First Things First

At first glance one would see little difference in the streets were it not for our familiarity with the lifestyles of the people; life looks pretty much the same. People are moving about in the city with their normal routines; children are being escorted from one place to another and mothers are shopping to find the essentials.

Deeper down into the story there are those on the streets not found there in previous trips; those hawking various wares, fruits and vegetables that are not a normal part of the vendor culture so common to the streets of Haiti. These are those of the 80+ percentage of the population currently unemployed; those for whom simply existing until tomorrow morning is a priority.

Many will sit the entire day in anticipation of the sale of their offering and in the end walk away with enough to purchase a small portion of rice and a few mangoes to slice up for the evening meal. Many will repeat the same exercise and return home hungry. Even for the accomplished traveler the sight of so many attempting to sell something; so many children begging for anything is overwhelming.

Scripture tells us that we are to “be anxious for nothing” and we therefore move on with that for which we have come once again to this beautiful island in the Caribbean. Our newest traveler to the region has proved invaluable within the first few hours of arrival, assisting Gail in setting up a computer brought in for the Administrator at the Dessalines Hospital. The sun comes early in the tropics; we were on the roof by 5:30 AM and by lunch had applied multiple coats of a rubberized sealer to ward off the impacts of tropical storms over the years.
Down on the ground Gregg has found it necessary for a bit of generator repair to provide the much-needed electricity often unavailable through the normal city channels. Routine distribution provides perhaps 3-5 hours a day of city-generated electricity and timing of the arrival is varied so alternative sources are a must.

Life runs on a timetable in the tropics with the majority of effort extended well before the lunch hour to avoid the heat and sunshine of the later hours. Afternoons are spent generally running errands and preparation for the following day; a quick nap is available if one can find a quiet corner.

Morning of the second day finds much of the same for those of us bringing “True Love to a Real World” in our own unique way. Back on the roof, it is time for the third and final coat of paint; finished by noon, we have accomplished planned activity number one and tossed in a few additional including repairs to the sprinkling system; transplanting a 20 foot palm tree and a dozen or so potted plants purchased to replace those destined to neglect as the work in Dessalines took priority. The afternoon has proved welcome if not overly productive; the heat of the tropics quickly saps what remains of our strength and it is time to retreat indoors for a few hours.


We will be packing to head to the hospital on Thursday assuming we can locate enough diesel fuel. Along with food pricing, gasoline and diesel are skyrocketing in price and availability and we need to be cautious of commodities as once you have “crossed over” a point in the journey there is no heading back into town.