Before we leave to come here, and after we get home, people always ask what we do when we’re in Haiti. Well, it’s like visiting with family, a family that happens to have 17 children and only one Mama Karen, so there’s always lots to do. If you imagine the things you have to do at your own home every day, then add in the fact that you have 17 boys and girls to look after, ranging in age from 4-17, along with close to 20 employees, I’m sure you can begin to think of many of the things that need doing every day– cleaning,spending time with and entertaining kids, settling an occasional argument, organizing supplies needed to run this place, teaching kids to share and follow rules, grocery shopping, and doing whatever work we can while here to help (Karen) run the place — same home… same here.
Although “where” is different, and maybe “how” things are done is different, to borrow a line from Beate, it really is mostly the “same, same,” with an occasional “different.” That usually happens here when normal, everyday tasks turn into an adventure. For that reason, I always love when Karen says she has to get groceries, or go to the bank in Saint Marc, because that’s just like at home– same, same, but anyone who has read my stories before, knows that the “same” becomes “different” before we even get to the bank, because here, we pick up two of Karen’s security to travel with us– Daniel in the front, and Ronald squeezed in the back with me and Beate– but, unlike home, Daniel ‘literally’ rides shotgun… he is prepared to protect us should the need arrive. WAY different!
Karen driving, Daniel in front, us squeezed in the back
The idea of security is a noticeable difference all over Haiti, including where we stay on the compound. The 24 hour security guards are armed, of course, and they can monitor things both inside and outside the property from the two watchtowers. At night, I’ve finally gotten used to the late night footsteps and the bright beams from the flashlights that light up the compound walls. When you sleep outside, it’s comforting to know that the only thing you really have to worry about is getting into your bed mosquito tent before too many mosquitoes follow! It’s a “different” that adds a little comfort to your sleep!
Gift time
Pretty dress from Irene and Jim in BC
It was like a little episode of master chef in the kitchen, but without all the yelling, because Mackenzie was in charge of the three little chefs, and they patiently awaited their turns for measuring, blending, and pouring, before cooking. The only thing better than the sweet smell of one cake baking in the oven is the smell of three cakes in the oven, although, when there’s a temperature of almost 40 and “feels like” a lot more outside, turning an oven on to bake cakes makes it possible to just about pour a chocolate bar out of its wrapper!
Three cute amigos
Dieunel’s time to make a cake
What I’ve learned is that, no matter where your travels may take you, no matter how different things may seem, they’re really quite the same. At home, gathering at Tim Horton’s is often better than reading the newspaper. There’s obviously no Tim’s here, but people still enjoy their coffee and local gossip, and, as Beate pointed out, it just happens to come from a tiny shack at the start of our gravel road, and sometimes, you might have to wait in a lineup there, too! The socializing is the same, the coffee is still hot, and who cares about anything else!
Walking for fun and exercise
Although “different” doesn’t matter, sometimes the differences still affect us–some of them tug at our heartstrings and put a tear in our eyes, but many more of them make us smile. Fortunately, though, for me and Mackenzie, we get to spend a week hanging out with our second family, and that’s the “same, same,” no matter where we are, and that’s all that matters… Hugs from Haiti
Heather
