Prompted Reflection...

Yesterday, I had the opportunity to visit another orphanage about a half hour up the mountain, in a town called Kenskoff. It was in the worst condition of any orphanage I've seen so far in Haiti. The kids didn't have a single toy to play with and they really didn't have anywhere to play anyways. Everything about it was absolutely filthy and there were holes in the roof, so I'm sure it leaks when it rains. There really was no place for the kids to actually get clean. The bathroom was disgusting and I doubt they had any warm water. The entire house seem to me that it was a barn at one time. It sure smelled like one.
There are twenty three kids in this orphanage, with three bunk beds in one room and two in another. None of the beds have mattresses. I noticed that there was a big hole in the bottom of the wall of one room, which lead to outside and I'm sure was an opening for the rats to come through. The 'kitchen' consisted of a tiny fireplace and a few old pots and pans. They said that their biggest need is for food and when I looked in their pantry, I could see why. There really wasn't much there... nothing substantial anyways. The whole thing was very sad and depressing and it hurt to say good-bye to those kids. However, I am comforted to know that GLA will be helping them improve their conditions and we also took with us two people from the Adoption Foundation in Holland, who are currently in Haiti to pick up a kid from GLA, and they said that they have been looking for an orphanage in great need that they could help out financially. I know that they were very moved by our visit to that orphanage today... we all were. It was a quiet ride home.
Although I feel as though I've really gotten used to life in Haiti, whenever I see a situation like this, my heart still aches. I've gotten used to the garbage on the streets and seeing people live in very modest conditions, but every now and then I see something like I did today and it's not something I can ignore. These are the kinds of things that always caught Jesus' attention and as Christians, I believe that they should catch ours as well. When I think about it, there really is no good reason for an orphanage to be in those conditions, if Christians are listening and responding in obedience to the voice of God. We have so much money and material goods in North America... we have more than enough to share.

A lot has happened in my heart since I've been in Haiti. Things that used to matter and that seem to be so important at home, are really insignificant here. We call them North American problems... things like deciding what I want to eat for lunch, or not being able to get my coffee for the day. These things don't even matter at all and we tend to complain about them when we don't even have anything worth complaining about. Since I've been in Haiti, I've gotten used to taking freezing cold showers without water pressure, and I've learned to just be grateful when water comes out of the shower because it doesn't always. Sometimes I'll be all soaped up and then there's no more water till the next truck load, sometimes a few days later. I've learned that electricity really isn't that important and that you don't need to flush the toilet every time you use it. I've gotten used to hearing rats running around outside my room at night, and I hardly even notice the pigs, cows and goats that are often within a few feet of me when I sit with my kids on the side of the road. I don't really care if I can't wash my clothes for a really long time and I don't have any clean clothes left at all, because our generator died and we can't use the laundry machine or microwave or anything that needs power.I've heard so many excuses from people in North America of why they could never do missions or go on a mission trip, and I'm sorry that these people are missing out.
Since I've been in Haiti, I've realized so much more what really matters in life. It's the people. It's seeing my kids faces light up when I walk into the room... kids that never smiled when I first got here. It's watching them run up to me with their arms stretched up and responding to their request for a kiss. It's about loving people who need to be loved and sharing Jesus with them. I've watched my kids grow so much since I've been working with them. Some had absolutely no emotion, response or expression when I first got here, and now I get to see them laughing, running around, playing with toys and interacting with people. That's what matters. It's worth all the money it takes to come here and all the inconveniences that happen every day that I'm here.
When I think about the kids here at GLA, none of the other things matter at all. Being here is one of the most fulfilling and worthwhile things I've ever done in my life and I never would have had the priviledge of experiencing it if I hadn't stepped out of my comfort zone, made some sacrifices, taken a big step of faith and come to Haiti. So if any of you think God might be working in your heart to take a mission trip or to become more of a part of missions in general. Just take a step of faith and do it... you won't regret it!