Haiti: Going back in time...

I heard about this trip to Haiti on August 29, and after hearing the price, my mom said "You're going." Mom went to Haiti back in November 2009 and loved it. I was so thankful to receive this amazing opportunity to go to Haiti. By the help of Belle Aire Baptist Church and the Baptist Convention, I was able to go at a very good price with some wonderful people. We went through a ministry called SMI Haiti. They have a wonderful vision for the city of Guitton, and they are definitely impacting Haiti in a great way. Check them out: SMI Haiti.
But I am so honored and humbled to have been able to go to Haiti and be impacted by the people and see God in a tangible way. Thank you so much to the people who have supported me through this.


And now I'm going back in time to my journal to recall the events of Haiti...

Thursday, October 14
It's Thursday and I've been up for 16 hours - since 3:30am this morning! We're in Haiti, safely, thank God.
Yesterday we left Murfreesboro at 12:30pm for Atlanta. Got there at 5pm, ate really fast, and caught the plane to Ft. Lauderdale, FL. Got there at 11pm. Bunked that night with my friends Kinsey, Tatum, and Ashely. That sleep was just a tease because it was only three hours long... we had to wake up at 3:30am and to go to the airport. The bins we took as each of our second checked bag took forever to check in. Then we headed to Haiti on a 6:50am flight. It was a rough flight, and my ears popped constantly, however I did get some sleep.
We arrived in Haiti at the Toussaint L'Ouverture airport in Port-au-Prince around 8 that morning. We got instructions on how to walk quickly and say "nau mezi" to people who wanted to help carry our luggage. This airport was partially destroyed by the earthquake, and we arrived in a big temporary building that surprised me, because it did not look like an airport at all. I pushed a cart, and we made it to the bus and started on a very bumpy hour and half ride.
I saw a extreme of poverty I had never witnessed before. People were living in tents made of cardboard and tarps. They told us that those people's shacks would be washed away when it rained. We passed by a mass grave where more than 200,000 people are buried, casualties from the earthquake. A single black cross marks this spot.
In Haiti, the drivers are so aggressive, and I'm so thankful we didn't wreck! The car horns are used excessively, the median line does not exist, and the speed limit was not acknowledged. And I thought Murfreesboro drivers were bad... Apparently, the bus rides were the most dangerous part of the trip.
In just under two hours, I saw so much of Haiti. We went from Port-au-Prince through a town plastered with "vote for so-and-so" graffiti and posters because of the upcoming election. We saw acres and acres of land filled with tents made out of blue tarps. Women walked around with huge baskets on their heads. We drove through the country with roaming cows and even a dead, rotting one on the side of the road whose smell was overwhelming. Then we were driving in between roads that were lined with the "nicer" houses of Haiti. I saw people bathing, washing their clothes, and cleaning their dishes in a gutter. Unclothed children walked about shamelessly. Then we passed through the mountains with the mass grave and where the tents could be washed away by the rain. I saw the Caribbean for the first time. The contrast of the mountains and sea is just beautiful. Then we went through the craziest area of Haiti I'd seen: the marketplace. It was crazy; the people darted in and out of the chaotic traffic. Loud speakers projected Creole advertisements. Then, coming into camp, I played my own personal game of "Wave at the Haitians." That was fun. They would yell "blanc, blanc!" (which means white) and would wave back.
Finally we arrive at this really nice (nicer than I imagined) house. This mission house, which has room for 50 people, was finished in the spring. It sits on a gated compound that has a church and also a nice little soccer field. During the day, they open the gates and let the children come in and play, and right after we unloaded, that's what we did. We played with the cute kids. At this point, it was only 10am! We played "football," and I learned a little Creole. I met this cute little boy named Job who liked to sing, and we sand "Shawty" as he called it (more commonly known as "Replay" by Iyaz). The Haitian teens were also playing a radio station with popular American songs and were singing along. They knew no English, but they imitated the lyrics.
Then we had lunch and were introduced to these wonderful sodas in glass bottles. They were the only cold things to drink, and we each had 2-3 a day. After eating, we went to work in the hot, hot sun. We had to transport 150 30lb cinder blocks in an assembly line. And we did that twice. After moving brick, I painted the outside of this school. And keep in mind this is in the heat of the day, and we had had 3 hours of sleep...
After 3 hours of work, we left the work place, which was about a 15 minute drive from the compound. I rode in the back of a truck with some Haitian boys. That was fun. Even though we were all exhausted, we still played soccer with the kids: Haitians vs. Americans.  We had dinner, and I took a cold shower, the only temperature. Then I even fell asleep before our devotion time. During our first devotion time on the porch, a missionary from SMI Haiti prayed a great prayer over us. He prayed for protection and for our interactions with the Haitians. I really think that prayer and God's grace protected us on this trip.
He also reminded me that God is the same in Haiti as He is at home. Where can we go that He is not there?

~kg

Remember Haiti

Haiti is heavy on my heart right now. I have just heard of this breakout of diarrhea that is killing and sickening hundreds. Read it here: http://www.haitiquotidien.com/news.php/335 or here: http://webcenters.netscape.compuserve.com/news/story.jsp?floc=FF-APO-+&idq=%2Fff%2Fstory%2F1001%2F20101022%2F7630.htm&sc=+&ref=nf
But it says that the Haitians should drink only bottled water and make sure food is cooked thoroughly; well, if they had that option, would they have not been doing this all along???
Even my friend Rebecca Jean, whom I met in Guitton, Haiti, has updated her status on Facebook: "Need Prayer for HAITI the are in epidemic killing the people since yesterday had more than 50 people pass away in L'ARTIBONITE :'( " This is not okay with me. People should not have to live in conditions like this. People that I have met and interacted with these past 6 days, people I love.
I implore you to pray for Haiti. I am, and I know my group is. 


It's amazing how fast the world comes back to you after going on a trip like this. I've only been home for 2 days, and I've already whined about my appearance, whined about food. It makes me mad at myself! Because especially since I've seen how Haitians live, any of them would love to have the things I've been blessed with, as I was reminded by my roommate. How could I so soon forget this? It's my selfish, American, sinful self coming out, and I had hoped I left that in Haiti.
Romans 12:2 - "Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will." This is my prayer, and I hope I will not forget it as quickly as I have.

My heart is heavy for Haiti.
~kg

The Beginning

So I've finally given in and created a blog at the encouragement of my father. I know, Greg Greer telling me to make a blog? Kinda weird. But I know he had good reason: he told me that it would help family and friends keep up with my life. Not only my new college life, but my recent trip to Haiti. So I want to share this incredible experience with all of you and thank you for praying for me. This might be a big challenge for me to write about such a personal and impactful experience, but I will try, though it might take numerous posts. So here it goes...

~kg