And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up. Galatians 6:9 (Thanks for Pastor Mark’s Selah for today for this encouraging one for us!)
We will just get right to it. Scrambled eggs. Bacon. Sausage. Toast. Peanut butter. Honey. Tang. Yes, Tang. Amazing. Oh and we got to sleep in until 7am. More amazing.
Now that we got that over with, let’s get to our amazing day off! It was pretty amazing. After working hard for four days in the boiling heat, covered in construction guts, it was nice to be able to get dressed up in “normal clothes” and spend some time in fellowship and fun. And of course buy souvenirs for ourselves and our loved ones back home.
First we headed through the beautiful mountains, up and up and up. Our first stop was the Baptist Mission. There was so much going on there, it was hard to pick out where to start… petting zoo, museum, bakery, gift shop, café and street vendors.
By now we were all great price hagglers. Monica is definitely the best at it, getting everyone great deals on paintings, bracelets and little trinkets. At the bakery, we snagged some fluffy dinner rolls for dinner, bagels for breakfast and sweets for dessert. Weaving through the in-your-face street vendors, we dodged the ones looking to take advantage of us naïve Americans.
After about an hour gallivanting around, we took another drive, even higher in the mountains. We stopped at this restaurant surrounded by even more aggressive and persistent vendors. We set our sights behind them, walking right past them to check out the most spectacular view of Port-Au-Prince.
Taking selfies and group photos at the edge of the overlook, we were laughing and enjoying seeing such an amazing display of the city. We picked out the route we took to the entrance into the mountains leading to our village Zoranje.
Another drive brought us to a beautiful hotel where we enjoyed a delicious buffet lunch, complete with chocolate cake dessert! We really have been spoiled and we are so grateful for everything that we have been given here.
Letting digestion (aka the biggest food coma this week) we hung around in the beautiful sunshine our Father blessed us with today. We gathered together to leave, but the fun continued, with a few arm wrestles and goofing around.
When it was time to leave, Manya bent over to fix her hair so she put her cell phone down. A few of the guys from Team A Bunch of Old Guys took advantage of the situation, pocketing her phone and taking a million selfies. Back in the cattle car, she decided to get revenge on the guys, pretending to cry on Lorna’s shoulder as she consoled her. Pastor Andy caught on saying, “Then why is she laughing?” She had gotten Bob and Yung for just a few seconds before they realized she was joking around. Manya vowed revenge, but instead she just loved them like the Christian woman she is. Those guys on the other hand…
Back at guesthouse, we were welcomed by The Bridge Builders doing some building of their own, creating benches and desks for the school. We packed our bags, showered and hung around the patio for more fun and fellowship before chowing down on some burgers and hotdogs off the grill. More fellowship continued, as we gathered each other’s phone numbers and emails. Conversation varied from the past week’s events to future endeavors.
Even though we come from different places and paths, we have all gotten along so well, taking the time to get to know each and every member of the group. We have gained new brothers and sisters in Christ. There were 31 of us, but we were still a tight knit family from the day we stepped on Haitian ground.
Zoranje, our “city on a hill” and its people will continue to be in our hearts as we travel back home tomorrow and back to “reality.” We all came here for a reason. Yes to build a school, but also for something specific God wanted to put in our path. No matter what reason it is, God gets the glory for doing what He has done during this week.
Please pray for safe travels for all of the teams. Continue to pray for Zoranje, the church and all of the people. Pray that the rest of the school gets built soon, so the children of the future can continue to build their dreams.
What are we building next!?
OPERATION HOPE - Haiti 