Lives Touching Lives

I would love to share a fortunate series of events I had the opportunity of being a part of. Life is pretty amazing and traveling is something I love to take part in. I would encourage every American who is able to travel to grasp onto it with both fists and go. Different cultures, languages and customs are super polarizing to me. I am looking so forward to the pandemic to complete it's cycle so I can plan my next adventure.

On two separate occasions, I have been to the country of Haiti. Both times they were short term mission trips where our group worked on getting schools painted and ready for students. The bulk of our time, after driving in the back of a cattle truck for several hours through mountainous jungles, we were in the city of Jacmel. The local Haitians at first are a bit shy and skeptical of a group of white people from America swooping into help out. Some, for different reasons were never cordial. The majority however, were lovely, friendly people. In case you are not very familiar with Haiti, it is consistently one of the poorest, if not the poorest country in the Northern Hemisphere. At times, it seems as if there is a major target due to the hurricanes that don't seem to miss Haiti or of course the horrific earth quake in the earlier 2000s that killed around 250,000 people.

That being said, they are a hard working, proud people who love their country. Where we came in was to help with final prep work to get this school opened. The groups of people who had been the most curious while we were working were the children. They wanted to pitch in and help us prep or paint. This would after all be the school many of the kids would attend. Many of them did not speak English and if they were able to, it was pretty broken. None of us spoke Creole, the national language or much French but we were able to figure out ways to communicate.

One particular young lady I was able to connect with is the girl in the photo up top. Her name is Juanita Pierre. Not only did Juanita speak English well, she helped me with translations for other children. She was a spitfire and had a great sense of humor. While we worked side by side, we would chat about everyday things. She would ask me about America as well as my occupation. She wanted to know what schools were like back where I come from. I would reciprocate by asking questions about Haiti and what school was like for her. She was a very strong minded and assertive little girl so I casually yet jokingly asked her if she would be President someday. She furrowed her brow and said "No!" She pointed to her chest and proudly announced that she wanted to become a teacher. I told her I was proud of that choice and let her know she would be helping to touch many lives with that career.

After we finished up our work for the few days we were in Jacmel, the school group had a ceremony for us to say "thank you" for the work we had done. The students were decked out in super fancy slacks and button down shirts while the girls had beautiful matching velvet dresses. They performed for us and did an amazing job. Juanita Pierre was in the mix of students, singing and dancing. At times, she would meet my eyes and she would smile at me. When the performance was over, we had a chance to mingle with the teachers and kids for a few minutes. Juanita Pierre came up to me and we talked for a bit. Right before our group had to leave, she grabbed my wrist, pointed to herself and said "Teacher?" I immediately choked up but nodded back to her and said "Yes, teacher."

That was about four years ago. I most likely will never see Juanita Pierre again but think of her from time to time. I wonder if that passion I saw for a few days while in Jacmel stuck with her. I wonder if she is still doing well and I wonder if she will when all is said and done, become a teacher.

Travel if you can. Meeting people on their own terms is refreshing. Learning about new cultures, food, and traditions has helped me to realize that although I do love the United States, there are many other places in the world that are interesting to be a part of, even if only for a few days at a time.