I turn to see a half naked child reaching their hand out to me with a big smile. I smile back and say bonjou. As I navigate the narrow alleyways leading to the ravine my arms are rubbed, my hair is stroked, and I've given too many high fives and fist pumps to count. I've weaved my way around men pushing wheel barrows, women with heavy water buckets on their heads and tables of various products being sold- anything from flip flops, to fruit and veggies, alcohol, and clothing.
There is music blaring from speakers around each corner, dirty laundry water being splashed onto my feet, and the ladies calling out their prices for the food they are selling. I smell the food cooking on the charcoal as we walk through the markets and then have to jump to the side of the road, ducking under an umbrella at a market stand in order to not be run over by the honking truck coming through the narrow street with a moto squeezing by from the other direction.
This is my neighborhood. These are the people I am wanting to get to know and love.
As we come to the end of the narrow alley it opens up to the ravine. The smell goes from the food cooking to rotting food, trash, and sewage. My stomach does a flip flop as I wonder if I will make it across the stepping stones without falling today. I navigate across the rocks, usually with one foot ending up wet and climb the dirt hill strewn with trash as we make our way to the first stop. As we round the corner I see the now familiar faces of the moms and babies. I check to make sure they are all there by looking at each one and greeting them with a smile and bonjou. The moms are sitting on the ground or a rock or a bucket... some nursing and some holding their sleeping baby. I give out vitamins and then find my little ones to smile at and hold. These babies have no language barrier with me. They smile right back and coo and drool and my heart melts.
Then I hear "ann ale" (let's go) and we are off to the next stop. We take our buckets of food and walk down the paved street with the sun on our backs, cross the ravine by bridge this time and then turn down a path that winds between all the tent homes. Just like the market area, there is food cooking on the outdoor stoves, laundry being done in the big silver tubs, kids sitting naked and playing with whatever is on the ground. It's amazing what they can make into a toy. I continue to smile and greet
as many as I can with a "Bonjou, koman ou ye?" (Good morning, how are you?) and of course the kids come out to touch the blan.
We end at our second and final stop and it's usually already full of people, some in the program and others hoping to get the leftovers when we are done. Other days we sit and wait. They come. One by one and then all at once. Some children are with their moms, some come with their siblings or other relatives but they all come with their bowls for us to fill with food. Some stay for conversation and
some go on their way. The Creole can be overwhelming but each day it gets easier... and then I get
overwhelmed again. But I know it will come. I love these people too much not to learn.
As we finish and the crowd dwindles we pack up and weave through the tents back to the main road. Now the sun is full on our faces but our work for the day is done, at least in the ravine.
As we walk back to the school I think about how I get to return to my comforts even if they are modified compared to what I left in Massachusetts. The guys I go out with each day return back to the ravine at the end of the day. That is home. That is their life. They finish in the ravine in the morning, head back to the school to cook for over 400 people, clean and then head back to the ravine. I am amazed at the work ethic of some here. They work so hard for almost nothing. I love these people I work with and I love the people we serve together. It's no wonder why I smile inside and out each day.
No words or pictures can fully describe the ravine and its wonderful people but here is a glimpse.
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| The ravine: walking between first and second stops |
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| Giving out manba (peanut butter), soup and vitamins |
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| The "baby feeders", Jean Elie, Wisnal and Jude, with the buckets of food. |
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| Heading back across the ravine |
