Healing Haiti- MT: Day 1: Home for Sick and Dying and Gertrude's Orphanage

Today our trip to Haiti got into full swing. After a long and exhausting day of travel yesterday, we were all anxious and excited to start serving. Our day included two stops, but before we hit the road, we enjoyed a delicious breakfast! We loaded up in the tap-tap, and passed the time by attempting to learn some Kreyol songs, but ended up singing mostly in English. After a few more games, we hit the road to the Home for Sick and Dying Children. We had the oppurtunity to play with, feed, change diapers, and pray for the children. It being my first trip to Haiti, I was shocked to see the joy and spirit these children had. After spending some time with a few children, I picked up a crying baby, Loudia. She was the most loving and smart child. We walked around the playground as she corrected my pronunciation of the Kreyol words written on the walls. I fed her, before moving on to spend some time with a few more children. Overall, the children were so generally gracious and generous. They even were trying to braid our hair when we were there to serve them.

Between stops we had a break to eat some snacks and make a trip to the pool. We enjoyed each other's company and the refreshing water before loading up to head back to the house and getting ready to head to Gertrude's. Gertrude's is an orphange primarily for children with special needs. The kids were overjoyed to be placed in wheelchairs or supervised during some playtime outside. Swinging, running, playing soccer, jumping rope, or just merely being pushed around were a huge treat for the kids. It is incredible to be able to provide some simple joys for the kids. I personally had a blast watching the boy I was with giggling at the other children being goofy. Again, we were all amazed by these children. They were looking out for each other even when they needed to be looked out for. The older children loved to come pick up the babies or push others around in the wheelchair.

I felt so blessed by this day and was incredibly humbled by these children and there positive outlook on life.

See some of the pictures from our day below :)