I hardly even know where to start. To tell everything in one story is impossible and disregarding to the plight that those beautiful Haitian people work through every day. They deserve endless amounts of our effort, our time, and our words. You’ll have to bear with me as I sift through all the grit and triumphs of our journey.
It was an amazing trip – full of laughter and courage and heart. Full of gut and tears and movement. We saw the most vile places, the most abandoned hearts. But in the midst of it all, we were met with hope – found in the faces of the Haitian children. Their resiliency astounds me. Their feet stand near heaps of rotted trash and puddles of fecal-tainted water, and yet their eyes are deep with joy – with hope. It’s truly remarkable. I was overwhelmed by their character.
(This is a little boy from a Tent City. He followed me on our entire walk-through, constantly looking up at me with those sparkly eyes and his big toothy grin. This boy’s cup was brimming with hope.)
It was an incredible opportunity to document the Haitian life through a lens. In reality, it’s a lot like what you’ve seen and heard about third-world countries. But being there in the middle of it is so moving. It’s more than images anymore. You’ve stepped right into their world, where being apathetic is no longer an option. Where you’ve got to join the little boy from the Tent City and overflow your cup with hope.
Going through the photographs brings me back.
There are broken homes.
There are riots.
There are smells of sewage and burning plastic.
(This is not abstract art. This is rotting trash. We did not visit the local dump. This is waterfront property in Cité Soleil. This is someone’s backyard.)
There are beautiful people with deformity-causing diseases.
And there are tearful babes.
These scenes and people buried their way into our hearts. And they will never be forgotten.
We tried our best to meet the vast amount of devastation with small portions of triumph.
We loved on kiddos.
We visited the orphans. (So much more on these gorgeous children in another post).
They told their stories while we captured their hearts on film.
We handed out food and water.
And we danced the “dougie” in the dirt with the street children.
My life is significantly more enriched having made this trip. Having met these faces. Having our hearts captured by their fierce determination. Having shared in their love.
There is so much more to share. I can’t wait to go into more detail regarding the orphanage and the work that Monadnock Bible Conference is doing there. There is a huge amount of distress. But there are heros out there bridging the gap between need and provision. I’m so privileged to have partnered with them.
I left feeling so overwhelmed, but so full of hope. God is not dead. He is there. And he is intent on making things right again.
“God is in the slums, in the cardboard boxes where the poor play house. God is in the silence of a mother who has infected her child with a virus that will end both their lives. God is in the cries heard under the rubble of war. God is in the debris of wasted opportunity and lives, and God is with us if we are with them.” – Bono
Half Squeezed Lemon 