Day 2 The word of the day is contrast

Several of the folks had difficulty sleeping with the roosters and other background noises.  Breakfast was plentiful, with eggs, fresh toast, and cereal and lemonade.  Morning devotion was about Jesus “the vine”, (John 15:1-8).  This week, we are blessed to be working for Jesus!

We arrived at the work site, after making a trip to the bank and adjacent, brand new grocery store (very nice!) for bottled water.  We did note 3 armed guards (riot guns) in bank parking lot.

Our interpreter for the week, Joseph, is very cordial, very engaging, At the work site, our work supervisor Peter, and Mark discussed the work project for the day/ week.  Materials were to be delivered later in the morning.  Initial work consisted of trash pick up from adjacent housing area (throwing trash from adjacent properties seems to be a common problem.)  Trash pick up countywide seems to be a bit sporadic, although we did notice / find out some recycling is taking place

We are the first team to Delmas 33 church (a beautiful small chapel)- Work goals include building up walls in the rear of the property, for security and to reduce influx of thrown trash; work to reduce drainage problem  at the rear of the building ; some “apparent” cosmetic cracking of the plaster overlay on concrete masonry units.  Painting was discussed but is not a priority work item.  Morning work continued with trash cleanup, unloading CMU for wall construction (430); and start of digging at the rear to improve site drainage.

We took lunch prepared by the Guest House to the worksite–ham/cheese sandwiches, chips, cookies.  Lots of water consumed with Molly checking to ensure breaks were held on the hour and folks drank lots of water.  Madame Lulu was on site most of the day–Madame Lulu holds the keys for the church and was dressed very attractively in a long colorful native dress.

Afternoon deliveries included sand, which was dropped off at the street side and moved by buckets and wheelbarrow into the compound.  We also received bags of cement @ 80 pounds each which were moved into the compound (strong shoulders).

We had support initially by several young Haitian men and several others joined us as the day progressed.  We also had number of the young Hatians students come by and “chat” with Barbie & Nadine, whom Claire and Molly became good friend with on day 1.  Barbie was sporting a new hair dew–very short & cute that the ladies noticed and fussed over.

Folks put in a full day today with the work involved, even though our leader considered it a mild day (shows the difference here).  Jim Wall (Doctor) has become the leader of the shovel brigade and would not give up his shovel all day.  He was supported by Pat Baker and Dan Pemberton with their buckets along with others in the brigade to the dump pile.

We left the worksite around 3:30, taking another interesting ride back to the Guest House.  The pool was enjoyed by several team members upon returning from the worksite.  The water was cold but still warmer than the water in the showers.

Tom (Guest House UMCOR manager) and Wendy Vencuss  celebrated their 25th wedding anniversry at the evening meal (chicken, rice, salad, fried zucchini, finishing dinner off with a special anniversary chocolate cake.  We were joined @ dinner with two other teams–one from the Stony Creek area (a part of the Jack Martin’s three week group in Haiti), and one from Richmond–the “James Gang”.

Lots of folks got worn out from the day’s activities.  One minor cut and a stomach problem–nothing serious.

Rudy shared devotions followed by singing–joined in by the other groups along with “Sam” a VT student on his guitar–lots of singing and fun.

Good news!–lunch upgrade with Madame Lulu preparing meals onsite (she lives near the church)–true Haitian cuisine versus sandwiches–Wednesday through Friday.

Pat Baker received Mark’s Kudo award for his work on day #2.  It was noted that Pat was the only team member to bring two others (his son and daughter) to help him.  Folks noted that Pat should share his Kudo bar, but alas, Pat had already eaten his reward.

Pat Baker entertained and surprised us with an outstanding performance of the hula, performed to the sing along tune of Halle-lu-jah’.  It was his first public performance and Pat’s daughter and son were amazed, but did note that Pat is an “superb” dancer.  He got a round of applause for his dance routine.

The word of the day–”Contrast” was discussed with input from the group on what they saw in the word during the day.  Mark noted we should all try to see things through others’ eyes–this week through the eyes of our Haitian hosts and friends.

We continue to be on Haiti time with “Patience” being a key element to follow given the way Haitians have to live and travel.