Welcome to Haiti!

Dear Family and Friends,

It's quiet today....too quiet. No horns, no loud buses, no shouts from the village below our house, no magnified church worship drifting up the hill, no hubbub of humanity. It's election day and all private cars have been ordered off the streets. The UN is out in full force to keep the peace; I heard four helicopters yesterday close to Cayes. So far, so good.

My week started with a bang. On Monday morning, bright and early, I headed up to Child Care and happened to be the first one there, not terribly shocking as I still operate on Western time schedule, which involves being on time for work. As usual, I had to unlock the two padlocks and the regular door. The padlocks are protected by metal covers, so I have to reach up into them, find the key hole at the bottom of the padlock, and twist it correctly to open the lock - without being able to see anything. No problem - most of the time. The bottom padlock opened just fine, but I have to shove it up to the top of the metal cover in order for it to unlatch from the door. (Check out the pictures and this will make much more sense.) Monday, that lock would not shove up. So, with great gusto, I smacked it up hard and guess what fell out with my padlock? That's right - a huge tarantula! It's shocking that I didn't get bit. Here I was with my hand up in the metal cover, jabbing at it with the padlock, and squishing it further and further up into the metal cover. It's a wonder it didn't go for me, but maybe it just didn't have enough room to get its fangs to my hand. It was that big. I'll admit it - I shrieked like a little girl when that tarantula fell out (slightly injured) and danced around for a while. Yucko! Like two seconds later, Cresnel (the killer of Bob, Jr. and our yard man) arrived at Child Care and I said, "Touye li, souple! Mesi." Kill it, please. Thank you. Not 20 seconds later, I walked into the office to find a lizard resting comfortably on my printer. I see lizards all day long, and I have never had an issue with them, but seriously! I feel like I'm working in a friggin' zoo.

It's been the week of tarantulas. I opened a drawer in my bedroom a little later in the week, only to find a nice sized one in there. This is a rarity. I've only ever seen one in the house (a little one in a kitchen cupboard), but this was in my bedroom! Alisha came and sprayed it with Baygon, the equivalent of Hot Shot in the States, my old friend for wolf spiders. It was quite the commotion. I watched it shrivel up and felt a great deal of pleasure. I would never kill one outside, but this one was so bold as to infringe upon my only safe spot. It had to die.

Aside from the exceptional number of animal encounters this week, the Pfisters arrived safe and sound in Haiti. They hit the ground running! I've been fortunate to spend some time with them and their children this past week. Katelyn, Will, Seth, Kendra and Silas are sweet kids and very fond of 4-wheeler rides. On Thursday, we jumped on the trampoline, took a ride on the quad, played with Legos, and checked out the construction on their house. It seems like they are adjusting well to Haiti.

Friday marked the end of an era. In a three hour ceremony, Luise Schuerer officially retired from the Cite Lumiere Domestic Center, her life's work and passion. Olga Thissen will be the new administrator. The ceremony was marked with prayers and praises. The ladies of the Domestic Center served everyone a delicious supper complete with Gutwein popcorn. Johannes and Luise will be leaving Haiti in May for seven months, spending time in Germany and traveling and speaking to many of their supporting churches and congregations. They are such a fixture in this small community. We will certainly miss them!

Saturday, the Gutweins graciously let me join them for some beach time. On the way to Rainbow Beach, we stopped at the remains of a French fort. It's amazing to me how the history of Haiti has lain untouched for nearly 300 years. We walked right up the stone stairs of the old fort, touched the abandoned cannons, and wondered at the view the French must have had in defending this outpost near Zanglais. In the States, this kind of history would have been roped off to the public; we would be charged admission and shuttled through a gift shop afterwards. In any case, it was beautiful. The beach was great, as always. We got rained out around three and headed home. I spent a little time with the Gutweins that night, watching them play Rook. You know, each family has their own rules for Rook. The Gutweins don't use the 1's, put counters in the nest, and whoever wins the last trick gets to claim it. Weird. Joan Gutwein, Jan's sister, is here for a few weeks, and it's been great getting to know her face-to-face. She's funny, quick, and absolutely loves her nieces and nephews - and I got some of the Easter candy she brought, so thanks Joan!

Today has been relaxing. I listened to Bluffton services in the morning with Sheila. At lunch, we all gathered at the Gutweins and ate together - the Pfisters, Bob and Ann Meyer, Al and Becky Pfister, Shane Shaw, Bill Rager, the Reinhards, Sheila, and I, and all the Gutweins. I don't have any big plans for tonight, which is nice. I'm working on a baby blanket for Joe and Heidi, need to plant some new starts for my flower pots in the house, and prepare for next week.

Maybe this week will be spider free. One can always hope...

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Much love,
Abby

Illavach and Easter

Dear Family and Friends,

It's been a very lovely week! Justin Reinhard and Ted Habegger were here until Saturday, and it was great to spend time with them in the evenings. They were installing the Pfister's kitchen and helping Tim and Joan with some closet work. Everything looks amazing!

On Tuesday and Wednesday, Sheila, Deb Blunier (visiting for a week), Tess, and Alisha, and I, had a holiday on Illavach, the island of the coast of Cayes. The sun was out, the water was perfectly clear, the food was terrific, and the company couldn't be beat! Check out the pictures because the water there was such an amazing color. In addition, the Abaka Bay resort has 900 American TV channels, air conditioning, lobster, leather couches, the most wonderful beach you've ever seen, and great service. It was truly an island getaway!

Good Friday, I tried to keep the kids entertained during the day, and Sheila and I hosted Justin and Ted for supper. Saturday was a getting-my-life-back-in-order day. Sunday morning, I attended an Easter Sunrise Service at the MEBSH gazebo. It was a beautiful morning and remembering the Resurrection was uplifting. After the service, I went to Renault with the Wrays.

It was a special Sunday at Renault. First, the children were shown a portion of the Jesus film in Creole. I was amazed that when Jesus was baptized in the film, the children cheered and clapped. When he was nailed to the cross, some of them gasped. They were really paying attention. In addition to the film, each child was given a bag of rice to take home. The Wrays kept it very orderly for dealing with 900 children. After Renault, Sheila and I ate Easter lunch with the Reinhards. It was delicious!

April seems to be going really fast because on Tuesday, the Pfisters arrive in Haiti! I'm so excited to see them again. I'll be praying for your safe arrival and adjustments in the first few weeks.

Well, I'm off to collect Easter leftovers from the Gutweins. I'm truly thankful that I live next door to a bunch of excellent cooks. They feed me all the time! Thanks, Gutweins.

http://picasaweb.google.com/aheartforhaiti/April20092?feat=directlink

Much love,
Abby

Bob, Jr.

Dear Friends and Family,

I think I've mentioned Bob, the resident tarantula of Child Care. Well, today I met his son, Bob, Jr. Unfortunately, Bob, Jr. didn't make it through the day. Cresnel, our yard man, took a size 10 boot to him. Bye-bye, Bob, Jr.

I'm a little late this week. Those Haitian time schedules (or lack thereof) must be rubbing off on me. In any case, it's been a good week, and I'm looking forward to another good one. It's considered a holy week here. We only work a half day on Thursday and we're off for Good Friday. The Martins are planning a sunrise service on Easter Sunday, I'm going on an excursion for two days, and Uncle Ted and Justin Reinhard are here for the week. It should be fun!

Enjoy the photos. There are a couple graphic ones for those who have weaker stomachs - an infected eye and a cleft lip and palate.

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Happy Birthday, Molly!!!

Much love,
Abby