Haiti: The Work

The first two parts of my Haiti Journey are here: The Heartbreak and The Joy

The work that we did in Haiti was at a school called Gressier, which will house about 1,000 kids when it is open. Here are some pictures of the work site:

This is the beautiful view from the back of the school:

Some of the time, we worked on clearing the classrooms of the construction rubble. Before we went in they looked like this:

And after a lot of shoveling, pick-axing, and wheelbarrowing, they looked like this:

The rest of the time we spent shoveling and sifting dirt and sand which would later be mixed to make cement.

This was my "boss," Elifa (I have no idea if that's how you spell it.) His only English was "spread" (the dirt) and "Wait for me, I'll be right back." He was a bit of a perfectionist, but when I finally got it right, he was sure to let me know that he was happy with my work. ("Moi contente.")

We took breaks under the shade tree, to get out of the beating sun. The only problem was the fire ants that would dive bomb from the tree and bite the heck out of us. But the shade was still worth it.

We also spent a lot of break time with the kids who lived on the property, and the neighborhood kids who came to visit with us.

I cried the day we went to our work site to say goodbye. Even though the physical labor was the hardest I've ever worked in my life, and the heat and humidity was exhausting to work in, the time I spent on the site was my favorite part of the trip. Working side by side with the Haitian men, and trying our best to communicate despite the language barrier, but finding that by the third day, they were our friends. Seeing the progress in the school and knowing that many kids would be blessed by it. Laughing and playing with the kids, and seeing their precious faces everyday. It went by in a flash, and I was not ready to leave. But I wouldn't trade the experience for the world.

The last piece in the Haiti Journey is The Hope.

Want stay in the grass with me? Subscribe!