Since Christmas we have had many conversations in our home about those less fortunate than ourselves. Pumpkin has asked many questions…ok….many, many, many!!! Where do poor people sleep? What do they eat? What do kids play with if they do not have any toys? The list goes on. As a parent and as a mother we often “think” of those less fortunate, but the depth to which some people are poor can truly be unimaginable.
10 years ago I was blessed with the opportunity to go to Haiti on a mission trip. I feel Haiti is truly one of the most unlucky countries in the world. If it is not one thing it is another!
My heart physically aches for those poor people. When on my mission trip I virtually came home with nothing I brought; other than the clothes on back. I gave away everything!!! When you look in a childs’ face and they are happy to have a water bottle to fill a leaky hole in their house…one can certainly not turn their back. So many of the Haitian people were in such need of help before this terrible earthquake that something of this magnitude is sure to leave the entire country shaken for many years to come. Haiti will never be the same as it once was… or what it someday might have been!!!
What I admire most about the Haitians is although they have nothing, and came from virtually nothing….two things hold true; their faith and love of family!!! Shaken, distraught, and in complete despair….searching for loved ones, and trying to help those in need with truly no resources at hand. Can you imagine? What do you hold onto at times like that…well we have seen it on TV by now and read it in papers “Faith”. I love that a country so torn to shambles can sing praises, worship, and come together!!! I witnessed it 10 years ago watching children sing in school, worshiping on Sunday, and singing in the streets all day/everyday. Walking miles to the river singing with buckets on their heads…could you do the same?
Although Haiti is not lucky…they are rich beyond words in Faith. What a gift to the rest of the world to watch a country with so little come together. I pray that someday the Haitian people will find rest and reap great reward for all that they have accomplished just “living” their lives!! A part of me will forever remain in Haiti and with all of the wonderful people I met along the way!!!