It's Been a Year

BY MARK

It has been a year since we transitioned from our life in the US to our full-time missionary life in Haiti.  To say that we have learned some things is as understated as saying that a giant redwood is just anther tree.  Each and every day we have learned (and continue to learn) something new.  Here are a few summary thoughts about our first year:

1) We take too many things for granted!! 

        ---Whether it be continuous electricity, potable water from our faucets, hot water, washing machines, Walgreens, refrigeration, car parts, or smooth roads, as we lived in the US we didn’t think twice about any of these things being accessible to us.  Take them away, and you do think twice, or maybe 100 times about how thankful you are for the thousands of things that we have at our US fingertips.

2) Our US culture could learn many things from Haitian culture!!  

      --The “relationship first” attitude of the Haitian culture flies in the face of the “business first” attitude of the US.  If you don’t greet someone in Haiti by asking “How are you?” AND awaiting a reply before getting down to business, it is socially inappropriate.  This is truly refreshing and emphasizes how much we in the US put relationship after business.

3) God was already here!!

     --Although we already knew this, it has become quite evident that God is alive and well in Haiti.  We are in no way bringing anything new spiritually to Haiti.  We just need to point out where He is!

4) We have met some of the richest people in the world since we have moved to the poorest country in the hemisphere!!

     --Family, friends, safety, community and relationships are what are valued highly by our Haitian friends. Specifically our Christian Haitian friends place a much higher value on Spiritual fruits.   They are sometimes living in conditions that US standards would consider “poor,” but honestly they are truly rich.  We have met some people in the United States who are so poor that all they have is money.

It is tough to quantify all that we have learned over the last year.  We have been stretched, pulled, ridiculed, judged, praised, pushed and shoved but above all, we have been blessed….in more ways than we could ever dreamed.  We can only imagine what this next year might hold!