Living Haiti

One Year Later: Mwen Pap Bliye...



I wasn't here.



1.12.2010...I was in Chicago packing bags for a mission team to leave the next morning. I was in the Cafeteria of the church where I worked when a friend who had previously been to Haiti came and told me that he just got an update on his Blackberry that there had been an earthquake in Haiti. There were no real details. I wasn't worried. Earthquakes happen all the time...little ones. I wasn't worried. Not long after that I received a phone call from my Dad.



"Rachel, there's been an earthquake in Haiti," is what he said.



I wasn't worried. My parents always get a little sensitive to the events in Haiti before I leave. I told him not to worry that everything would be ok. A half hour later he calls back.



"Rachel, I think it was a big earthquake. There are stories on the news."



I had bags to pack. I was busy, but I wasn't worried. I told my dad that if there was a problem I was sure my friends in Haiti would call me and tell me that it was unsafe to come. I would wait to hear from them. I appreciated his concern, but I wasn't worried. I started the long drive from the Suburbs to the City to return home with my friend Danielle. My dad called again.



"Rachel, it's bad. I don't think you'll be going to Haiti tomorrow. Have you heard from your friends?"



We searched the news radio stations to hear anything we might be able to hear. There wasn't much. We returned home about 9pm that night...4 hours after the earthquake. We rushed to turn on the TV. The first image I saw was the palace, broken. Collapsed. It was bad.

The next week was a bit of a whirlwind. It was spent emailing and calling people we know in Haiti and people in the United States who know people we know in Haiti to find out if everyone was still alive, who was missing, what buildings were damaged, or lost. None of my close friends lost their lives in the earthquake, but many lost family members, and even more lost homes.

I wasn't there a year ago, but I am here today. I spent the morning yesterday driving around Port Au Prince. We had things to accomplish but it wasn't long until we saw that everything was closed. All business were closed and markets looked more like ghost towns. The only places that I saw in Port Au Princes that were bustling with people were churches. People spilling out of church buildings onto rooftops and stairways, gathering outdoors, and congregating in the streets. At one point we had to get out and walk through a crowd outside of a church. We could barely squeeze through, there was no way our car would make it.

Still there are so many people living in tents, and more people being moved into "temporary" housing that is not something I would ever consider acceptable for myself. I know it is easier to point fingers than it is to try and make a difference. The answers aren't easy, and most days I wonder how PAP, and Haiti, can ever dig out from this mess. Still there are so many people without jobs, and without hope of finding one soon. Life is different here. What's happening in Haiti is more than a sensational news story. What's happening in Haiti is more than a headline you see on CNN. It's the lives of millions of people who wake up every morning much the same way as my friends and family in the United states. It's the lives of millions of people whose hearts beat the same way as yours. It's the lives of millions of people who want to see better things for their friends and families. The international community responded after the earthquake...some of that response has been beautiful and restorative to the Haitian people...and some of it has fallen short. I know that I have been given an opportunity to serve here in Haiti, and I strive to be a part of that beautiful restoration. There's a long uncertain journey ahead of the Haitian people, and I hope that along that road they will continue to find joy and laughter among the struggles. I'm happy to be here helping. What I do doesn't even begin to make a dent in the amount of work to be done, but I'm happy to be given this chance. After all, who wouldn't want to help their neighbor?

Mwen pap bliye'w Ayiti...