This morning as I woke up and walked out to the living room, the first thing on my mind was, "What goals am I going to accomplish today in order to get this mess of a home back in order." (We're in the process of moving EVERYTHING in order to accomplish some final projects. We don't have a lot but when things are all piled in the middle of every room it creates a huge mess!) Then Joy walks out within a minute or two and sits down next to me and says "Happy Anniversary". Can you believe we've been married for 11 years. We definitely count it a blessing and are very thankful for each other. God has blessed us in too many ways to mention. We are excited about what the next 11 will bring.
Well, today turned into a day unlike any other anniversary. It began with doing some work in the garage. Due to some complications with a power adapter, generator, and inverter we spent 2 hours trying to fix a problem with our problem solving skills that should have taken 15 minutes. Unfortunately due to lack of available equipment we we had to hold off on fixing it. As we were nearing the end of this job our neighbor Jul Nor came to the door asking for rubbing alcohol, we didn't have any so he left. Moments later Joy came running down to us frantically. She explained that our friend and neighbor, Pa Jul had just cut his arm with a machete while working and blood was gushing out. So Shane and I dropped what we were doing to see what was happening. We quickly realized that Pa Jul was in need of some medical attention.
As we approached the hospital Shane drove by it because it looked completely different. From what we've heard some of the walls have recently fallen down. About half of the building seems to be missing. So as we walked in climbing over rubble, the nurses were sitting out side just hanging out. We approached them and they looked on without any appearance of concern or need to move towards action. You wonder if they had a hospital to work in that wasn't missing its walls, that had running water, working sewage, and solar power, if their attitude towards their work would be different. They were very nice people but their environment definitely hasn't been a motivational factor. So we waited as we all hung outside chit chatting. They eventually decided to numb Pa Jul up, stitch him up, and hydrate him with some fluids. By the time we left, we spent 200 goudes which amounts to about $5. That's nothing for you and I but it's a little less than a days wages for those here in Ft. Liberté.
So that was my 11th Anniversary. Real exciting huh? It's definitely not what I've been accustomed to. But as I've been thinking about my 1st Anniversary here in Haiti, it hasn't felt the same. Usually in the States I would find my way to a nearby store to purchase flowers and a card for Joy. I might also find something else to give her has a gift. I don't have the same options available here. We don't have a vehicle yet so I couldn't drive to a store and buy a gift. I'm pretty sure there isn't a flower shop nearby either with the latest Hallmark cards. Right now, the best thing I could give Joy was my work and the hope of a cleaned up home.
As the day unraveled, these events displayed our organizations work. Our work is cultivating proven and innovative solutions to poverty. We believe that the word "proven" is interchangeable with "biblical". As we incorporate infrastructure and new technologies into our community we have to work out the kinks and we've learned a lot. We are adding opportunity and improving our community that many will benefit from. But then as Pa Jul had his accident we chose to step in because Pa Jul isn't just a guy that lives "over there", he is our friend, our neighbor, and part of our community. Caring for and about our community is our work. That is what Christ has called us to do.
Now one thing that our anniversary typically does is that it reminds me that Christmas is right around the corner. But at times I've had to remind myself that this is the Christmas season. We have attempted to maintain some of our traditions, but it doesn't feel like Christmas is here. First, it's still in the 90's and there is no snow, or even talk of it. We didn't go to the nearby tree farm and cut down our tree and sit by the fire drinking hot chocolate. We haven't walked into any stores and looked at the Christmas decorations, and we haven't been bombarded by the commercialization of the holiday. We haven't sang any Christmas songs at church or heard of any upcoming Children's programs or cantatas. And Santa Clause is nowhere to be found. With all this on my mind I must ask myself two questions. What brings the feel of Christmas and what am I celebrating? Is Christmas a mood that we set with our surroundings? Or is Christmas a time to reflect and remember? Am I really celebrating the birth of our Savior Jesus Christ? Or am I enjoying the traditions handed down through my family and our culture? My question is not intending to over spiritualize this but to remind me why it is I celebrate. Does the absence of our old environment and traditions take away the value of the season? In years past it has been easy to get caught up in the traditions of the celebration and become distracted from celebrating the reason for the celebration. This even includes the traditions we've established at church. But when all the distractions are stripped away, all that is left to celebrate is the birth of Christ or to let the day pass. It is my hope that this year there will be a celebration!
