Early morning today. The lady that came in to have a baby yesterday wasn't making progress so they took her to the hospital last night for a c-section. When they got there the doctor was insulted because they hadn't brought her in earlier and he told them she couldn't stay. After negotiating with him he agreed to take her in exchange for sending two ladies in labor back to the clinic. This is healthcare in Haiti. So, about 4am 3 cars pulled up outside the house with two pregnant women to have their babies at the place we are staying. One of the rooms we're using is the 'backup' room and with two coming in they needed it. We quickly moved all the stuff out of there and re-arranged to make room. By this time most all of us were up and awake so we helped et some things together for the nurses..coffee (they had been up all night already), water for the ladies... It felt like being an on call doctor...with no idea what to do when woke up from sleep in the middle of the night :) I managed to squeeze in about a half hour extra sleep before we starte the day off. Baby 1 (Belle) was born around 7:30am and weighed about 5 lbs (pretty normal for there) and baby 2 never came and mom was shuttled off to the hospital about 6pm tonight for a c-section.
Today Bill and I rode along with the medical crew that goes out to the poor areas and does some after-care treatment of patients injured in the earthquake. Many are still suffering from broken bones and severe wounds from being hit or trapped under fallen buildings. We went into a part of town called Pele where the team goes about 3 times a week. For a while they went everyday, but with fewer patients coming now they have scaled back. We brought along one of the armed guards that stands at the gates where we're staying for added protection. He is a really nice young guy and is from the area, so he knows a lot of the people down there which helps if things get tense because he already knows most everyone. One thing we noticed was that he was wearing a glove when we went down there today. We weren't sure why and we asked him as we left and he said that was his signal to the people there saying that he was carrying a shotgun. When we got there the medical crew starting taking care of the patients that came and lined up behind the truck to 'see the doctor' Our job was to entertain the kids. This was an experience like no other and a moment in life that I won't forget. The kids came running over to us and thought we were cool because we were white (everybody there is black) and american. They would hang on our arms and legs and hug us. We kicked a soccer ball around with them and played the hand-slapping game for the couple hours we were there.
Most all of them spoke pretty much no english, but loved playing and having their picture taken. Some of them would beg for money, but most all of them just wanted to play. They would run their hand up and down my arms because of the hair on my arms (i guess that's not common there :) ). It was a great time to just love on these kids (probably a lot of the orphans) and just see them smile. At the same time it was heartbreaking. The area we were in was an extremely poor area where everyone lived in a little 'house' made out of piece of corrugated metal. A lot of the kids ran around in just a t-shirt or no clothes at all because they don't have any. There was a ditch that ran alongside the road where they would just throw their trash and it also acted as their bathroom.
It's almost too much for words to try to describe the scene. Despite all this these kids were some of the happiest kids I've seen. They could have fun and loved to play. Wrestling through some of the thoughts today when facing the true reality and putting faces and people behind it made this one of the toughest days so far, yet one of the most rewarding. To be able to go spend time with these kids makes it a lot more personal and I believe started a life-changing mindset specifically toward orphans. I pray that God can help to show me how we fit into this picture as believers both here and once we get home. It is easy to get caught in the america bubble and ignore or just not care about what is happening in some of these other parts of the world, but i think it is wrong to do that. I haven't always felt this way, but after being here this week and specifically this experience with these kids my perspective is shifting. It's a work in progress and I think God will continue to work on me and show me how we should help.
It is amazing the work that is being done here through Heartline. They are making a huge impact in the community as it relates to orphans, injured, displaced and those who are unemployed. They have cared for them through this tough time the last few months (and years before) and are committed to help for years to come. They have set a great example of Christ and sacrifical love that really goes beyond what I could imagine.
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