Money doesn't grow on trees

Money doesn't grow on trees... How many of you have had to have this conversation with some young person/people to whom you were trying to teach a principle?? This week I needed to have this talk with our 17 young ladies. In the past few weeks, several more items in the girls' home had become damaged or broken. I know Haiti is a tough environment and the girls really could use more space to expend their vast energy, but cracking a solid wood door in half?? Really?? Plus the three doorknobs that had fallen off meant a trip to the hardware store for us and a couple days labor from Mr. Charles the carpenter to get it all back the way it should be. In previous entries, we have spoken about the girls' jewelry making enterprise and how they are getting paid a small sum piecemeal for each item they make. Well, Thursday was payday and each girl had the wages they were entitled to cut in half to partially offset the cost of the repairs. Some of our older girls had close to $40 US coming to them so they took a pretty big hit. One of the girls was quite upset saying over and over that she didn't break the items so why should she pay for them. (None of the girls ever offered a credible explanation or took responsibility for the damage) Suffice it to say I was fairly unpopular that day. On the plus side, 30 minutes after the ruckus, the girls were all seated throughout the house doing homework and reciting their memorization passages etc.

It's hard to take things away from those who don't have all that much to start with. There was a time early on when Julie and I wondered what tools we had to use for discipline when there really wasn't anything we could take away as a punishment. All their needs are being met, but the girls still have so few things they can call their own. Now they have a way to make a little money for themselves and are really motivated by it and that ends up being what we take away now to get their attention. I really hope several lessons sink in from this. One... everyone needs to do a better job of taking care of things. Two... Haiti Under God does not have an endless supply of resources to replace things whenever they need it. Three... they ALL pay the price for damage to the house and if you don't want your pay docked again you might want to tell your sisters who are locking each other in or out of the bathroom and pounding on the door and yanking on the doorknob to knock it off BEFORE something gets broken.

I know instilling values and responsibility isn't an easy task, and there are no guarantees. I also know the results are totally worth the effort and aggravation, but it sure isn't fun sometimes.

-G

Van Ride

For 17 girls here in Haiti, a ride in the gro machine gri (big gray van) is a pretty big treat!  It is not so much about "getting the best seat", it is about the actual van ride.  You see, the girls can basically walk everywhere they need to go so a ride in an air-conditioned vehicle WITH music is a big deal!  Well this past Sunday we took a ride in the gro machine gri to see how much all the rain had impacted the city (it wasn't just 2 days off from school).  Initially there was a lot of chatter in the van, but as we drove through a tent city nearby it became still as the girls took in the reality of mud and wetness everywhere they looked.  Mind you this was 2 full days after the rain had stopped.  From there we drove to Riviere Grise that had risen higher than I believe it ever has before.  Many of the girls were too afraid to get too close to the water which I could understand as it was still raging and moving fast.  We made one last stop in Canaan where we walked around and greeted people in their homes.  This time we did not bring anything but ourselves, a prayer and song, but we hope it brought encouragement to those we spent time with.  Many if not all of the girls fell asleep on the ride home - which as a side note, I wondered how in the world they were able to do as I drove over the bumpy roads of Haiti - and I was grateful to have the time to process all we had seen together.  Each day we have so much to be thankful, for not the least being a 15 passenger van (yup, you read this right - 17 girls + 3 adults fit "Haitian style" in the van!).  Our time together felt like "family" and was special.  It made me miss time with my awesome nephew and two nieces in NY, but I also know they are loved and cared for by my brother and sister in law whereas the girls that HUG has made a part of their family really needed an adult to love and care for them and for this I am thankful to be here.