Today I am grateful for a lot of things.
Last week we visited St. Maarten, Puerto Rico and Haiti. Unfortunately, by the time we got to Haiti the situation had deteriorated so drastically that we weren't allowed to go into Cap-Hatien to deliver the pallets of aid we had brought. The day before we arrived, seven UN workers were killed; hoards of Hatians are dying in the streets of cholera, a disease which -- with the necessary supplies -- can be reliably and inexpensively treated; and, in the days before we arrived, gangs dug up most of the roads in and out of cities--making travel by anything other than motorcycle almost impossible. (D, a friend who has been doing relief work in Haiti since January, explained that a trip which usually took him 2 hours took 10 after the road damage).
The conditions in Haiti are beyond depressing, but they did highlight many of the blessings which I enjoy daily and often take for granted. As did our day at an orphanage in St. Maarten. The 40 or so kids who live there (and range in age from 0-14 years) could not have been sweeter. Calling the head of the home 'mom' and each other 'brother' and 'sister', they operated more like a family than an orphanage. They didn't have much--not even shoes--but what they lacked in material possessions, they made up for in emotional depth and--I know it's cheesy, but I'm gonna say it--love.
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| Devon! I really, really wanted to take him home. |
Happy Thanksgiving!
Visit: http://www.airlineamb.org/ for more info about our trip and humanitarian work in Haiti.
