Life at Dorothy's House

Life at Dorothy's has been a tremendous learning experience for me to prepare for our families move to Haiti.

The Mission house is large, not fancy, but functional. Dorothy has a dedicated staff who have been helping me to keep everything going and also to learn both practically and culturally the unspoken rules of life in Haiti.

I have already told you about a couple of staff, Hanania and Edrick. Both have been a tremendous help!
Edrick has shown me how to run the generator, the solar inverter, the water purifier, the water pump, the propane tank for the stove, and many other things which I would have been lost without knowing! About 2 days after arriving, the Haitian electric stopped working, it was later determined that the meter was "gone" and the wires disconnected. So, I have had no electricity except for the solar and occasional generator once a week while pumping water. It has caused me to think about all the things we use electricity for! I have figured out a system to charge my computer battery to almost full with the solar each evening before it runs out. I have no light after about 6:30pm when the sun goes down, so I use my flash light (although that has now burned out) and a camping head lamp that I bought before I came after seeing the many uses when I was in PAP. I walk around the house like a coal miner at night! It works though and is part of the "flexibility" that is needed in this culture!
Hanania has been the "cultural interpreter" for me. She speaks English very well and is very insightful. She has included me when she has gone to church and to a Wedding. She also has shown me how the shopping works. A very different process here! I will blog about that later! She is very talented and has clued me in on a number of cultural issues which are difficult for "blanc's" to know how to deal with. For example, begging, if the little kids come running up asking for money, she will shoo them away telling them "do not beg". But, if a couple of kids come up to us asking to wash the car (essentially wipe it down) she will work out a price and let them go a head. She never gives money to people on the street that she doesn't know, but she will help people who she knows are actually in need. There are many issues related to "helping"and when our "helping" actually hurts the culture more than helps. It is a difficult issue to grapple with when essentially 99.9% of the population has very real practical needs. It takes alot of discernment and prayer.
There are also some staff who work at the house. Gabo is a 60+ year old grounds keeper. He is stronger than most men half his age and it is clear he has had a harsh, hard life. Dorothy has him come each day to clean up leaves, sweep etc. (I think she wants to be sure he has food money to survive and some dignity in his old age) Nana comes 2 times a week to clean house. She is younger probably in her mid 20's with a family. It is unbelievably dusty here and the soot from burning trash and other pollution gets on everything. Nana bleaches out the bathrooms and floors to prevent mildew and mold and to attempt to keep the bugs at bay! Nadia, also younger, comes once a week to do laundry. Clean clothes are extremely important to the Haitian people. Very few Haitians have washing machines, it is all done by hand and hung out to dry in the sun. They have a very strong soap and will scrub until the clothes are spotless! Then there is Ma Louie. She is a very gentle, sweet older women who cooks the evening meal. She has been very excited to cook for me since I asked her to cook only Haitian style, not American. She has made some wonderful food for me! There are lots of fruits and vegetables and of course rice and beans. It has been GREAT! She does all the food shopping as well which quite honestly would be impossible for me at this point. It is all done at the open market and you really need to know what you are doing!

Each of these house hold staff is expected and imperative if you are a foreigner living in Haiti and actually most Haitians have people who they hire to do these things for them. Even ones who we would consider poor. It takes a long time to do the activities of daily living here and this is a system developed to help give employment to the more unskilled laborers and young people. It allows them meaningful work, but also allows the employer (or the missionary) the ability to do their job. If a foreigner does not employ at least some of these workers, they are thought of as cheap and not willing to help improve the country. It is a very different view than how we as Americans see having household help. Most Haitians want to work and are very thankful for the means to support their families.

At the house there is almost always the background noise of a church service, music, people working or talking, it is a constant buzz. As I have mentioned, people (and animals) are up early and so am I. I usually make some coffee and have some fruit and peanutbutter on bread for breakfast, before heading out to the clinic. I usually don't eat again until about 5:30 at night after we have gotten back and I've been able to get things put away, checked email etc. Sometimes people will come by to visit but usually by about 6:15, I lock the front gate before it gets dark. I spend the evenings either working on projects from the clinic or Global H2Ope or emailing or skyping with family. The connection is not always very good, but at least I can check in and see the faces and voices of Doug and the kids or my sister and parents. My computer can't last more than about 2 hours on battery so around 8:00, I go get a cold shower (which actually is fine with me because I have been sweating all day!) and then read a bit before falling asleep under my mosquito netting around 9:30 -10:00pm. I am usually awakened at least once a night with music or the neighborhood dogs barking, but by 5-5:30am, I am up and ready to begin another day!