I don’t think anyone would argue with the fact that life in Haiti is hard. The longer I live here the more and more I feel emotionally heavy over just how hard it is for my Haitian friends. I watch women and children walk trip after trip to the well to get water for cooking, bathing, laundry, etc. Sometimes they walk for miles and that doesn’t even mean the water is safe for drinking and cooking. Electricity is a luxury and not something most have access to. Having one meal a day of rice and beans is what most live off of and then there are many who don’t consistently get the one meal.
Over the last two weeks I have cared for countless sick children mainly due to malnutrition. They don’t have a rare disease...they just need to have food consistently. The more I talk with the mothers I realize just how hard it is for them. One mom had eight children, two of her children had died, her husband had died, and she was solely responsible for all six remaining children. It was obvious by the looks of her daughter that she wasn’t able to make the food stretch far enough. Her daughter could barely walk into the clinic. Immediately, I noticed another little boy in the triage line because of his legs that had a striking similarity to chicken legs. They were so thin that I never would have guessed he was a year old. Especially, since he didn't even weigh a mere 10 pounds. My niece Caitlin was bigger than him when she was born. When E’tienne and I took off his shirt, to place an IV, we both stood speechless. He was nothing but bones. Literally, just bones. Another little boy around two years of age was brought to the clinic by his 11 year old sister. E’tienne triaged him and knew instantly he wasn’t going to live if he didn’t have help. His sister sobbed while talking to the doctor because she was so fearful he was going to die. She was left to care for him and her other 5 year old sister while mom was away having her fourth child. The stories go on and on with so many yet to be heard. Everyday I have to constantly remind myself that God is in control. Psalm 139:16 “You saw me before I was born. Every day of my life was recorded in your book. Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed.” With each child I hold and each story that breaks my heart, I am overwhelmed by the "big picture." It's difficult to say what the future holds, but I'm trying to stop and focus on each and every person, one at a time and all in God's timing.
