Our Life for God's Glory: Our Journey to the Mountains #1.

My dear friend!

We are about to do a bit of traveling in Haiti today and we are so happy that you have decided to join us! There are 33 of us already but perhaps we can find room for you yet.. you know that saying, “there is always room for one more!”

It is a pleasant, sunny morning here in Leogane, Haiti, which is not at all unusual. Leogane has more sunny days than you could “shake a stick at”! If you are a moody person that enjoys some gloomy days every now and then .. this is not the place for you! However, on second thought, I still want you to come along with us… We like variety! Variety is the spice of life and perhaps you will add some extra spice….And to be totally honest, even I like a melancholy mood every now and then. :)

We have two vehicles that we are planning to fill with luggage and people. You can have your pick.. either jump onto the back of the dump truck and risk a sun burn or find a seat in the back of the truck with the “monkey cage” as someone called it!

By the way, I should tell you that you need to pack your sleeping bag and a pillow as well as your clothes because we plan to be gone for several days and sorry to tell you, but you will NOT be sleeping in a soft bed tonight! You will need to rough it a bit.. BUT.. if you like adventure.. you will make out okay! And even if you are a little apprehensive about joining this bunch, I think you will find the excitement of everyone else somehow rubbing off on you! We are all happy and eager to begin this trip….

Okay.. lets go!! Don, my good looking husband, is driving the dump truck and Galen King, our youth pastor is driving the Chevy. We are going to drive to Ti Goave about 45 minutes from here. The road from here to there is paved and is actually a pretty nice road for Haiti.

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Bravo! You made it! Did you enjoy your ride? …. Great! Feel free to get out and stretch your legs a bit and.. yeah, it is going to take some patience right about now. The Scout has a problem with one of its tires and needs some attention. Now would be a good time for a “potty break” while there is potty available. Personally, I would rather not have to stop along the mountain trail to do business of that sort. However, it is Haitian culture to go when the need arises.. anywhere! ( well .. almost.)

We are going to unload the dump truck here in Ti Goave since the truck would not do too well the next phase of our journey. The road ahead of us is very rough and rugged and some sections of the trail are better handled with a four wheel drive or a smaller vehicle. Unfortunately the dump truck is not equipped with four wheel drive.

Okay.. take your pick of a vehicle again. This time we have four vehicles to choose from! Don’s faithful Chevy truck, the little red Scout, a Toyota Land cruiser driven by Pastor Levy, and a little pickup driven by Don’s cousin, Michael. Okay… get ready… hang on …. here we go! You are about to experience a ride you will not forget right away! Here in Ti Goave we will take a road that leads into the mountains.

Bumpity Bump… Bumpity Bump…. Rockin back and forth.. to and fro.. and up and down. Hmmm… this road is terrible and terrible on vehicles too. Don is taking the lead with his Chevy and we are literally creeping up this mountain. He is trying to take it easy because he would be very happy if his truck would last a long time! And with these kind of roads… the truck might protest if it had to work too hard and fast!

Trouble!!!

O No. With a group of people this size it takes extra patience when something goes wrong. The Scout’s tire is protesting… it is going flat! The Scout has made this trip countless times already and its tires are tired!! The youth hauled four new tires along from the states for the Scout and we have them on the top of the Chevy’s cage.… BUT… the tires are bigger and they would all need to be replaced at the same time. So…. we are going to “baby” the tired tire and hope to reach our destination before the tire flies to bits. Don has a little air compressor along and a tire plug kit… which he is going to put to use.

You would do well to take a deep breath and relax. THIS IS HAITI and things like this happen all too frequently. Take a moment to view the rugged beauty of the mountains that surround you. This time of year is nearing the end of the dry season here in the mountains and due to the lack of rain the mountains look very dry and brown. However… you can find beauty in ruggedness! Come back during the summer and you will be amazed at the difference in the mountains!

Haiti means the “land of mountains”. After Christopher Columbus explored Haiti, he went home and crumpled up a piece of paper and told the people that that is what Haiti looks like! I think that is a very good way to describe Haiti! :)

Time to get moving again… we are hoping to reach our destination early afternoon. This is Saturday and we want to set up camp before dark and still have some time to relax before Sunday.

Our destination is Terre Rouge. Terre Rouge is high in the mountains and is a very beautiful area. Terre Rouge, literally translated from Creole means red dirt…. and some red dirt you are about to see! Perhaps a bit more than you would like!

Willy Hostetler is driving the Scout and is carefully trying to avoid sharp stones and any rough spot that would encourage the “tired tire” to spit out more air… Unfortunately he cannot miss every nasty stone and pothole and the tire is determined to lay down and take a rest, much to everyone’s chagrin. Once again, we all stop and try to be patient as the tire gets some more plugs and still more air. Can we all learn some kind of lesson from this tire while we wait? :) Try to be patient with this old worn out bit of rubber! He really has proved himself worthy of some appreciation, at one point and time. He has labored up and down this trail many times.. he has hauled many a load of heavy people… and supplies. I agree with you… it is hard to look at what he has accomplished in his lifetime and to really appreciate it… instead it is easy to focus on what he is NOT doing right now!! He keeps letting us down! :)

The day is still lovely and the sunshine warm and friendly. A beautiful day to do laundry! Many a Haitian woman will tote her family’s dirty laundry to a nearby water hole or stream to scrub… and today is no exception. They scrub and scrub and find pleasure in making the laundry “squeak” while they squeeze and rub it between their hands. Take a look at the laundry drying in the sun over there!

It’s been about three hours now.. and my guess is that you are about tired of the rough ride… the dust and heat.. not to mention your growling, hungry stomach! Lunch time came and went and the pancakes that we had for breakfast have long disappeared! Actually.. I think Galen was handing out lollipops a bit ago…Did you manage to get one? I was bold enough to ask for one! ;) It seems like he packed a lot of goodies! In Haiti.. things like that hold a very special appeal! :)

Tire trouble ….AGAIN!! OOOO.. o…kkkay… I really am tired of this now. I am tired of being patient.. I am tired of learning lessons… I am just ready to GET THERE! Are you too? On second thought, I think it will not do us any good to get “overheated”. This is Haiti and Haiti calls for patience and this is only the first day!! ha.. :)

Patience and Trust… I think God has really been working on me since our move to Haiti! Trust is a huge one for me… I am very prone to worry instead of trust. Several lessons ago I learned that God is in control..He REALLY is in control… He loves me… He loves you….AND … He WILL work things out. Things have always worked out in the past and they will continue to work out. Worry is hard on my mind… I WILL choose TRUST instead !!!!!

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Here we are ……FINALLY!! We made it! What a trip!