I Can't Think of a Title for this Post!

Wilna. She's sweet, but sassy....like me. 

Well I have been on the island of Hispaniola for 9 weeks tomorrow. I just recently got back from a week long mission trip to the Dominican Republic. Okay, here's a geography lesson for you. In case you didn't know, Haiti and the Dominican Republic share the island in the Caribbean known as Hispaniola. This is where Christopher Columbus first landed back in the day. Haiti occupies the western third of the island and the DR  the eastern two-thirds. The DR is slightly special to me because it was the first place I ever visited outside the US and my first mission trip. I always get to work with the best people when I am over there. But before I talk about that, I will wrap up Haiti since I last wrote, if I can remember back that far...it's been like 3 weeks.

J.J.'s selfie. :)

Summer school wrapped up on July 25th and we all celebrated. :) Teachers and kids were worn out. But overall, I did enjoy teaching my class and hope they improved their English reading and writing skills. 

Testing substances for pH. 

Looking at various organisms and samples under the microscopes. Most of them had never used a microscope before. They were trying to look at everything from their own fingers to grains of rice from their plate. 

Classifying fingerprints. The picture on the bottom left is them scrubbing their fingers on the sidewalk to get all of the ink off. My American students would never have thought to do that. lol :)

The day after summer school, David, April, and Richard left for the DR. We left a day early and were supposed to go on a nice bus that would take us all the way to Santo Domingo (capital of the DR). Well, it turns out you really need to buy your tickets the day before because by the time we got there, they were sold out. :( Soooo, Edmond was nice enough to drive us over to Jimani, just over the border so we could catch what we call the "goat bus". Now, I road the goat bus last summer and it was surprisingly

nicer than I expected...air conditioned, but super crowded. So I was totally okay riding this bus. So we get there and I get on the bus toward the front because that's closest to the door. Immediately, before we even leave, the guy in front of me starts passing around a bottle of rum. And all I'm thinking is, please don't give any to the driver!!! Well he didn't, but this rum feat lasted throughout the whole trip. The man in front of me was passing it between himself and three other people, one of whom was the conductor, who stood at the door and collected the money and made sure everyone was back on the bus when we stopped, etc. The thing about the goat bus is that it gets stopped a lot by what I assume is like border patrol, to make sure everyone on board that is not Dominican has a passport. However, I find out later that there were some people in the back and probably the front who didn't have passports and the conductor was paying them off every time we stopped. Yeah and he was hitting that rum and I didn't see this, but my David, Richard, and April could see all of this going on from the back of the bus and confirmed that he was indeed lit. By the time we got to Santo Domingo, just about everybody that hadn't been drinking was ready to throw him off the bus! And despite what David Gunter will tell you, this Baptist wasn't offered any rum. Although, it probably would have made the trip easier. Yes. I just said that. It was the worst bus ride ever. But we got there all in one piece with all of our bags. 

So I am going to summarize the whole trip by day by day and here we go... 

Myself, David, Richard, and April with Rodney and Sharon Coleman.

Sunday, Day 1

We were privileged to get to see and have dinner with two IMB missionaries to the Dominican Republic named Rodney and Sharon Coleman. They have been in the DR for 15 years and were such a joy to be around. We thoroughly enjoyed sharing with them about the work we are involved with at Christian Light. Later when we met up with the rest of the team, we ate at McDonalds (I just had to put that in, I was super excited, a Big Mac never tasted so good :)) and began our journey up the mountain to Jarabacoa. This is where the Vida Joven (Young Life) camp is located. We spent the night there and did a medical clinic and VBS in the outskirts of Jarabacoa. Young Life is a youth camp ministry located in the DR and many of our translators are deeply involved in the camp. The camp truly breathtaking, but more important than that are the lives that are forever changed there because of Christ. The missions teams I have been a part of to the DR have helped sponsor teens to attend this camp. Please pray for this awesome ministry that God is using to touch the lives of Dominican teens. 

Young Life camp in Jarabacoa, Dominican Republic

Monday, Day 2

Our first medical clinic was Monday and it was my favorite type: rural. It was held in a church building, but it wouldn't look like a church to most people. I love medical clinics because you get to come into contact with so many people in a shirt amount of time and meet so many physical needs, before meeting the spiritual ones. This is exactly what Jesus did! Bibles were passed out, the Gospel was presented, and people were prayed for, after seeing the doctor and the pharmacist. 

When doing medical clinics, I am put in the pharmacy and I love it! 

A few shots of our first medical clinic in Jarabacoa. 

Random shot of our bus driver in the DR, Mello. As far as drivers go, he is second only to our very own Edmond Auguste at CLS.

Tuesday, Day 3

This was the only day this week that we did not do a medical clinic. We moved to San Cristobal which is about twenty to thirty minutes outside of Santo Domingo. The majority of our work for the rest of the week was centered here in this city working with Pastor Salvador and his lovely wife Juana. 

Pastor Salvador and his wife Juana

On this day, we held VBS in a building that is being used as a school for many local children. There were probably 50ish kids and it was rowdy on this day, but good! They learned about Jonah and the whale. Our evangelism visitation teams started on this morning as well. VBS is also something I enjoy sing because ou get to touch the lives of the children and let them know there is someone who deey cares about them. Seeds are planted during a VBS that God can nurture into a beautiful new creation. 

VBS in San Cristobal. It was Jonah and the Whale story day!

Random shot: In the Dominican Republic, the popular sport is baseball. In Haiti, it is soccer. In both countries, you see kids playing their sport in the streets, sometimes barefoot and without the proper equipment like a legit ball or bat.

Wednesday, Day Four

Back in San Cristobal we hosted a medical clinic in a very nice school complex. It was probably the best medical clinic because the facility was perfect to see as many patients as possible. It was a great setup! In this day we saw roughly 330 patients. And thy were all prayed for and told about Jesus. Amazing to think the seeds that were planted. There were also home evangelism visits and VBS going simultaneously as well, albeit in different locations though. 

Second medical clinic in San Cristobal at a very nice school building. Pictured on the bottom right is John Wayne adn Morgan holding up the registration cards of all the patients we saw...all 330ish of them!

Thursday, Day Five

I'm literally sitting here counting up the medical clinics and trying to figure out where we were on this day! Luckily I remembered....finally. Our third medical clinic was at Pastor Salvador's church. The patients were registered and assessed or "triaged" where there temperatures and blood pressures are taken in the sanctuary part and in the room behind the sanctuary, is where the doctors and the pharmacy was. It was our tightest squeeze so far. But it worked out well and saw many patients, though not as many as the day before. But it was a blessing to meet the needs of the people directly surrounding the church. We also went to a beach somewhere near San Cristobal for sunset....it was beautiful, but not as those in Haiti. Hey, I'm semi biased towards that side of the island. I was so tired, this is what I thought of the beach:

Third medical clinic held at Pastor Salvador's church, pictured from the outside on the top right. On the bottom left, you can see a woman being fitted for reading glasses. They use John 3:16 to test to see how well the glasses prescription fits the patient.

Our team picture at the beach near San Cristobal. This is an awesome group of people right here. 

Friday, Day Six

Again, I'm racking my brain trying to figure out where we were that day! I got it, today we were across the highway in a community center type of building. This was the first clinic where everything was all in one big room. As usual, things ran smoothly despite any attempts by the enemy to disrupt our little clinic! 

The people I was privileged to work with in the pharmacy pictured on the top left. On the top right, even the lizard showed up for the medical clinic. In Haiti and the DR, lizards and geckos are everywhere! Pictured on the bottom, a view that shows the simultaneous parts of the medical clinic going on all at once in the same room.

We even had a little bit of what I call tropical weather during it which cooked things down a lot, but like most good things it didn't last. But we were thanking Jesus while it did! :) That afternoon, I got to go on home visits with the pro, John Gunter and got to share my testimony with several families. Most of whom said they were already Christians. We still prayed for them and have them medicine for Chikungunya pains and have out baby clothes to several mothers and one mom-to-be. 

John blessing a soon-to-be mom with some sweet gifts for her baby. 

The ladies of Pastor Salvador's church dishing it out at the Fundraiser Dinner.

That evening, we attended a fundraiser dinner to help the youth of Pastor Salvador's church raise money for camp. It was soooo delicious and a great way to support the youth in their endeavor to attend camp and grow closer to Christ. 

Saturday, Day Seven

Today, we went to the "Mercado" downtown or the market where you can buy souvenirs and things like that. It is quite an experience going there because every vendor tries their hardest to get you to come into their booth and look at their merchandise....and you can get easily lost in there too. Yes, I sort of did for a few minutes. We also visited the home of Diego Columbus, son of Christopher Columbus. More importantly, this afternoon saw us hosting the fifth and final medical clinic in a community of Santo Domingo known as Pantoja. There was a nice couple from a local church that we have worked with in the past who lent us the use of their restaurant for the clinic. It rained during this clinic and I just had to soak up that goodness because we seem to rarely get rain whenever I'm in Haiti. With the patients we saw at this last clinic, it brought our total patient number for the week to over 900 and pretty much all of them were given a bible and prayed for. God used us to touch many may lives this past week in the Dominican Republic. Though it was exhausting, I feel glad that God was able to use me there in whatever way he saw fit and that he will continue to do that for as long as I am in Haiti. 

The Diego Colone House in Santo Domingo

Another group picture in front of the house. You can't really tell, but we are all squinting in the picture. :)

This is Wilness, on the left. Imagine that face singing.
You have to come hear him. :)

Seeing as how summer school has ended, I am very much enjoying having some free time to spend at the orphanage with the kids. They bring such joy to my heart. As I sit here typing this post, Wilness, who lives next door to the school is singing the most beautiful song sitting by a quinep tree. His has the most precious voice and calls me his sister. I have no idea what he is saying, but I don't need to. It is beautiful just the same.

Do I really need to say who this is???? Okay, it's Jean Wilson. 

It reminds me that even when I am not sure what God is going to do with me here exactly, I can enjoy his beautiful time and soak up as much of this beautiful island and its' people as I can. 

"Take delight in the Lord and He will give you your heart's desires." 

  Psalm 37:4

I love sweet Pame. <3

Magdala shows off the sombrero and her new hairdo. 

It's Just You and Me

I seriously want to put a brick on Magdala's
head so she doesn't get any taller. :(

I recently shared on Facebook about how God has been making he aware of idols in my life. Like a smack in the face, He forced me to confront the incredible amount of time, emotion, and spiritual space I had allowed it to take. Coming to Haiti, I never thought God would bring me to my knees and reveal these kinds of things to me here. Maybe I thought doing mission work would mean I would be in some sort of spiritual bubble? But there is no place the enemy will fight harder than when God's will is being manifested in your life. I know I am supposed to be here. Nothing has ever been more apparent or clear. However, I was letting myself get caught up in emotions and worries that were distracting me from my purpose here and just generally making me constantly question myself. I recently asked God for a biiiiiiigggg dose of "get over it" and through prayer, I believe I got it! The dilemma is, how long will it last? I need continual reminders that we must take life literally day by day and sometimes only hour by hour, especially in unpredictable Haiti. I am so thankful, encouraged, but not at all surprised by the fact that God turned what I thought was going to be something incredibly hard to shake into exactly what I asked Him for. I am amazed, as always, that God can use someone as frail and broken as myself to accomplish His work.

I recently fell in love with the song, "Only You" by the David Crowder Band. It was the song we sang at church on Sunday and the words convicted me of my recent disconnect with God. God had not gone anyway. I had placed a barricade between us, reaching for something that wasn't right for me. The words to the song say, "And I will worship You Lord, only You Lord. And I will bow down to you Lord, Only You Lord." Our heart's desire should be for God to come first always. Before work, family, jobs, relationships, fears, hobbies, even ministry work. The bridge of the song, I guess, says "It's just You and me here now." I love the imagery of these words. An empty room, just myself and God, in total intimate worship. No matter whose around or if you are alone, worship is the relationship between you and whatever or whomever you are placing first in your life. But also, it reminds me that in the end, this life is all about two people. In the end, when you take everything, everyone else away, IT IS JUST YOU AND GOD. That's it! No matter how many people I love, friends I have, all of it can be taken in a second. Don't we want this eternal relationship that can't be taken away to be all that it can be? Why do we resist giving God all of our affection, time, and devotion? I think of this quote often, "Want to know where your heart lies? Look to where your mind goes when it wanders." I think, when I space out during the day, who or what am I thinking of??? This can be a very convicting exercise and one that brought me to tears recently. Why do we spend so much time thinking, worrying, and stressing about people, things, relationships, problems, etc. that do not really matter?! I don't think I will ever know that answer. I do know, like I said earlier, that the enemy uses these devices to distract us from God's will for our lives. We find ourselves totally disconnected, emotionally and physically, from the work God has laid out for us to do. 

I say all that to say this. We often are faced with our most challenging and most difficult circumstances when we are on the edge of something incredibly important. I can only chalk this most recent development in my spiritual walk as preparation for great things God is currently preparing me for in the near future. God is faithful and He will fulfill His purpose for me. :)

I stole Jovenel and Carmel to help me make banana puddin' last Saturday night. It was sooooo good. I love these moments the most. :)

The Gummy Worm experiment that didn't go according to plan because of the lack of a climate controlled room. The heat caused the gummy worms to dissolve instead of expanding like they were supposed to. I hope all my experiments don't go wrong like this one did. On the bright side, I taught them how to use a triple beam balance. :)

Okay, now to what's going on in Haiti. Summer school is more than half way over and I have been so blessed by the things that have been happening in my class. My friend Denise arrived last week, after a rough first day, we have settled into a groove and I love love love love her! She has been such a blessing in helping this high school biology teacher teach English in a four hour block! We said goodbye last week to our teacher professional development class in the afternoon. I loved hearing the  teachers read and have such an excitement for improving their teaching skills and their English. The reminded me that I really need to start getting better at my Creole. :) I'm completely surrounded by people that know three or four times the languages I do! Talk about a reality check for the old ego??? ;) 

Our Haitian teacher class playing a scrabble-like game. 

Our latest experiment, after the gummy worm flop, exhibiting diffusion and osmosis by soaking an egg in various substances. Maybe the heat won't mess this one up! 

I have also been enjoying spending time with the children at their new home down the street. They are settling in like a family now and learning how to adjust to living in this new situation. With so many wonderful people here for summer school, this is happening very smoothly and efficiently. We are blessed that God brought the right people here to help our kids become comfortable with this new life adjustment. 

Last Friday, we made Acid-Base rockets by filling film canisters with vinegar and Alka-Seltzer tablets. They. loved. them. I am just totally in love wtih how much fun they had. It was a great way to end a week of summer school.

Movie night at the children's home involved making stove-top popcorn. The movie of the night was one of my favorites....Finding Nemo. ;)

I mentioned before about God answering prayer concerns of mine. I can already see myself as the recipient of something that has gnawed at me since I arrived. My independence. God has afforded me a recent dose of confidence to go out and learn how to do things like going to the store and different places on my own, on public transportation. I haven't done it yet, totally by myself, but I feel His hand moving in this area, giving me opportunies and again, confidence, to have more autonomy in Haiti. 

I am going to stop with this post for now. Let me leave you with this quote from a devotion my friend, Tammy, reads to me frequently, because she apparently thinks I need to hear it! ;) 

"If the greatest character of all time, even He who was the very touchstone of destiny, could be made perfect only through suffering, is it not probable that you and I must also?....Take the hardest thing in your life—the place of difficulty, outward or inward, and expect God to triumph gloriously in that very spot. Just there He can bring your soul into blossom."

<3

Ashleigh

"I sought The Lord and He answered me, He delivered me from all my fears." 

Psalm 34:4

One Month Gone....

Youvelande, Jeffly, and Kervenson enjoying their fan spray toy thingy. It's hot in Haiti!

Gazpacho is doing well and loves his Haitian mango. 

I have officially been in Haiti for a month yesterday! I can't say every day has been good, but I have been blessed along the way and know every trial I face brings me closer to Christ and to being the person he designed for me to be. As usual, I do not have a day by day account of the days since my last post, but I will try and share as many highlights as I can remember.

Last Tuesday, I believe, I had the opportunity to visit what we call "Sisters of Charity". This is a hospital associated with Mother Teresa's ministry. The hospital is located about 15 minutes from CLS, walking distance. The hospital is designed to help malnourished children become healthy again in a setting where mothers and fathers may still visit the child. Visitors are allowed to help each day with feeding the babies there. There are basically three rooms, each with around twenty five cribs in them. Most of the babies look the way you would assume a malnourished baby would look. Most were did not look the age they were due to sickness or malnutrition. The staff of the hospital prepares a porridge type mixture, which actually smelled really sweet and pretty good if you ask me, to feed to the babies. We are allowed to go into the rooms and to pick up, hold, and love on the babies as much as we wanted. Upon entering the room with the babies that "were showing signs of improvement", I was immediately drawn to a beaming, almost two year-old boy named Redando. Oh my goodness, was he precious. I held him the entire time I was there, probably over an hour. I just could not bear to put him down because when you did, he would cry. :(  Feeding him was such a blessing to me and something I enjoyed doing. It reminded me of how lucky I was to have a mother and father who were able to take care of me. So many children in Haiti and in the world do not. I prayed for him and continue to think about him daily. My heart wants to see him again when I go back to "Sisters", as we call it. However, I dearly would love if he was well and able to go back home to his family. If you ever visit CLS or Port-au-Prince, you should make time to stop by this ministry. I had never experienced anything like it before.

On Tuesday, after I was sick, I got to go to the Apparent Project. They have the best tropical smoothies and it is one of my "happy places" in Haiti. The artisans have a special place in my heart because they helped me get to Haiti.

This week has been busy busy busy with summer school! My first day did not start off so well, as I woke up sick and was in bed all day. :( Gladly though, I was able to rest well Monday night and teach Tuesday and the rest of the week. I am teaching English to a class of 12 sixth and seventh grade students. The overall goal of summer school at CLS this year is to improve the English of the students in the upper grades (6-11). We are learning lots of vocabulary, practicing grammar, and reading James and the Giant Peach. I'm trying to incorporate science in as much as I can, however, it's more challenging that I thought to do this. I taught my students what a "Bucket List" was and we completed those. They made the greatest lists! Most wanted to glorify God, take care of their families, change Haiti, and one students even wanted to meet his grandson! I also made my first bucket list, which was actually harder and more depressing than I thought it would be. :)

Four of my girls and their James and the Giant Peach advertisement.

A typical school lunch at CLS. 

I really do teach a good group of students though. They are extremely smart and speak English well. It is only the first week and I am already running out of steam since I'm not teaching in the usual environment that I am used to. However, my help from the Lord arrived today! Denise, a kindergarten teacher, with much more experience teaching ready arrived in Haiti today and I am anxious to work with her in planning rich, engaging lessons for the class.

I was so happy to be better on Tuesday! It was too hard being sick in bed all day. I missed the kids!

It was also a little bummed out day today because I lost my two awesome teaching assistants, Megan and Kathleen. They were so much help to me and even had to fill in and teach on the first day because I was laid up in bed. I will miss them so much, but am thrilled that Kelsey, who I met last summer, is here to help me for the remainder of summer school! She is a sweetheart, just like her mother Tammy.

My teaching assistants, Kathleen and Megan!

Mislene helps me everyday after class to clean by chalkboard. Have I mentioned how much I hate chalk and chalkboards?

I would like to thank you for your prayers, not only for me physically, but spiritually as well. The devil is alive and well here, as always, and he loves to try and get me down, depressed, and distracted by things that should not be occupying my time, mind, or heart. However, God reminds me daily of why I am here in Haiti. It always comes back to the kids. We cannot and will not save all of the children in Haiti. That is not our job. However, we can only help those that God puts in front of our eyes. A quote I love to be reminded of says, "Do for one, what you wish you could do for all of them". That is exactly the way I feel about the children here at Christian Light School, both in the children's home and the school. We can make a difference for each of them. Maybe not the same difference in each of their lives, but we can have an impact on them for the good. My friend Megan painted this picture for us in devotion one night. Doing mission work is like putting together a puzzle. It has to be done piece by piece and not one piece is more or less important than any other piece. That is why we are doing. Putting in pieces of the puzzle that is the lives of the children we touch. I am most thankful every day that I am able to play a, albeit, minor role in their lives. I thank God for it every day. I know I have probably left out lots of things I wanted to say, but I've said it once and I'll say it again. You cannot remember and write about every precious, beautiful moment you have. There just aren't even hours in the day for it! :) Love you all. Please continue to pray as summer school progresses!

Ashleigh


PS: Katy Harris left today too. We are all reeeaaaaallllly going to miss her! We love you Katy!

The one and only Katy Harris. This was our last visit to our oasis (the coffee shop) and our last time running for our lives across airport road. 

Happy July 4th!

Kervenson, Yyvenson, Gyvenson, Vidlon, and Patrick after their last day of VBS with the Kansas team. They had so much fun. We are thankful for the many groups that come in and invest time with our children!

I am Blessed

It's been almost two weeks since my last post, so I have a lot to write to you tonight. I've just not had the mental energy or good wifi to post, it can take a long time to get it juuuuust right. :)

We have been very busy at CLS the past few weeks! Groups coming and going, but doing many great things. Last Thursday, a group from Beulah Baptist Church in Florida came and did VBS at a local church we call " Pastor Charles' Church". I went with them one day and they did an amazing job.

VBS at Pastor Charles' Church

Pastor Charles church is basically a tent, but the worship there is genuine and the people love the Lord in an amazing way. Outside of the tent (and other places in Haiti too) I see this particular vine whose leaves are shaped like hearts. They reminded me of God's love for me and for the people of Haiti. As a science teacher, I'm always looking for God in weird places.....and I always find Him. 

Last week was also eventful because I got to help with a minor medical thingy....taking out stitches from a boy's ear. It wasn't that big of a deal, but it was something I had never done and I LOVE experiencing new things. Notice the progression of the pictures. I started off with gloves, then decided I needed more light so I busted out the headlamp. Then I decided I couldn't feel where the stitches were......so I ditched one of my gloves. Tammy held the stitches out while I cut them. I am pleased to say that there was no blood and no tears. So I guess I can officially take stitches out. 

On a couple of other days I also had the privilege of going with the baby feeders. In case you don't know, workers from CLS go every weekday to feed the babies and smaller children that live in the ravine who will eventually come to school at CLS when they are older. This feeding program ensures that they will have developed properly so than can do their very best when they begin school. They typically get fed a half of a hard boiled egg, peanut butter sandwich, and a piece of fruit. The babies are also given vitamins, ensuring that they are getting everything they need to grow and be healthy children. I have been a couple of times since I have gotten back to Haiti, but last Tuesday, I got to really help with the baby feeders. We weighed that day to track their growth. Most of the babies were fine being held or were old enough to stand on the scale on their own. There were some exceptions though. They only wanted their mamas! My friend Katy recorded the weights in the chart, which is actually a much harder job than holding them while they are weighed. Kudos to her for being able to find all the kids' names on that list. Katelyn just arrived last Thursday, and has take over the baby feeding program. We know she will do great things with it!

I'm totally just skipping around with my days here because I can't remember exactly what I've done on which days, so just bare with me because, again, it's late while I'm writing this post! Sunday I had the opportunity to go to a Haitian graduation with my friend and summer school director, Beverly. It. Was. An. Experience. First if all, Haitians have a different sense of time than Americans do. People who know me, know I can tend to run late from time to time. However, I generally follow by times I am supposed to be places. Not in Haiti. The graduation was supposed to start at 9:00, instead it began at 11:15 and ended at 4:15ish. All I can say is that I am thankful it was indoors and air conditioned! Needless to day, we were proud of our graduate, but soooo ready to stretch our legs and breathe some fresh air. 

My face after about hour 4 of the graduation. :)

Saturday was an eventful day in that I bought a beautiful painting from a street vendor in the mountains above Petionville. The story is I was looking at the paintings and the guys are very persuasive in wanting you to buy their work. Of course, they always set the price very high, like $70.00 high. So you, of course, say no to that price because it is waaaaay to much. So then you haggle and work your way to what they say is a fair price. I begin low, of course, at like $20.00. They say that is too low so I say, I won't go above $30.00. They are still trying to get me to pay upwards to $70.00 for it and want me to name a fair price. I cannot get them to accept that I am not going above $30.00! What can I say, I can be cheap at times. So, getting very annoyed, I walk away back to where the group is standing. So what do they do? They follow me over there and are still wanting me to buy the painting for too much! Thankfully we decide we are leaving so I am able to go get in the truck. And what do they do? They follow me to the truck and are still trying to sell it to me, only they have drastically changed their minds and come down to $45.00, but I still stay no more than $35.00 (yeah I increased my limit by five). So they say okay $35.00 . Sitting in the front of the truck, sandwiched between two people, I hand them the money. They count it and say, no, that they said I would pay $45.00. So I, of course, say nevermind, forget it, and Beverly reaches to get my money back and I start to give back the painting, they quickly changed their minds and gladly took my $35.00. :)  It was an interesting experience to say the least.

My painting, hanging in my room

The beautiful paintings that line many streets in and around Port-au-Prince.

Okay, back to CLS stuff. I've mentioned before that what drew me to Haiti and to CLS were the children. They are the reason I am here. My heart is filled with the most overwhelming joy at times by being around them, playing with them, and taking care of them. Today, Sherrie signed the papers and got the keys for their new house that they so greatly deserve.They will be moving in hopefully within the next week or so. It is a very short walk from where I stay, so I am glad they won't be very far away. Just yesterday, I was having just a bad day and decided to go out into the yard to see the kids. Little Kervenson comes up to me with a toy about as big as he is and says in his sweetest voice, "Ms. Ashleigh, will you play with me?" It just immediately melted my heart and reminded me of why I am here. I adore these kids and love spending time with them. When things aren't going right, they bring me joy and remind me of God's unconditional love and the purpose for me being here. 

The new orphanage house, just down the street from CLS.

Kervenson

Magdala and Youvelande's photoshoot.

As I have stated before, living in Haiti can be hard. I miss home many times. I miss the autonomy of being independent and being able to do things exactly how and when I want to. But I believe God is trying reaaaaaally hard to teach me patience and understanding in difficult situations. However, I am always reminded, everywhere I go in Haiti about how blessed I am, which is where the title of this post comes from. It is very easy for us to get caught up in things that are going wrong in the world and in the teeny tiny bubble that makes up our "world". I have been blessed beyond my capacity to even comprehend. I have always had a bed to sleep in, even in Haiti (we will forget my first night on Haiti spent on a pool float :) ), I have and probably will only ever miss a meal by my own choice. I will most likely never know how it feels

to try and fall asleep at night with the rain pouring into my home. I will never experience the pain of not being able to care for my children and provide for their most basic needs. So, now, I am exponentially reminded of how blessed I am. I think, even living in Haiti, surrounded by poverty, I can get caught up in my own bubble and forget why I am here and how my "problems"are not really problems. God gives me these reality sandwiches frequently and I am thankful for them. 

While on this subject of thankfulness, I am so glad God has placed people in my life here in Haiti as friends. Both full time staff and those Americans visiting, have been so supportive and kind to myself and the other full timers, as we are called. I am so thankful for them! Seeee, that is just one more reason I am thankful. Well, the next time I blog, I should have some good stuff to share with you all about summer school, which starts this coming Monday. Getting into a routine will be very good for me, even though I won't like setting that dreaded alarm clock. You can't trust the roosters around here, they are too unreliable. : ) Please continue to lift me up in prayer, as well as the CLS staff, and children. 

Bon nuit!

❤️

Ashleigh

J.J. being sweet to Jean Wilson. They love him very much and like helping to take care of him.

Sam, my substitute dog since I can't have my own dog, Ginny, here.