Easter is a season of sacrifice. We sacrifice during Lent, letting go of those things that we think have value. For many this may be a favorite food or a vice we think we can't be without. For others, it may mean a new or renewed dedication to something, a time for developing new positive habits. As we move into Easter Sunday I want to thank all of the AAMMR Team in Haiti as well as their families. All that are here have sacrificed. Each individual has sacrificed time with their families, all have sacrificed their treasure to be here, and have taken their many talents to use them for good here. Beyond sacrifice, they have dedicated or rededicated themselves to the people of Haiti. They have given of themselves to better the lives of others. Likewise, all of their families have sacrificed to have them here. So I thank all of you. The people of Haiti thank all of you.
Today was a good day. It was a mix of work of the hands and work of the heart. We started the day with clinic. We, in one day saw 93 patients, many were the children of the orphanage. The kids here are amazing. They are all well nourished, very happy, and are well taken care of physically. There are a lot of smiles and laughter, but they are still kids without the support and love of a traditional family. We saw this in the afternoon when we visited both the girls' and boys' villages. We were treated to many hugs and wonderment at our foreign skin, hair, and surprisingly our tattoos (for those of us that have one...or more than one). We were greeted with shout of "Blan!", which can mean white, but more literally means foreigner. These shouts were shortly followed by swarms of little arms clamoring to be the first one picked up and held. These kids adore contact with loving adults, and there was no lack of attention given to these sweet kids, but it is work. It pulls so hard at the heart strings and it's not easy to put them down to just walk away.
We ended the day at the Easter Vigil, said and sang entirely in Creole. Creole is an amazing language that mixes French and many African dialects. It became something so intertwined that native French speakers can't understand it and vice versa. Tomorrow will be a 2 hour hike to start the day followed by a water balloon fight with the kids. That will end our time a Pwoje Espwa. It was time well spent. Monday will be a long trip back to Port at Prince to end our journey. We will come home only to continue our support of Haiti.
If you are willing to sacrifice during this Easter season for our cause., please consider visiting our website at www.aammr.org. Click on the donate link, because many hands lighten the load.
Warmest regards,
The AAMMR Team
Rick, Marcie, Ryan, Kristin, and Lori
