My daughter & I recently returned from a trip to Haiti & once again I'm reminded of how generosity makes a difference. During our trip we had a chance to meet our sponsored children & spend some time walking through the village of Grand Goave. We were paired up with a young man named Samual & he kindly served as our interpreter & tour guide for several hours one afternoon.
I was introduced to Samual on my first trip to Haiti in February of 2004. Until recently work teams would attend church on Wednesday nights in Vieux Cayes & several Haitians from Grand Goave would accompany us on the hour long trek. On this particular evening Samual & I began talking & discovered that we enjoyed some of the same types of music. The conversation bounced all over the place… American culture, Haitian culture, faith & etc. Samuel also tried teaching me a little Creole, but I'm afraid he bit off more than he could chew with that one. I also discovered he had a good sense of humor, needless to say we have become friends & I look forward to seeing him each time I return to Haiti.
Fast-forward to February 2008. Samuel is taking us to the home of our sponsored child & along the way he is talking about life in Haiti. “Very difficult, very hard”. he says. One look around you & the fact is evident. Children are wearing dirty clothes & without shoes on their feet, children & adults wait in line at the well to fill an empty milk jug or 5 gallon bucket with water, families live in poverty with each day being a struggle to simply survive.
I said to Samuel, “I'm sorry life is hard for you, I know it's very difficult here. But things are improving & I'm thankful that Lifeline has been a blessing to Grand Goave”. That's when Samuel corrected me… “Lifeline is a blessing to all of Haiti, not just Grand Goave”. In my narrow field of view I was guilty of seeing only a fraction. Samual reminded me that what happens in Grand Goave echoes throughout all of Haiti. www.Lifeline.org
