Random Thoughts

7/29/18
7:14am
 
I’ve been skipping out about writing about very significant differences. I feel like once you say something once, there’s no reason to repeat yourself, but I think I need to.

I have been at Cavaillon now for 4 days and each day has showed me something different. Yes, I’ve mentioned that the water in Carrefour gets shut off, but it can come back on eventually. When there is water in the pump or well, or whatever it is, there is water. In Les Cayes, there is no running water. The water comes from a well in buckets, that comes from the river. So while here, I have literally taken baths in the river. After we are done swimming, we take out our soap and wash ourselves. Although I am cleaning, I’m not exactly sure of how clean it makes me feel. After all, afterwards my shorts are still full of silt, so I still went and took a “shower.” Personally, this isn’t cutting it. No amount of soap or deodorant makes me feel truly clean in dirty water. Dirty isn't the right word. More like ... "impure?" I don't know.

We put toothbrushes, deodorants and soaps in the children’s school bags. Everybody seems so excited to receive these seemingly small things, but I guess when you do not have the opportunity to wash every day, everything counts. Watching children run for new shoes was such a blessing. Even parents were asking me for shoes, medicine and supplies. Pregnant mothers needed formulas and baby foods, and I was glad that we had so much to give.

I’ve been without my phone now for almost two days. It died and there’s literally no power. The generator broke and at night, the village blacks out. People sit outside and talk or listen to music. There’s not much to do except enjoy each other’s company really. I’ve never felt so detached from my life back home then in these past couple of days. No power. No internet. No way to communicate. It was almost kind of refreshing to not be able to check in with my world. No social media. Nothing. That’s probably why everybody in Haiti can sing. They take the time to bond and to practice. I really love how people come together to worship, to pray and to sing. There’s probably one song that most Americans know, and that’s the national anthem, but here, it seems as if everybody knows the same Haitian songs and they band together when it’s time.
​

When I walk outside, there are chickens, goats, and pigs. All the food is fresh and natural. The river flows. Living here is simple, peaceful. It smells funny, and I’m afraid of how people walk around with chickens as if they’re new puppies, but it’s still peaceful.
 
I don’t want to use the word sad, because I’m not “sad.” I’m not a savior here to save all of Haiti’s problems, but I am taking note of things that are different from home. There are different ways of life all around the world, and I have been diving into different cultures since I was young. So I’m not sad, but I am curious and learning why things are the way that they are. I believe that there’s an answer. There’s a fix. The money and resources exist, so how do we distribute them to poor countries and build up desolate areas in our world? First and foremost, this is OUR world. Too many people are only focused on their lives and how they are affected. Things can change, and they should.