Pre-Camp Week

Last week we had pre-camp. Pre-Camp is when all of the people who would like to be translators or junior counselors, as well as out staff, get to experience a week of English camp.

Through out this week we, as the teachers, group leaders and directors watch the potential junior counselors and their behavior through out the week. We look for people, who are attentive, follow instructions, take initiative, good leaders, gentle and good-natured. For translators we look for the same attributes along with how well their English and translating skills are. I have a lot of respect for translators; as I work on my second language I know that translating isn’t as easy as we would like to think it is. The literal translation is not always the same and so quickly one has to think how it would make sense in another language and then say it. I stumble a lot when volunteers ask me what a child says. Yes, some things are very simple to translate but other things are cultural and therefore need a much longer translation. We had 100 people signed up for pre-camp! Sadly we could only take a total of 26 so a lot of prayers for God to make it very clear whom He would like to have in camp went up through out the week.

There are four classes everyday that the groups rotate through (during camp they’re split into older and younger) they are: English, science, Bible and PE. We split boys into two groups and the same with the girls. I helped put together the science curriculum this year; I love science and seeing all the tiny details God made everything with. Our summer director Andrew let me to teach the science class and while I was really nervous about teaching and getting all the facts straight; Monday morning came and I was fairly confident as I went to class. The science curriculum is themed: 6 Weeks of Creation. So, each week we focus on one day of creation the first week going through creation and then talking about light, light energy etc. the first day was relatively easy as I simply read the Genesis 1, 2:1-2 explaining and going into depth after each day of creation and then having the class draw inside a chart what happened on each of the 7 days. I concluded by really driving the point that God simply spoke, it wasn’t a magic spell, he didn’t use any sort of instrument He simply said “let there be” and there was. God is THAT powerful and that same powerful God loves each of us and desires a relationship with us.

The first class was a little restless; I had some issues with one of the guys but the rest of my classes went better. I had the boys first, a break for lunch and then the girls. My last class on Monday I asked if anyone knew what God created the first day; they were all shocked when I told them that “the heavens and earth” was wrong. “Genesis 1:1” they all said and when I began to read they were all shocked as I went through the three days of forming, three days of filling and the last day of rest. Monday was a good reminder, to me, that preaching the gospel and starting at the very beginning is important and how powerful God is.

Tuesday - I decided to do week 2 so that the junior counselors who would be working in camp wouldn’t hear the exact same week of science all over again. Day 2 of creation God separated the sky and the water. The day before things went well but I felt like there needed to be more interaction; this was also the day that the people wanting to be translators got a chance to translate for the teachers instead of our group leaders. I went to my class excited as I had a fun experiment to do with the class! I began by reviewing the order of creation and asking the class what happened each day; they stumbled a little but got it with a little help. I began to talk about the atmosphere and how it protects the earth, we talked about weather, the water cycle and pollution and then we made rain in a jar with: water, shaving cream and blue food coloring. So much fun! As I taught I myself was really touched on how incredibly perfect God had made things for us and how we mess it up. God told Adam and Eve to take care of the earth and the animals and we aren’t doing a good job of the job God gave us!

My third class, as I explained the atmosphere God began to speak and though this wasn’t in the lesson plan at all I began to talk about meteorites burning up in the atmosphere and falling stars; my translator stopped before translating what I just said and the staff members (who speak English) in the class were stunned “what did you say?” she asked, I repeated about falling stars and she shook her head in disbelief and translated it; then everyone was stunned and began talking. “Um… what just happened?” I asked, she laughed as she explained that in Haiti they’ve all been told that a falling star is a sign that someone is going to die. Again, God moved and I explained that no, a falling star is actually kind of the opposite. It’s a reminder that God is protecting us from meteorites that might cause damage and maybe kill us. So I encouraged them to remember that and share with their families that when they see a shooting star they shouldn’t be afraid but comforted because God is in control and He’s protecting us because He is God and He loves us. I went on to explain that every little part of creation is important if we didn’t have one part of the water cycle it wouldn’t work at all. God doesn’t make mistakes and just like God designed and made everything for a reason He did the same with each of us. We’re all here for a reason, we all make a difference whether we believe it or not.

Tuesday I was reminded that I’m God’s instrument to play a beautiful melody on, when I’m in tune with Him, and I’m just so thankful that He chooses to use me to touch others lives and that I am here.

Wednesday - the third day of creation God created the land, plants and the sea. I decided to talk about plants, land and then do a volcano experiment! My first class was still my hardest class but we got through it and they loved the volcano! The rest of my classes were so interested in plants that we didn’t have time to do the volcano! I had a volunteer draw a tree (as in the middle of my “classroom” stood a very tall tree and I used it as an example) and then different people come up and draw what the tree needed to make food. I also went over chlorophyll and how it makes leaves green and one of our preschool teachers was shocked “I never knew that before, the leaves are green because of chlorophyll! But now thanks to your lesson I know that!” she said laughing after our staff meeting.

Tuesday we’d given the people who were trying out to be translators a chance; most were guys and so Wednesday I asked some of the girls who’d been coming to English camp for a long time to translate for me and they actually did a really good job!!! I was so impressed!

As I went over the different things a tree need in order to make food and to live God moved once again and I began to explain how we, like trees, need to dig deep into God’s word which is like water to our thirsty souls, how the holy spirit lives in us and changes us (like the plants take the carbon dioxide and turn it into oxygen) how without God’s one and only son we cannot have eternal life! The older ladies in my group shouted out some “amens” and “thank-you Lords”. Wednesday I pray God planted seeds in hearts that will grow and each of my students will come to know Jesus as their personal Lord and Savior.

Fun fact: I can only say photosynthesis a total of 2 times before I get tongue-tied. We spent a good 5 minutes laughing about it and then I found the kreyol word is SO much easier to say and began using it: fotosentèz (photo-sin-tez)

Thursday – the fourth day of creation God created the: sun, moon and stars. I planned on talking about all of them but highlighting the moon as I’d noticed that the moon (I’ve always found space fascinating) was a waxing crescent the night before! I dreaded my first class in all honesty. But God just pressed on my heart to be cheerful and loving no matter what and as I prayed for the fruits of the spirit to be poured out the entire class changed. Guys were cheering for each other, helping one another out, answering questions, those that had caused problems were actually listening… it was one of the fastest answer to prayer I’ve ever experienced and I was SO grateful!

We talked about how the earth rotates around the sun and the moon rotates around the earth. I had three volunteers try and replicate it. We had a very small space and so as you can imagine it didn’t go well. I am a perfectionist but before any anxiety and degrading thoughts could even start, I laughed. Literally burst up laughing, as God showed me how silly we humans are. I had the class give the volunteers a round of applause and began to explain that even though there were several of us trying to get the volunteers to do it correctly we couldn’t get them to. It was a mess! “Aren’t you glad that God is in charge and not us?!” we went on to discuss how God once again created everything perfectly, His math is right on and if it was slightly off we’d be in big trouble.

We went over the phases of the moon next. I asked if any of them had seen the moon the previous night some had but they couldn’t remember what it had looked like. I encouraged them to look at the moon that night and try and figure out what phase it was at. All of my classes had so many questions about the moon we didn’t get to the sun and stars!

As Thursday was the last day of normal classes I again reiterated that God is the one who created the earth, in seven days, that the earth is young, how powerful God is, how He is in every little detail and that He does everything for a reason though we might not understand it or know why we’re all here for a reason and we have a choice to follow Him or to not.

Friday – Friday is called Friday fun day; we don’t have classes but fun activities where at least one involves water ;) My activity was musical chairs, which we had a blast with! We don’t have a lot of chairs but mainly benches, (which I’ve played with before in preschool but its not easy and doesn’t always work) and last year we’d used little pieces of cardboard to mark places. However; I’d found that with the preschoolers if I had them make a circle and then squat when the music stopped I would just choose the last person to squat or sit down and the last two I’d bring out a folding chair and it would be like “normal” musical chairs. The little kids LOVE it and so we tried it for Friday fun day. They also loved it and it ended up going faster then I thought it would and so I switched it up a little: the 2^nd round we chose one person to be in the middle of the group and choose an action for the entire group to do (e.g march with hands in the air, hop, shuffle, grocery cart etc.) it made it a little harder as they had to follow the person in the middle as well as listen for the music to stop and start. Lots of laughs! We still had time for another round and so the 3^rd round if a person got out they got to be the one in the middle, choosing what move people did and then when someone else got out they would go sit down and that person would take their place in the middle so that everyone got a turn J

I laughed so hard as some of the moves (walk like a chicken) were just hysterical and then when our older ladies got in the middle and started getting down with the music; everyone was good sports and it was a great ending to a wonderful week.

Friday was also hard because it was when Andrew chose who would help in English camp; there were a lot of disappointed people but for the most part they took it very well and we hope to see them again next year and that what they learned and saw during pre week God would use to draw them to Himself.

Beni Sèye A ~ Bless the Lord

As Orange group left, my translator and I took a seat on a bench and let out a deep sigh, we'd made it another day teaching the crazy class of 42 little 5-7 little boys and no one was injured miraculously enough and we'd all had fun! But the heat was raging inside the carport and I was so thankful to see pink group walking in through the gate; girls 8-10.

They stayed in line until they got close to my bench and then came at me shouting my name and covering me with kisses. As I sat on the bench laughing; I kissed those that I could and avoided one special little girl that always tried to lick my cheek; because if she succeeded I would squeal and that was hilarious to her. Once they were all kissed and my special girl tickled and kissed; I announced that we would be playing Duck, Duck Goose! This is their favorite game; everyday, throughout the duration of english camp, at least one of them would ask me if we were going to play it that day, as I've written before in a previous post I'd modified the original Duck, Duck, Goose! And they absolutely loved it! It also made the game last a little longer as well.

This group of girls were very closely knit. It seemed they all knew eachothers names, knew what each other liked and didn't liked, kept track of who had or hadn't run already and cheered for each other every single time and were the most obedient out of the four younger classes. I got to know a lot of them very well and three I knew previously from preschool. They tried to braid and string beads into my hair one day and almost succeeded, much to my surprise (I have very fine and thin hair) and one of the strands stayed in for a couple days.

One day, after we'd played all the games I had planned and were taking a water break, I looked at the clock to find we still had about 15 min. left; yes, we still had to drink water but that wasn't going to last more than 5 min. at most! When I told one of their jr. counselors she suggested we have them sing. My translator loves to sing and so once the girls were finished drinking from the clear little water bags he led them in 10,000 Reasons or as they call it here Bless the Lord.

As their angelic voices raised to God I closed my eyes; they sang the chorus in english then in kreyol and then in english again; I expected them to stop but then three voices continued strong singing the actual lyrics in Kreyol. I'd heard this song all over, in Haitian churches as we drove by on our way to our church, the preschoolers singing it, our staff as they worked, children just randomly singing it on the streets or next door and everytime it just filled my heart with hope, hope for this little island of roughly 10 million people. That when the sun comes up and it's a new day dawning that they would find peace and joy in singing His song again. And that whatever may pass and whatever lies before they would be singing when the evening comes. Life here is not easy,  voodoo is a very dark cloud that hangs low over these people and it's my prayer that they would all come to know their Savior that they would know for a fact that He is rich in love and slow to anger that His name is great and His heart is kind and they would find and know ten thousand reasons to sing His praise and then that day comes and their strength is failing that they would go home to His arms and would sing His praise unending ten thousand years and then forevermore.

I love every single one of the kids I met this summer at English Camp. Though some were a little tougher than others I still love them and pray that what they heard about Jesus would sink in and they would all come to a saving knowledge of Him. That they saw Jesus shining through us and would have a hunger and a thirst to know more about Him.

Bless the Lord 
Oh my soul, oh my soul
Worship His holy name
Sing like never before
Oh, my soul
I worship His holy name

First Week in a Nutshell

The first week of English Camp has come and gone and what a week it was!

This first week we had a team of 13 come from New Mexico! They were such a blessing, they all came with hearts ready to serve and hands willing to do whatever was necessary to help out. Whether it was: fixing toilets,working in a hot kitchen or teaching classes they showed up with a smile and whatever tools they needed, such a blessing.

At 8:30 every morning roughly 400 children came through our gate, formed a line, received hand sanitizer as they walked across the yard to the second gate where they're given a banana, water bag and hard boiled egg for breakfast. They are then separated by age into 8 different colored groups around the pool with boys on one side and girls on the other. Ages range from 5-14 and each child is given a bracelet with their name and the color of their group. Once everyone's seated Andrew leads everyone in exercises, songs, the Bible verse for the day and then we act out the Bible story for the day. What this consists of is interns and team members volunteering the night before, being told what the story is and then acting it out as Andrew tells it the next morning having wrapped themselves in huge pieces of colored cloth and not really knowing what Andrew will have them do. It's been a lot of fun and we've had some pretty hysterical impromptu acting. Once the Bible story is finished we review the Bible verse again, announcements are given and then the quietest groups are dismissed to their first class.

There are four classes that the children rotate throughout the day: Bible, Science, English and P.E and those are also split into classes for the younger and older students.

Andrew, had assigned all the interns places before the team arrived. Some of us as teachers and others as group leaders. There are 10 interns all together, including Andrew, all from different part of the States. I had put the P.E curriculum together the week before camp and got to be in charge of younger P.E which I was SO excited for because I knew some of my preschoolers would be in those groups and after not seeing them for what seemed like forever, my heart was beginning to ache to wrap them in my arms again and see how they were doing.

As my first group came of little girls ages 5-7 my heart lept as I recognized sweet little faces and they ran into my arms. Ah, bliss. We started by playing a name game where a ball is passed around and whoever catches is has to do a little dance or make a funny face and say their name, everyone repeats their action and their name and it worked for the most part. However; most of the names I could not pronounce and interestingly enough hearing 40 children's names once one right after the other doesn't really help them stick in your head. But we had fun nonetheless. Afterwards we played Duck Duck Goose, interesting fact you might not know about Ayiti is that; it's dusty.

No seriously. It's REALLY dusty. And the layers of dirt and dust on the concrete make it as slippery as ice sometimes and running around a circle doesn't help. So with the next group, boys 8-9, I had them sit in a circle and when they chose someone to be goose both had to run and touch the wall and on the way back the person could try and tag them; took a couple tries but they got it and had an absolute blast with it!

After the first 2 classes lunch is served to the younger classes around the pool while the older classes do crafts. Lunch is a banana, mangoes and then depending on the day; hotdogs, peanut butter and honey sandwhiches,spaghetti or egg sandwiches with a glass of ice cold kool-aid.

Groups are switched and once everyone's finished it's back to class.

After the last two classes finish the kids assemble around the pool, announcements and points are giving out to each of the teams before the children are then dismissed for the rest of the day. Points are given by teachers and group leaders; at the end of the week the group with the most points wins a pool party!

So there you have it. English Camp in a nutshell. More stories and photos to come!

A Passionate Big Brother

She's the smallest two year old girl at the preschool. Almost weightless in her little 24 month yellow dress he was the first to see her as she arrives, a little late to breakfast. He calls her by name wishing her good morning and asking her how she is, she doesn't respond but he smiles and holds her close anyway telling both her and her sister how happy he is that they came to school today.
Setting her down on the wooden benches that surround the table he provides them both with extra food and continues helping children wash their hands and mouths before morning assembly.
He finds her though, after most of the children have gone inside, sitting alone with a plate that has hardly been touched. He pulls the tiny little two year old closer on his lap, with one hand he strokes her head gently and in the other he holds a small piece of banana bread, the chocolate beginning to melt and stick to his fingers as he tries to persuade her to eat. He gently lifts it up to her little mouth for what seems like the hundredth time, but she turns away at the last second. Shoulders slump as the breath he didn't know he was holding is released in a heavy sigh.
He's spent countless mornings trying to get her to eat. You can see his mind wrestling, whether to try again or let the tiny doll down to go sing. He bends his head to kiss hers and rests his cheek on her head. His silent prayer is seen by the watching eyes and he switches the banana bread for the glass of milk "Please drink" his request is so heartfelt that even the two year old understands and she leans forward to drink from the cup in his hand. "Good job Regina! Thank you!"He praises her rubbing her back, the smile on his face is one of pure joy. No pride or conceited thoughts, he knows it was all God and he feels blessed to have been a part of it. She finishes the milk and after one more kiss on her forehead he lowers her to the ground, he can't see the smile she hides as she toddles out to have her hands washed. She knows he loves her and has her best interests at heart and she loves her American brother back.

I had the great honor of working beside a truly wonderful friend for the past 51/2 months. Arriving in Haiti before he returned from Christmas break, I did my best to soak in everything I could. I'd come to Haiti not really knowing what to expect or what God's plan was and watching these children and trying to wrap my head around teaching them dance, uncertainty was settling in after just a couple weeks and I was wondering what God's plan was. And then my fellow intern James arrived. I didn't know what to expect when he came, the teachers were all really excited to have him back and I quickly saw why.

Monday morning James began calling each of the children by name as they arrived for preschool, each one had their own special relationship with him, running into his arms, shyly smiling as they walked over and hugged his leg or giving him a "I'm not going to say good morning smirk: and then running away as their plan worked and their big blo brother chased after them tickling them until a good morning came from their lips. They all adored him! His passion and love of the kids showed in everything he did.

James taught games, relays, body part songs, bikes and exercises around the pool and told the Bible story at the end of the day. His passion for the children that he served was inspiring as he tried different ways to keep the kids interested and push them a little farther every day. The preschoolers couldn't help but be inspired by the overflow of love and passion from their big brother, friend and teacher. Dozens of little eyes watched his every move and as he helped kids finish eating, make sure they got to the bathroom, comforted kids that fell and respected everyone. Slowly you could see the older boys taking after him in little ways, helping to carry benches, fighting less, carrying little kids to the bathroom etc

At the end of the day, cutting up things for dinner or playing cards afterwards we talked about highs and lows from that day. His highs were always about how far different kids had come whether they were speaking more, smiling more, running better and faster or participating more; his face just lit up talking about the kids and their achievements.

God wants the absolute best for us and He pours out love every single day and fills us with passion. God is with us all the time and sometimes its hard to see that; but the preschoolers and I saw Him shining through our brother James as he: cheered them on during bike races or relays, when he made things a little harder and then stood by their side encouraging as they did their best, when they disobeyed and he gave them consequences for their actions, they all knew it was all for the greater good. They saw the pain and disappointment on his face whenever one of them had to go stand alone and they wanted to make it up to him.

When we have bad attitudes or sores that need to be cleaned God seeks us out to love on us and to help us work and clean those things out of our lives. He's the best father, teacher and friend we could ask for; but, there are some pretty amazing shining examples and I know God's face is shining with pride when He see's our passionate brother James and the love he poured on all of his little Haitian siblings.

Graduation Day at the Preschool

How did it come so quickly? There were things I wanted to say, things I wanted to do with the kids but time seemed to be running away from me no matter how hard I tried to grasp it there just wasn't enough time in the days leading up to graduation.

But graduation day came nonetheless, woke up early knowing there was a lot to get done before the kids arrived at 8 for breakfast and the ceremony started at 10:30. We all dressed up for the occasion and my family had sent me a new dress that was perfect for dancing with the kids. Claire, my closest friend here in Haiti braided my hair into a beautiful bun, slipped on some shoes (I normally run around barefoot but since it was a special occasion I wore sandals) and headed downstairs to see where a helping hand was needed.

Shelley had put together little gift bags for each of the children and so Claire, Mikayla and I punched holes in the tops and threaded string through to tie into bows. James, my fellow intern and best friend for the past 5 months, began putting up a tarp to shade the parents while they watched the preschools perform with the help of Haitian James and the boys: Jeff, Patrick and Emmanuel. Once the bags were done the children started arriving for breakfast! They were SO adorable! They were all dressed in their best clothes, which for some meant tuled, frilly dresses or a skirt and nice shirt. The boys all wore nice pants and shirts and one of the oldest boys even had a white buttoned up shirt! As I came to breakfast to greet them they began shouting "Hope! Hope! Ou bel!" (You're beautiful) they all ran the sheer fabric through their fingers smiling and admiring and I did the same telling them how beautiful each one looked, commenting on each little thing as I knew it meant a lot to them.

After breakfast and assembly Shelley and I placed duct tape to mark each of the children's spots and began leading the classes one at a time in and placing them in "their spot." One of the teachers little two year olds was "trying" to be helpful. I scooped him and bounced him on my hip as I helped direct and place children as well as greet the children that were arriving late. We ran through their program one time, there wasn't enough time to go through the dances but the kids knew their dances and I knew they'd perform better if they didn't run through it. Sounds weird I know but go with me on this. The little rehearsal went really well and the children went back inside for a snack, some water and storytime while their parents arrived.

I don't have a whole lot of interaction with the parents during Preschool. There are a couple parents that I know but only a handful so it was fun to see all the parents, also dressed in their best, arriving and looking just as excited as the kids.

At last it was time to begin!

The classes were lined up youngest to oldest with the oldest in the back. Estacey one of our wonderful teachers led them in singing This is the Day in both english and kreyol.  The 2's then recited their Bible verse: Ephesians 6:1 "Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right." in Kreyol, French and English. They'd been struggling with it the past week but at graduation the majority said it and then they all yelled "Right!" at the end, it was adorable! To finish their little part in the program we did a little dance called Cat and Mouse that the children absolutely love! I'd chosen 4 of the little 2's to be Cats.

In this dance, that my dance teacher in KS choreographed a long time ago, the cat in the dance is asleep in the middle of the dance floor, the rest of the dancers are mice that want to play with the cat and they tiptoe and dance quietly around the cat until it’s time to wake the cat up. They tap the cat three times and then ask the cat to play with them. The first time the cat is grumpy and tells them no and they run away crying (kids favorite part) but the mice try again and the second time the cat says yes! They hold hands and walk around in a circle and then after they’ve “played all day” they’re all tired, so they stretch and then lay down like the cat and go to sleep.

All the 2’s participated and danced, the cat’s stayed asleep and talked loud and I couldn’t have been happier or prouder of them!

Once the 2’s that had parents at graduation were given a gift and sent to sit with their parents while the others sat in a group and waited patiently for their parents to arrive.

Next came the 3’s & 4’s! They recited John 11:40 in Kreyol, French and English. I’d led their group the previous day during PE and had them practice their verse, I knew part of it in Kreyol and French and so I started it for them and much to my amazement they knew all of it by themselves! This group has so much energy and usually are just crazy so it was very encouraging to see how much they’d grown through out the year as they stood in a straight line and recited their Bible verse perfectly and then sang their song, “Into My Heart” in both French and English with the hand motions that Estacey had taught them!

Their dance was high energy, lots of jumping in place, step claps, going fast and then slow and spinning and freezing in a position to end. They all had the biggest smiles on their faces as they ran out to their spots and you could see the pride shining off their faces as they did the dance they’ve memorized and worked hard to learn. I’m probably going to say this with every class, but, it’s the truth. SUPER PROUD OF THEM!

The oldest class was last; they recited John 3:16, hearing their voices I prayed and hoped that each one of them truly understood what this verse mean’s and that they would come to accept God’s gift very soon. Their song was “Rejoice”, throughout the previous week we would hear the girls start singing their song as they rode on trikes or colored pictures, their sweet little voices would be lifted up to Jesus, led by the oldest girl Hosperlinda and her sister and you couldn’t help but smile and sing along. Watching them singing this and how excited a handful of them were it was like God was showing me his disciples for Haiti, I have no doubt that God has huge plans for each and everyone of these kids and it’s my prayer that they all come to know Christ at an early age and impact Haiti for Christ.

Time to dance!

I’d split the boys and the girls up as there is a greater number of girls than boys. The boys went first dancing a partner dance to “Speak Life” by: TobyMac. Two of the boys had been having a “rough” week, I think they were just anxious for school to be over and therefore could not stand still for a second or obey for longer then a minute. As I placed them in their spots I took their faces in my hands and said “Do a good job for me, ok? You’re smart, funny, strong, good boys and you can do this well for your parents, right?” sheepish grins spread over their faces as they nodded and then it was time! All the boys did the dance perfectly with huge smiles on their faces! And when I had them jump over the river near the end of the dance all the parents were cheering for them, which just blessed me and the kids in ways only God knows.

My girls were last. They’d worked so hard and picked up things so fast that I choreographed their own dance to 10,000 Reasons by: Rend Collective, which everyone in Haiti knows and loves! I gave the girls hand motions but I think it was more for my benefit, to keep my hands busy and not cry rather then for the girls. They did such a beautiful job. I will write more about it later, my heart is so full and God’s working in some pretty awesome ways.

Everyone cheered and clapped for the kids and then Byron, with the help of James translating, talked to the parents about Maranatha’s mission and Bryon and Shelley’s hearts for the children of Haiti. After a prayer we handed out Kool-Aid, hotdogs and cookies. It was fun to see the parents interacting with their kids and just everyone smiling and enjoying the day. I tried not to think about the kids leaving and not coming to school on Monday. The red Kool-Aid dyed their lips so they all looked like they were wearing lipstick and we were all cracking up, which kept the tears at bay.

Several of the kids came running up to me, thanking me and wanting a picture with me and I with them. These kids are all so precious and dear to me, their stories break my heart but their smiles and strength give me energy and remind me of the hope we have in Jesus and that we walk by faith not by sight or circumstance. I’ve been so blessed to serve and love on each and every one of the 80 kids that attended Maranatha’s Preschool; God is doing awesome things here in Haiti and I’m so honored to play a small role in it.

Continued prayer for these children and for English Camp as it’s coming up next week!!! Hopefully I’ll be able to slip in some stories and updates in the crazy days ahead

See my photography page on facebook for photos of gradutaion: H.e.rphotography94

Through My Eyes

I thought I'd take you on a journey and give you a peek into one of many exciting days of preschool here at Maranatha Children's Ministries in Haiti.

Woke up after one of the best nights sleep I've had in a very long time thanks to Malaria; the wind was playing with the leaves of the mango and palm tree right outside my window and I hoped for a little bit of a cooler today. Looking at the clock it read 7:22 and I have a meeting to do at 7:30, yikes! Jumped out of bed slipped on the dusty, white tile, let out a little yelp as I fell on my face, popped back up and quickly got ready for the day.

What kind of day lay ahead of me with such an exciting beginning?

Every day we have a schedule and for the most part we stick to it, though with weather and sickness things do tend to get shifted around. Racing out of my room finishing my braid I found on top of the box where we keep the sheets for the schedules a note saying that my fellow intern and good friend James had already put together the schedule, "Mesi anpil James!" Headed out to the meeting with 2 minutes to spare!

Morning meetings are under the big gazebo. All of the staff attends the meeting, they start by singing a hymn and than we do devotions before going through the schedule for the day. But something was off this morning, it was 7:35 and no one was at the table except for James and I... James went to get them but only 7 people came to morning meeting out of the usual 12 and out of the 7 there were only 4 people who work with the children 2 teachers and then James and me. I have to admit I freaked out a little.

"Does anyone know where... anyone is?"

We pieced together that 2 people were sick but the rest we had no idea. There had been a Tap Tap (public transportation) strike a few weeks ago and I wondered if it was happening again. "Guess we're going to be teaching the 2's class today James" I said laughing. Something Haiti has taught me is to laugh in the good times and the hard times because it's easy to be discouraged and sometimes you just have to let go and laugh as you think "What on earth just happened."

As they finished singing Mama Erta arrived just in time to do devotions! James and I were pretty relieved we weren't teaching but I told Erta I would be her helper for the day as 32 little 2 year-olds is a little much for one set of hands. We tweaked the schedule, prayed together and were off to get things ready.

Right before the children arrived one of the helpers for the 2's arrived! I wrapped her in a huge hug and told her I was super excited to see her, even more so because we were so short staffed! She was shocked when I told her everyone that was missing and she told me that she wasn't feeling good but she knew that she needed to come today and now she knew why!

8:00am time to greet the children!

Running, walking or toddling through the black gate, giving one last glance at their mother or father, a whimper perhaps to show that they weren't too excited to be going to school and then their eyes land on you and a smile, sometimes a shriek as they call your name and come running to your arms or just running to you and hugging your leg as sometimes you already have two kids on each hip and one clinging to your back. Shouts erupt from all over the yard and teachers and my fellow intern greet kids by name. 

Soon the call for clean up is made and we all head to breakfast, holding one or two kids while leading the rest behind. The oldest children sit at the table under the huge gazebo while the younger children sit at two more tables that are set up in the preschool room. As backpacks that weren't taken off before coming to breakfast are gathered children close their eyes and fold their hands while a teacher prays than breakfast is served! Emanie makes breakfast every morning and it changes between oatmeal with raisins to banana bread & hard boiled eggs.

I help pass out plates and cups of milk to the youngest children giving each child a kiss on the forehead and telling them good morning. The children will shout my name and some of them pucker their little lips ready to give me a kiss on the cheek as well. They've all figured out my name and now I'm called one of three things: "Hope" "Hopie" or "Mama". Each of the kids hold different places in my heart and I have a special relationship with each one of them. Some are tickled until they tell me good morning or how they're feeling others get a little hug and a reminder to eat everything on their plates.

Heading outside Darlens and his little sister begin the chant of "HOPE! HOPE! HOPE! HOPE!" I shout their names back to them reaching them and tickling them both to get them to stop. After all the plates are passed out I head back to the preschool room to make sure a couple particular kids eat their breakfast & sending kids out to wash their hands or into the bathrooms before assembly starts. A handful of children trickle in once all the children are seated and eating, James and I run to greet them and scoop them up to carry them to an extra seat at the table.

  I helped Carmita clear the tables that day as she was just getting over the virus and her hands still couldn't lift heavy things. I served food to the last couple kids that arrived and gave a child with a fever some medicine before heading in to assembly to sing with the kids. Cristelle is a little two year old that was the first child to really attach to me; she ran up to me in her little pink and yellow shirt and lifted her arms to be picked up. Swinging her up to my hip we began to sing Oh, Be Careful Little Eyes, we sing it in English and in Kreyol. I began singing and swaying with her, we shook our fingers at each other shouting "What you see!" and laughing as we both couldn't keep a straight face!

After singing we say a prayer for the day and then the children all split into their different classes and head to one of our 4 different stations. The 2's start with craft and today was a coloring page of the Good Samaritan, I sat beside a little boy who when I first met him was very shy and never smiled. But through the months he has become such a smiley outgoing little thing it's really amazing to see. I sat between him and my little flower; Astride. Astride has grown a lot over the past few months, she holds the little pink crayon like it’s the most precious possession she owns and carefully she begins to color the man laying with his back against a large boulder. She doesn't stay in the lines exactly but she understands that this should all be colored. I praise her and Daniel as they work and other children lift up their papers to show me how they're doing as well.

   

Once all the children have finished coloring and their names have been written on the top we bring out fresh play dough! Each of the children are given a portion and I watched as they began to pinch little pieces off and roll into balls, “Hopie! Vini!” I hear from across the room, Marie Landie has rolled all of her play dough into one huge snake and her beaming smile shows just how proud she is of it. I play with her and Cristelle showing them how to make a dog with their balls of play dough, they were so excited!

Picking up the playdough the children are sent outside to sit on the step of the gazebo where they each receive a vitamin, a banana and a cup of water. I take a seat in front of them and instantly 4 kids run to sit on my lap while another 4 run to sit on James’ as well. We laugh, talk and play with the kids as they eat their snack and when they're finished half head to the front where chalk and bubbles await and I stay with the other half in the back where James has them do races. 

Astride and Redjina have claimed my lap as James calls out two kids to come stand beside him we all chant with him “Ready, Set, Go!” and they're off running a lap around the pool their little shoes slapping the concrete, ribbons flying and shrieks of joy escaping their lips as they race and those still seated chant both of their names. I'm impressed by a number of the kids that fly around the pool at lightning speed, they “cross the finish line” and give James and I a high five, their faces shining and hearts racing.

After everyone’s has had two turns it’s time to fall in and head to the front. We recite the alphabet in both French and English making silly voices and calling the kids to hold on and don't let go. Each of the children are given a piece of colored chalk, they run to the tall black gate which serves as a perfect blackboard for the kids artwork. One of the kids favorite things to do is draw lines and circles and then erase it to draw more; but when they do their hands turn the color of the chalk and they'll shriek and giggle lifting them up to show me.

I bring out the bubbles as James gathers what is left of the little pieces of chalk. No matter how old you are there is really something simply magical about bubbles and chasing them as the wind sends them dancing brings a smile to even the grumpiest face.

The fourth and final station is inside where we have assembly. The children sit around a chair as Islande has them tell her in English and Kreyol the date, days of the week and months of the year. Astride and Redjina have claimed my lap once more as Islande reads the class a story, first in English and then in Kreyol   asking them questions as she reads. The children all love books.

Today we had blocks after reading. I hadn’t been able to watch the 2’s play with the blocks and it was fun to watch as they pieced the pieces together and then told me what they’d built. I watched as a 2 square blocks became a car. A  whole stack of blocks became Adams airplane and Fabiola built a tower and then began sharing the different pieces as she took it apart.

Soon it’s lunch time, blocks are gathered and children line up to head to the preschool room to eat. A little boy managed to get his shoes off while playing with blocks and he brings them over to me to put on. His shoes are an old pair of tennis shoes that have seen much better days, there used to be a character of some kind on the sides but it’s long since come off, the insides are so shredded that it’s hard to get his sockless little foot in them but in they go nonetheless and he runs off to a lunch of peanut butter and honey sandwiches with milk.

I head out to serve the children under the gazebo, as I step outside I hear one of the oldest girls praying “Thank you for everything, please God bless Hope, bless Fi Fi, bless James, bless us God. We love you. In Jesus’ name amen!” to say that this is sweet is honestly an understatement. This child has far less than I have and does not have a good home life. But she prays that God will bless me. It’s a rather humbling thought.

Mats are laid out side by side in the assembly room and once the younger children have washed their sticky hands and mouths I help lay them down on the blue mats that fill the room. There aren’t enough for all the children and so I pull out some blankets and lay them in the pathway between the mats for the remaining children to sleep on. Islande sits and sings to them as they fall to sleep with a fan blowing around the room.

The oldest children have recess now. James and I try to switch it up and make it fun for the kids. We started with races as there were a couple kids with fevers that needed to be cared for. Hosperlinda, the oldest child that goes to Maranatha and has become my little sister begs me to race with her. I haven't done a whole lot of running or really any movement since I was sick. But her pleading puppy eyes are to much to deny and so off we go running around the pool. I was able to run which felt absolutely amazing during the race (not so much after) but running alongside my little sister both of us taunting the other one as we ran and laughing was much needed and a little prayer of thanks went up in the Haitian heat.

The wooden benches had been moved for cleaning and James and I had the idea to try and do musical chairs… with benches. We got James ipod and speaker and explained the game to the kids. Last one to sit down is out and the game began! The kids caught on very quickly and there was lots of laughter and dancing as the kids marched around the benches.

At 12 their afternoon classes start and they're divided again into three classes to work and James and I are on lunch break for an hour and a half. The day seems so much longer than it is and so much happens in those few hours that when lunch comes around sitting down and eating something sounds like you've just won the lottery. Don't get me wrong I love working with the kids but it does take more out of you than you realize.

The kids wake up and have a snack of crackers and water before heading in for afternoon assembly where James tells the children a Bible story while Rehuel translates for him, the other teachers and I hold as many kids on and around us as we can while making sure children are not messing with things they shouldn’t. The kids generally listen well but we all have our days where we can’t sit still and when there’s 80 kids that can't sit still a lot of grace is needed; which God always provides but we don't always tap into.

After another prayer children head to the front yard and play on the swings, kick balls, chase each other or curl up in our laps as they wait for their parents to come and arrive. It used to be hard to let the kids go home; not knowing where they're going to or knowing and not liking it. But if God has taught me anything it's that He does not just live here at Maranatha; He goes home with the children as well. He cares for them, looks out for them and always brings them back no matter what virus strikes.

I've been more than blessed to be a part of this organization and to see the ups and downs of running a preschool and life in general on this little island. These children are so very smart and well behaved they humble me on a daily basis. I look forward to what God has in store for the future!