Friday in Haiti

Today we left the Ryan Epps Children's Home, orphanage at 8:00. The original time was 7:45 however, there were pictures to be taken, hugs to be given and tears to be shed. We have been traveling in a bus for most of our time to get to places to minister. "We'll go back to our smug little worlds and have a little part of our hearts scarred" according to my roommate, Theresa. 

We climbed into a different bus (it was noted that the tires on the first bus were fairly worn) so another bus was provided. It was air-conditioned and seated all 26 of us. The difference was the size. We went from the "American cheese bus" to a smaller coach with much less space. We folded ourselves into spaces we did not think we could fit. We held on as the bus bumped along the unpaved roads to our first stop which was another orphanage. This one was near Porte Au Prince. It's a school with a place for the children to sleep. The pastor pf the orphanage spoke to us about the difficulty in feeding and supplying the children with necessary tools for education. While there, we bagged rice into smaller bags as we did in the Mirbalais community and prepared them for another distribution in a distant community. We were introduced to some of the students there and took an offering to leave them better than we came. The pastor was encouraged. 

We took off for our next stop. We drove for about 40 minutes and turned off the road to a deserted place of thorns, so we thought. The bus bounced along until some small thatch huts were recognized along the water's edge. There are no words for a description. The location is called Kanez. We walked down rocky steps to deliver rice to the several huts along the shore. We sang songs and prayed for the village and the people. We're told that the people there live off the land. They do not pay taxes and they primarily eat the fish they catch. Since there is no drinking water, everything must be brought to them from outside the Village of Kanez. People have gathered around for the singing in the outdoor church and we learned to sing the verses to "Hallelujah" in French.

The ride back into the town where the Ryan Epps Home is located (we had just left there) and it was without incident. However, our evening church service was canceled due to chaotic activity in that area. In addition our attempt to return to the Harvest for Humanity House for our evening meal, we took back streets to avoid the activity for safety and the ride challenged our ability to hold on to our seats. Upon arrival to the Harvest House, we unfolded our bodies and stretched out and lumbered to our rooms. Dinner was once again filled with fresh fruit, vegetables, and fish. Fish is a major source of food for areas that are close to the water. Some of the places we visited were very far inland and high in the hills. 

Tomorrow we will be waiting to find out if the area we are to minister in will be safe. The plan was to have sessions for an attendance of 500 - 1000. We will trust God to lead us to where we are to be to encourage and comfort the people of God. If you are reading this before Saturday morning, please continue to pray for us for the best God can offer these people from our hands.