Zanfan Lakay
How could you look at this picture and not immediately fall in love with these beautiful people?
There is so much to say about my time in Haiti. It felt like a lifetime, when in reality it was only 7 days. It is hard for me to describe how my heart feels being back in the United States. I know that I left a huge part of it with these boys (and seven girls) of Zanfan Lakay.
Since there is so much to say about my trip, I have decided to give the abridged version, then dedicate individual posts to people who especially impacted me while in Haiti. But first, I will try to break down the most amazing week of my life into this post.
(my journal entry from July 24)
I woke up this morning with incredibly sharp stomach pains. So instead of going to VBS leader training with the others, Addie stayed back with me and Mary (who had food poisoning). Most of my day was spent sweating in my room, reading and resting.
Later on, when the team came back from training, I felt better enough to go to Zanfan for a bit. As soon as we got there, the kids went wild. Christalin found me and look me in the eyes and said "Ana." almost like he meant, "you came back, just like you said." he embraced me and kissed my cheeks. He kept pulling away, looking into my eyes, saying my name, then embracing me again. This boy.
I brought my camera to Zanfan today, and almost immediately lost it. I wasn't concerned though, because all the boys there are so respectful and were careful with it. I am excited to go through the pictures later to see all the photos these crazy boys took.
I finally learned my girl's name. Fatima. my "sister". She is actually Jimmy's daughter. She is so incredibly smart. She teaches me how to say words in Creole. Today she was wearing a shirt that said "joy", which I thought was very appropriate since she is so joyful, loving, servant-hearted, compassionate, most amazing little girl.
Christalin took my hand and walked me around, teaching me words in Creole. More than that though, he wanted to know how to say the word in english, french, and spanish! I did my best, but sometimes he would just laugh and me because he knew I didn't know some words.
He somehow realized that the chickens in the yard scared me. So naturally, he picked one up, danced with it a bit, then started chasing me with it.
That boy knows how to speak my love language.
Christalin dancing with the chicken
(journal entry from July 25)
today was an early day. we left the hotel around 6 am in order to get to the VBS church in time.
Basically, Haitian traffic is horrific, and drivers are all crazy.
We were on the Bad Tap Tap, where the boards aren't big enough for the seat frame, so really you are just sitting on metal bars the entire time. The ride lasts for about 2 hours, sometimes less.
Frantz (one of our translators) was in our tap tap and he was telling us about the earthquake. He was in a building with Bidjee (another translator). When the quake started, he was upstairs and managed to run outside, which is what you are supposed to do in an earthquake. But Bidjee and another one of their friends had been on different levels of the house and he didn't know if they were safe.
Haiti is still so dusty and there is rubble in the streets and abandoned buildings because of the earthquake. There was so much destruction, it's almost as if they gave up trying to clear it all up, so they just live in it.
Frantz says he has a lot of friends that he has never seen again since the earthquake. He says people were crushed in the buildings "like a sandwich". Buildings still contain dead bodies from the disaster, but the Haitians just leave them there because there is no longer any way they can help me. They are already dead.
Frantz told us about people that were trapped under rubble for 19 days. They all said that they saw an old man with a long beard feed them and give them water during the time they were trapped. They all believe it was Jesus.
VBS was chaotic, but Emma and I got to know Doodzilla and Bidjee (our Snack translators). Doody is super tall so he calls us Shorty 1, Shorty 2, and Shorty 3.
Frantz and Doodzilla
Bidjee
Zanfan was great. Christalin kept pulling me over to a boy who speaks English. Finally I found out that he was asking me to adopt him. All I could say was "I so wish I could."
All throughout snack time at VBS, Christalin was being trampled over because he was getting water for his friends.
He hugged my neck, kissed my face, embraced me and repeated, "Ma. Ma. Ma." All I can do is hold his sweet face in my hands and tell him I love him.
"Ana. I love you."
As soon as the girls at Zanfan realized I have bangs, they liked to do my hair like an Asian girl, naturally.
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