Validation

The sound of children playing and scratching on my tent in the dark is the way my morning started. That dog pile of young boys asleep on the floor early last evening apparently thought they had enough sleep at around 5:00 am. Light rudely blasted into my tent and a silhouette stood in the doorway to the porch I called home for the last 7 days. I waved my hand to signal I wanted the light back off to the figure surrounded by light, and it when out. I tried to sleep for a few more minutes, but to no avail. So I got up and put in another movie to allow the team a little more time to rest and keep the kids calmer. We gave the kids a smorgasbord of breakfast bars too choose from as we won’t need much for tomorrow morning, we will be hitting the road early for Port. We went to the new property this morning via a school bus. It was a big adventure for the kids. We arrived at the property and I set up a little tent for shade and was getting ready to lay bases when someone carried a phone to me and said Pastor wanted to talk to me. They were at the property with the Toyota and trailer but couldn’t make it up the hill. We ended up removing 100 lbs. of pipe from the trailer as well as two of the tent packages. The pipe was carried up the hill by Haitians and I was finally able to use a different route and up the hill we went. With the work we had done on the road to help repair the water damage we were also able to run the two-wheel drive truck up as well. We compiled all the goods back in the trailer and parked it out of the way while they pour the floor to our Well Shop/storage area for rigs and goods. A huge bonus we discovered while we were up at the property is that the metal roof of the building reflects the sun’s heat, and it’s actually a very cool place to work. This will be wonderful to have in the days ahead. We were also able to set up one of four perimeter solar lights that will aid in property security. We are really excited about this because when it gets dark in Haiti, it really gets dark. No city night light glow, just a jet-black sky that vacuums up all light and makes the stars truly sparkle. I have seen these lights working way high on the mountain and it used to confuse me why they had power up there and not down in the city until I found out they were solar powered units. At the end of the week I am not where I planned to be, but I certainly am not where I was when I arrived. Patience is a coveted fruit, it grows slowly, it is a virtue which is an acquired taste, much like coffee. I say coffee, because it is a flavor I have never come to fully appreciate. I drink it in Haiti with lots of cream and sugar, never ask me to drink it black! That is the way I am with patience. I need a lot of sweetener and some cream. I covet it dearly, but I am wired to do: “do or do not, there is no wait” is my catch phrase. While I have drunk deeply at the well of patience this week and have typed out my blogs laced with cream and sugar, a bitter taste remains behind. I hope ten years of working in Haiti has made me a better man, but days like these where my patience is truly put to the test, I feel failure eating at my frame. I cast my eyes to the hills from where comes my help, my help I say, ‘comes from the Lord.’ He is in charge of all things in this HIS Haiti ministry. As I write this blog I am moving back and forth between words setting up our annual orphanage birthday party. This is quite the business, a serious endeavor that takes several man hours of time, a true labor of love to validate these kids ‘American Style’. Criticize me if you will, as I had my meeting with these golden hearts yesterday, I confessed to them we are not a family replacement. I told them this is broken attempt to bring a place of protection and a safe environment for them to grow up in. We love them but are rarely with them. Hence, a birthday bash, a time of validation, a time we burn into their memories how much they are loved and held close in our hearts. As the ladies and kids were finishing up coloring and decorating banners with each child’s name on it some of the kids were helping color theirs. Kenly appeared with a piece of paper in hand, he unfolded it to reveal last year’s banner with his name on it. He has kept it safe this entire year. Confirmation is rare gift we get. In the moment that banner was unfolded I knew we had validated this young teenager in a plausible way. On that note, I have a party to attend. Blessing to all from St. Marc.