sièl la Mouin bézouin Jézu. |
This Sunday's morning service, what I could decipher of the Creole anyway, was on Acts 2:42. I found this to be an interesting coincidence as that is the verse that was recently chosen by the young professionals group at my church in Chicago, Park Community Church, to rename our community - 2|42!
Double Harvest starts each morning with daily devotion time for all the Haitian employees. They also have two prayer meetings during the week - Tuesday nights we meet at the church and Thursday nights we meet at a home in a nearby village. Friday nights are for Bible studies.
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It has been fun to watch the world go by here at Double Harvest. We have a great view of the mountains, albeit slightly painful for me because I can quite literally see the great trails etched into its sides that are most assuredly a mountain biking heaven. But alas, it is not safe for me to ride alone ... plus there is not a mtb available here in my size so I am forced to cool my jets. I am, however, going to begin a new daily exercise routine, biking and walking the length of DH in combo around 5PM, about an hour after most employees have left the grounds for the day.
I received word from my family that their Chicago Leukemia Foundation Light the Night Walk was successful and fun. They raised over $2000 and walked in memory of my cousin Leslie whose battle with Leukemia ended on January 30, 2006, nearly three years after her stem cell transplant. Leslie participated in the Light the Night walk in New York City for several years after her diagnosis and last year she raised over $5000! Her husband Lawrence plans to break her fundraising record this year to honor her strength through adversity.
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# posted by A*Dub @ 8:24 PM 
