Healing Haiti-LF: Healing Haiti: Day 1

The day that we had been looking forward to for months and months: the day we would leave for Haiti was finally here. Before we arrived, we didn't really know what to expect because this was our first mission trip outside of the U.S. We had read books and talked to many experienced missionaries trying to get an understanding of what to expect, but we were still very shocked when we saw Haiti in person. Even before arriving in Haiti, one of the first things that stood out to us was when we got harassed in Miami to have our bags checked because we were warned that security may rummage through our bags and try to steal our valuables. We didn't see the face of poverty until we went to the patio at the guesthouse and were able to overlook the entire city. We stood there staring at the rows of shacks with childrens' innocent eyes peering up at us. After unpacking, our team was eager to meet the street children and play some soccer. The kids ran around and embraced us when we arrived, and we could truly see how excited they were to play. Even though we were extremely bad soccer players, they still encouraged us to keep playing with them. While most of the team was playing soccer, we sat on the side and got the opportunity to talk to the other children. In particular, we got to know a girl named Locah. What caught our eyes was her bright yellow English 2 book. She barely knew any English, but we communicated with her through a little French and a lot of hand gestures. As we started to flip through her English book, we noticed how simple of English she was learning. We would point to different pictures in the book, say them, and then have her repeat them back to us. We shared many laughs with her over the different pronunciations and that's when we really connected. Locah was a quick learner, and her face lit up once she started to pronounce the words with more ease. She showed us how smart and quick these kids are to learn. It opened our eyes and showed us that the children are not illiterate because of their lack of intelligence, but rather their lack of education. After just the first day, we have already met amazing people that we will forever remember.

-Taylor and Gabby