T-giving week update

 Well I was completely lax in getting last weekends update posted to the blog - my apologies, it is a fun one!

                                                                                                       November 24, 2013

Happy Thanksgiving week everyone!

          It’s surprising how full the days are and how fast time goes even when there are no guests in the guesthouse. Though I have to say it sure is nice to be cooking for ourselves for a bit. Quesadillas. cream of potato soup, risotto, and homemade mac and cheese are all favorites we have enjoyed the last few days. The soup was such a nice fall treat, but it still made me sweat to eat something that steamy hot. Nights have definitely cooled off and for that we are thankful.

          As always, one of the best things about having less responsibility at the guesthouse is the ability to do more with the girls. Saturday morning we were invited by Tim and Michael – pilots for Mission Aviation Fellowship (www.maf.org) - to give the girls a tour of a real airplane and an explanation of what MAF does in Haiti. They did a great job, and the girls loved it, though Widline wanted to know where “the BIG planes” were. Maybe next time Widline. At one point the girls were asked if any of them wanted to be a pilot someday and Yorline – one of our most confident girls - shot her hand up. Who knows?? Maybe someday. 

          You can see Nahomie at the controls looking great with all the gear. Nahomie is 15 years old and last summer passed the 6^th grade national exam to enter secondary school this fall. In fact, Nahomie got the highest score on that exam of any girl in her class! About a year ago we had some “growing pains” with Nahomie, but we are pleased to say she has really shown effort and maturity as she has taken more responsibility in her schoolwork, and also shown more interest in using her musical talents at church where she seems to be integrating herself more there. She knows she is a pretty girl and sees the attention it gets for her. We continue to try our best to give her a solid sense of self as a person and as a child of God so she does not feel the need to seek validation in the attentions of others. It is a tough battle against much of what the media even here in Haiti is telling her, but she is a smart girl and we work for the best as we do everything we can to enable her to make good choices.

          You may also notice there are not 17 girls on the group photo. While Nahomie has upped her game at school, our four 5^th graders have run into trouble this week with their teacher and were not allowed the privilege of joining us for the fun outing. The house TV also disappeared for a few days and will only return with a renewed commitment by all to follow the house rules for watching. Ahhhh, the joys of trying to do the right thing training up young people!

          Blessings from Haiti, Gerritt and Julie

Weekly Update

Dear All,

This past week, we had two teams here at the guesthouse.  One was a returning group of 11 that set up medical stations at 3 churches and 1 prison throughout the week.  Their best guess is they saw over 1,000 people!!  At each stop they diagnosed symptoms, distributed medicine and gave our “care bags” with basics like soap/shampoo/toothbrush + paste.  The other team had a story I will not soon forget.  Hours after meeting this team of 2 for the first time, I got to hear how the first part of their time in Haiti was to meet the birth mom of her adoptive daughter for the very first time (along with her dear friend that was photographing this visit).  The love and prayers she poured into the family meeting was evident in the gifts of photos and other special items.  She also shared with me a very moving story of how the big earthquake in 2010 allowed her daughter to come home to the USA just weeks later.  The pieces that God orchestrated and the amazingly selfless people that put these little ones needs above their own, quite literally brought tears to my eyes.  No one knows why God allowed this tragedy to occur, however it was such a sweet story to witness.

Below is an updated picture of Dawine.  It was taken on her birthday so she was dressed up with a big smile on her face for an outing to Epi’dor with Sainte Therese J  Dawine’s full name is Rose Dawine, however she only uses her middle name.  She has a living birth mom that visits a few times of year (they look a lot alike!) and most recently brought a gift of copy books for school.  It was really touching to see Dawine share a copy book with some of the others girls – knowing full well that this was a special gift she had received. In July 2014, Dawine and one other will sit for the government exam so the girls tutor is spending extra time with the two of them each week.  Dawine is bigger than most of her sisters and sometimes even gets teased by them about this.  Next year, I am hoping to spend extra time with her – and ALL the girls - to start teaching healthy habits for eating and exercise.

Another thing we are excited about is signing up for Creole classes!  When we moved here, we did not take the time for dedicated language study, but instead were self-taught with lots of guidance from our Haitian staff members (as well as the 17 girls!), but we feel it is time to “bump up the level” of our ability to speak Creole.  In early December, we will have a week long intensive class that will be specifically designed for us and our learning level.  Stay tuned!

MR. BROWNS CORNER ~ This week has been a busy one for me!  On Monday, my doctor friend Kelly and her Haitian assistant Michael paid me a visit to check why I have been scratching the side of my face so much.  I got a shot and some medicine - also taught Julie/Gerritt and even Jean how I CAN be around Haitians without barking etc.  Also one of the visitors brought me treats J  She was missing her doggy at home, so Julie/Gerritt allowed her to spend some time with me … sure hope she comes back soon!!  Thank you to all the kids who pray for me so I can do a good job to keep everyone at the guesthouse safe.

Weekly Update Nov 10

                                                                                                     November 10, 2013

Hello everyone,

So many times Julie and I have asked ourselves “Where do all the school supplies go??” Pens, pencils, erasers, text books, notebooks, etc, they just seem to disappear. This week we learned one possible reason for at least the missing notebook paper. Apparently the girls know how to make and shoot spitballs as was evidenced on Saturday while Marcus the choir instructor was doing his weekly lesson. Fortunately for us it was his hour so it was his job to manage the distraction. Still funny though. At the guesthouse, the road/sidewalk construction continues. The backhoe preparation has reached the edge of our driveway/gate, but the concrete pouring needs to catch up some. We have a contingency plan to park a vehicle on the nearby church grounds in case we cannot get in and out of our gate for a while, but we are really looking forward to a paved street and less dust.

This week we welcomed a team of 11 people from the Pittsburg area. This is the groups second time here at the house so it is nice to see familiar faces return.

We think it is time to do another round of introductions of the girls at the home.

Above is an updated picture of Dorice. She has had a rocky start to the school year. Sometimes we forget that many of the girls come to the orphanage from some pretty rough backgrounds. I don’t know all of Dorice’s story, but lately she has been channeling her inner pre-teen and acting out in a variety of ways including not working diligently on her homework, and getting into trouble with her teacher at school. She has also perfected the disdainful teen-ager eye roll. Dorice is one of our girls with a mother who is still active in her life and visits every couple of months. Sometimes we recruit the mom to remind Dorice what a great opportunity she has here to live in the home, go to good schools, and build her hopes for the future. However, she needs to take advantage of the opportunities. No one else can do it for her. Dorice has a quick thinking brain and can be both very funny and very clever. Our hope is she will soon move into a more mature phase of her life where she takes responsibility for her actions and sees the connection between work put in today, and rewards reaped in the future. Please pray for Dorice to make good choices and for us to be a good influence in her life. 

Blessings from Haiti 

G&J