I am not sure how the time has flown by, but I leave to come back to the US on Monday morning. I feel like I have been in mourning a little bit for the last few days. There are so many things that make me excited about coming back to the States, and I am holding on tightly to those so that I can move through the sadness of leaving the D.R. I am excited to run outside...see dear friends...talk to my family without Skype getting killed because of slow internet connections...go to coffee shops...drive on roads that aren't complete madness...have more clothes to choose from than those I have been wearing for two months...maybe do a little less sweating...cook my own food...you see where I am going with this. That mental list is what keeps me together when I have teary-eyed moments and try to imagine what it will be like to get back to 'normal life.' Life here changes you, and while I think about the things on that list, I still wonder how long it will take me to quit automatically saying 'hola' when I see people, or get used to not seeing my Dominican friends every day.

In the same way I will start to slip out of the habits of living here, I will probably also slip out of the ways I have been changed by my extended time here. I will be able to forget sometimes about extreme poverty, because I won't see it everyday. I will be able to forget what it is like for people to depend on God for food and shelter everyday, because that is not the life I have been forced to live. I will have the luxury of air-conditioning everywhere, and there will be no more moments when I don't understand the words people are saying to me. I will forget that everything, even something as simple as going to the bank, is more difficult and takes much longer here. My prayer is that while I know I will forget some of the things God has shown me, that I will not go back to the person I was when I left the US. I hope I will see things around me and be reminded of life here. I hope I will see God in the faces of people around me in New Jersey in the same way I have seen God in the faces here. And I hope that instead of getting into a groove and a routine that revolves around my own studies and needs, I will allow God to direct my days in the same way I have been able to be directed here. I pray that my days are not just about me...

Our roomates in Haiti :)

Reflections from a few days in Port au Prince

I just returned from a few days in Haiti, and I am not really sure where to begin the description. Just being in Haiti is exhausting. Your mind is working so hard to take in everything you are seeing. You are working to push away the sadness, the despair, and the amazement of what has happened and is happening in Haiti. The smell is overwhelming. Everywhere you look, there is a sea of humanity. Random items are sold on the sides of the street, so there is always something to look at as you are driving by. The toppled buildings and half-standing structures are everywhere. Tents are on every corner, beside houses, in front of houses, in every open area of Port au Prince.

Even with all of the destruction and pervasive poverty, there is something beautiful about the city. Port au Prince sits between towering mountains and the ocean. The location is gorgeous. Houses seem to climb up the hills, piled on top of each other. Every turn of the roads where we stayed gave great views of the city below us. I am so thankful for the chance to spend a few more days getting to know this city.

In addition to just getting to see more of the city, my friend Anna and I were able to stay with some great friends. We were able to experience a few days of their life in Port au Prince, as well as having some really special time to hear their stories from January 12th. I can't begin to explain how powerful it is to sit down with someone and have them share so openly what it was like to try to survive...how they were pulled from the rubble of a collapsed building...how they wandered the streets of Port au Prince after the earthquake with nothing in mind but getting to their families...how they slept outside in tents behind their house even when it was no longer necessary, because it was much more frightening to begin to sleep inside again. Their stories would blow your mind, break your heart, and leave you amazed and thankful that God is good, even in the face of disaster.

Our friend Pashoo sat with us on Monday night as we ate dinner and shared his story with us. He was working out at the gym when the earthquake hit, and was on the third floor of a building that collapsed. Someone pulled him out from under a wall, and freed him from the building. He broke and dislocated his elbow, but proceeded to walk to his mother's school to try to find his family. He said he has no idea how he survived. Then he said, "I mean, as a Christian, I know how I survived. But as a human, I have no idea how I lived." January 12th changed the way he lives. As I think back to everything he said over the days we were visiting, I can see that everything he wants for his life, his career, and the use of his gifts is not only for himself, but for the betterment of Haiti. He has big dreams, and hope that God will use him to do great things for Haiti. I hope that everyone I spent time with who loves Haiti will used by God to help change that place. I am excited to see the future of Port au Prince because of these men who are going to do great things for their country.

Now, on a much lighter note, if you want to meet the people I stayed with in Haiti, check out the music video I have posted! They are a well-known kompa band called Toxic, so as you watch this video, you will see our friends! They took amazing care of us over the course of our days in Haiti, in addition to just being really incredible people. We even got stopped a few times because people wanted to say hi to them. That's right, friends...I was rollin with famous musicians in Haiti. Booyah!

A weekend in Nagua

Have you ever been on one of those road trips where you know about 30 minutes after leaving that this is going to be an amazingly fun, relaxing, perfect weekend that you will remember for a long time? That is how I felt this Friday after I left with my friend Emmanuel for the weekend. We got in the car with his little sister, his mom, and his uncle to head to Nagua, which is where his extended family lives. Nagua is on the northern coast of the DR, and is home to beautiful beaches, quiet, small town streets, and stars you can actually see at night. Leaving Santo Domingo, a city of 4 million people, for a few days in the country is always a welcome retreat.

I can't tell you exactly what it was that made the weekend great. Maybe it was how warm and welcoming his family was. Maybe it was having a ton of quality time with a friend I dearly love. Maybe it was walking down the beach for hours, just talking and enjoying the day. Maybe it was sitting around all morning on Saturday, reading Barbara Brown Taylor, and being reminded of why I love the ministry of preaching. Maybe it was laying around Sunday afternoon with my friend's mom and listening to her tell me stories of her family, including some real hardships they have experienced. I don't know exactly what made this the ideal weekend, but I know I came back feeling welcomed, loved, accepted, rested, cared for, and happy.

I think one of the most powerful moments happened on Saturday morning. Emmanuel's mom is one of 13 children. This weekend, 7 of the siblings were in Nagua, including two who were winding down a visit and heading back to the US that day. I woke up and was sitting outside reading when some of Emmanuel's aunts called me into the room with their mother, who is ill and spending much of her time in bed. We gathered in her room to have a time of prayer with all of the siblings before Emma's two aunts left to return to the US. I never know what to expect when families graciously invite me into their moments, but I wasn't disappointed by this one. These family members, who clearly love each other so dearly, sat around and sang together for a while. They sang with the confidence of a family who has been singing beautifully together for years...each person knew whether they were to sing harmony or melody, whether they were to sing high or low, and who would take the lead on the song. It was a beautiful moment to watch...the ease with which they harmonized, the joy on their faces as they sang, but also the sadness that this may be one of those last times with all of them singing with their mother. As the singing winded down, they joined each other in prayer, for their mother, for safe travel for their sisters, for the joy of being together and the sadness of being apart, for God's continued presence and provision for their lives. It was a moment I was thankful to witness, and one I was humbled to be a part of. I am continually inspired by the faith of the people I encounter here. I am continually inspired by their hospitality and the warmth with which they welcome me into their lives. I am continually amazed that God has brought me here and continues to bless me everyday. I am humbled by my inability to live in such a warm, hospitable way, and hope I will go home and do my best to welcome people into my home with the same graciousness that has been shown to me.

This weekend refreshed me, encouraged me, and brought me such joy. I went to three different beautiful beaches. I read a book I love. I was reminded how much I love ministry and am excited to get back to Princeton and learn more. I was reminded of how much I love and miss my own family. And I was amazed by how much I deeply love this country. That is a lot to pack into a weekend, but I can't think of anything better.

Caught between two very different worlds

(my little buddy Lovensly, before he busted his lip on the playground!)

I feel caught between two worlds. On one hand, I live part of the time in a nice hotel, in my boss' hotel room that he has year round and would currently be empty if not for my taking up residence in it. I can escape the heat when I need to, return to my clean, neat, air-conditioned room, and even take advantage of the gym or the pool. Delicious coffee is waiting for me in the morning, before I get in my car (another nice perk I currently have) and drive out to Cielo where another world awaits.

When I choose not to stay in the hotel, which is becoming more often, I stay in Bayona, the larger region where Cielo and Nazaret are located, in an apartment with my friend Anna. We sleep in the heat, with windows open, with fans in the bed with us to make it more bearable. I sleep wearing bug spray. We often come home to find that there is no electricity, with no knowledge of when it might turn back on. The power goes out several times a day, and unless you have an inverter, you are in the dark until it miraculously returns. That means that the fans in our bed usually turn off around 4am and stay off until power returns around 9am (at least that has been the pattern lately, but who really knows). That means wandering around the apartment at night with flashlights when we arrive home to no lights. We have also gotten into the habit of going on walks around Bayona, going through Cielo and Nazaret, and stopping to talk to friends along the way. It is a great way for me to practice Spanish, a great way to see more people, and a fun addition to a night that could be spent sitting in a hot casa. Tonight, it started raining when we were at about the furthest point from the apartment, which was a fun addition. Dominican men sing to us a lovely song that basically says they need an americana to get their visa. I eat fresh fruit purchased from carts on the street for about one meal a day. I get up at 6:30am to walk my friend's dog with him, because that is the only time any form of outdoor exercise is bearable.

I am living between these two worlds of comfort and poverty. I spent the morning sitting in the clinic with a precious Haitian boy named Lovensly, who busted his lip playing on the playground. Anna spotted the 50 pesos to pay for the clinic, all of about $1.50, so that his family wouldn't have to worry about it. I sat with him and taught him Spanish vocabulary, as he continues to learn Spanish now that he has moved here after the earthquake in Haiti. Then, I went back to the hotel to watch the World Cup game. I am not sure which world I am supposed to stay in. Do I stay in the difficult, sweaty, emotionally exhausting world of extreme poverty and struggle? Or do I give in to the desire for comfort? Do I allow myself to continue to live like an American, or do I let it all go and do my best to dive fully into the hardships of real life in the DR? I know what I should do, but when I have the option of comfort, it is harder than I thought to fully give in. I wish my boss had not insisted that I stay in the hotel. Part of me really wishes he had not offered me his car for the month. I know what I should be doing, but comfort is so much easier...

I have been enjoying a Monday of rest after a weekend of adventure. On Friday and Saturday, my friend Anna and I decided we had to get out of Santo Domingo for a little fun and r&r. We headed to Jarabocoa, which is a few hours away in the mountains of the DR. It is gorgeous...everything is so green, like the color of new leaves when the trees are first turning green in the spring. So lovely! Honestly, if you ask what we did, there isn't much to tell. We did a lot of walking and exploring, ate some good meals, and did some serious relaxing. I was given a free bachata dance lesson on Friday night from a random man. It sounds weird, but I have been wanting to learn bachata, so I went for it and had some moments of hilarity learning to dance with this man! I think Anna and I both came back refreshed and a little bit in love with this small town. It is considerably cooler, because it sits on top of a mountain, so you can actually walk around midday without sweating. You can whitewater raft, horseback ride, hike, swim in waterfalls, and jump from cliffs...sounds ideal to me! So consider this my official recommendation for any future tourist stops in the DR...go to Jarabacoa!

Then, Sunday morning, I woke up super early to leave for the mission trip with the youth from the church. I was definitely intimated at first, because it is really hard to let your personality show when you are working with a language barrier. My spanish doesn't entirely suck, and I am definitely improving as I study each day, but it is still hard to joke around and be myself in spanish. I am generally really shy about speaking spanish. I understand way more than I say, because I have that natural fear or looking like/feeling like an idiot. I continue to try to let that go and just own my mistakes, but it is certainly difficult.

I am thankful I went on the trip, even if church dramas and all that this brand of evangelism entails are not particularly my thing. It was fun to watch the youth from this church go out and serve each other in ways that are truly sacrificial. We left yesterday at 6am, and got up this morning to come back at 4:30am, because they had to be back for work and school. I came back and was out of commission from the day because I was so tired, but all of these teenagers went directly to school and work. We slept on floors, spent two hours yesterday peeling potatoes for dinner, showered by pouring buckets of water over our heads, and piled into cars for hours of driving. All of this was done with smiles, a lot of fun, and genuine belief in their call to serve other Dominicans as God has called them to. It was fun to be with them for times of prayer, for preparation for the worship service last night, and as we stood together late last night and encouraged a pastor who moved to this country town not because it would be easy, but because it is the challenge God has laid before him.

I know I promised funny stories from the trip, but really am so impressed with this group that it is hard to make fun of it all! I did stumble into some pretty serious traditional gender roles, hence my having to peel potatoes for hours simply based on the fact that I am a lady. Otherwise, I swam in a river, came back with some SERIOUS bug bites (as in so swollen that I can't bend my knee all the way back at this point), and danced around the room with a little girl to Miley Cyrus singing 'Party in the USA.' All in all, not too bad of a weekend! At this point, I am saying yes to most of the crazy things my friends are asking me to do, because I want to soak up every cultural experience I can when I am here. I think I am competing in a bible school competition this week...not sure how that will go, but again, I am just going to go for it and see how it goes!

(the photos are my view in Jarabacoa, a little relaxing, and my bachata lesson!)

A new day

The craziness of American groups is over! The last group left on Saturday. The last few members of the American staff left early this morning. And then, there was one. Today is my first day off in a month, and my first day as a solo americana in the DR. I must admit, while I do miss my wonderful and hilarious staff, I am pretty excited for what this time alone will bring. I am excited to explore the DR. I am excited to devote most of my time to studying Spanish and strengthening the relationships I have here. I am excited to be a part of this community without having to always run around and take care of logistics. I am excited to just BE.

I am entering a month of unknown. The only rhythm to my days will be studying spanish with my dear friend Emmanuel each morning. Otherwise, my days are free for God to use and guide. The adventure is already beginning! This weekend, I have been asked to travel to Castillo with the youth of the church to participate in a mission trip. Now, when I think of missions, I think of construction and physical labor, so I obviously said yes when asked to join the group. Then, days later, I found out that no, we are not doing any kind of construction...we are doing a drama. Yes, a drama. And do I now have a part in that drama? Oh yes! This could be hilarious...all I know right now is that I am playing someone bad in the drama. I can't wait to share stories, because I can't imagine how piling into a bus with a bunch of Dominican teenagers to travel and perform a drama could NOT be hysterical.

Thanks for all of your prayers over the last month. My hope and prayer for this next month is that God will guide my days. There are so many families I will have time to sit down and talk with, and my hope is that God will show me where to go each day. I hope this month will change me. Because I have spent so much time here, in many ways, the DR is a part of my comfort zone. I hope that during this month, I am taken out of my comfort zone and challenged and changed by this place.

'May your unfailing love be my comfort...' Psalm 119: 76

Rain, rain, go away!

Why do I have time to write a blog post mid-morning when I should be working? The Dominican Republic is currently getting pounded by rain. For the last three days, all of our work projects have had to be changed, adjusted, or cancelled because of the continuous rain. We had to cancel work entirely this morning, so instead of being in Cielo laying block or teaching Haitian children, we are sitting at the hotel watching the US World Cup team play Algeria. Nice to be able to watch the game, but certainly sad to be kept away from our friends in Cielo!

The last week has been crazy and really abnormal in terms of how weeks usually run here. It has been raining every day. Almost half of the staff got sick last Friday, some of which took 4 days to recover and lost up to ten pounds. We sent a group from Orlando home last Saturday with bottles of water and garbage bags for the plane because they were so sick as they left that morning. Church is cancelled tonight because of rain. My parents are here for the first time ever and are experiencing the weirdest week I have ever seen here. Certainly not ideal!

I am just not sure what to say about this week, other than we need prayer. We need prayer for sick staffers who are struggling through their last week here. We need prayer for the rain to go away long enough for this group from Winston-Salem to get some work done. We need prayer for Dominican friends who will likely be experiencing flooding in the upcoming days. And I need prayer for creativity as I (and a staff of brilliant minds) try to come up with ways to occupy 75 people when our normal plans require us to be outside all day. We have used up most of our ideas in the last three days, and we are quickly running out!

The slogan on our staff shirts for the summer says 'Love like the rain, Serve like the son.' We are certainly seeing a great example of that love as the rain pours down!

Sometimes I forget...

Working with family groups gets difficult. Logistics are harder, personalities of both adults and kids are more complicated, and my patience runs out more quickly. These weeks test me a lot more than others. I feel like I am always fighting myself...trying to keep a smile on my face, answer questions with grace and understanding, and move through the day without letting my frustration show. In those moments, I sometimes forget why we do this.

This morning, I got a reminder. We are finishing up a house for a woman named Dominga. I was here when the construction began in March, and have been able to watch the progress and stand beside her as her excitement has grown. I took the group to pray with her on Sunday afternoon, and usually I don't remember actually what we pray when we do this. But this week I vividly remember praying and looking forward to the moment when we stand with her on Friday, inside her completed home, and get to shout 'Hallelujah!' to the God who has faithfully and graciously provided for her family. But, in the last few days of insanity, I had forgotten about that prayer. I had forgotten about how excited this family is. I had forgotten what a significant week this is for them. This morning, I was reminded of that looming 'Hallelujah!' when I saw Dominga standing outside of her home, as a group of loud, messy, crazy Americanos were painting her home, and watched her tear up. I saw her cry at least 5 times this morning because of the joy this week brings. She even told us later in the morning that her stomach has been hurting, because she is just so excited. I don't know if I know the kind of excitement she is feeling right now. Excitement rooted in the completion of God's promise for a home for her family. Excitement rooted in a new life of security, safety, and stability for her family. Excitement rooted in God's incredible faithfulness and presence during all of the hard times that have led up to this week. Her excitement makes ME excited, and brings me so much joy. Dominga reminds me of why I am here. She reminds me of why God continues to call me back to this place, and she reminds me of God's own faithfulness and planning in my own life.

Not to us, O Lord, not to us but to your name be the glory, because of your love and faithfulness. ~Psalm 115:1

Pictures from Haiti

Here are a few pictures from the day in Port au Prince. They are in completely random order, because blogging in foreign lands is difficult :) All of these are taken from the bus, so don't judge them for struggling!

The rubble clogging the streets of Port au Prince.
The Presidential Palace, directly across from Mission Rescate.
Our first view of the Presidential Palace as we turned the corner toward the mission.



One of the many tent cities around the city.
The line waiting to cross the border into the D.R.
The border. See that fence on the right with the barbed wire on the top? That is the official border between Haiti and the D.R. Secure, eh?
The insanity of the border on market day. This means that markets are set up on both sides of the border and people are free to walk/run across to buy whatever they need.

Me and Emmanuel at around 6am on our way to Haiti. We are only moderately struggling after no sleep. Emmanuel is the co-director of the Haitian Care Team with Mission Emanuel.

Reflections from Haiti

Yesterday is a day I will be processing for a long time. The delirium of beginning a drive to Haiti at 3:45am and returning at midnight keeps me from really being able to fully understand what yesterday will continue to mean as I rest and recover. I think I have gotten to a point in my life where I can enter into the heartbreaking conditions of third-world countries without focusing on how bad things really are. I have seen it so many times, so I am able to walk in and focus on loving the people I meet and getting to know their stories without engaging too much with how poor the conditions really are. Intellectually, I know it and I see it, but emotionally, I am able to be there without letting myself be gripped by all that I am seeing. That first mission trip feeling of being shocked by how people live has long since passed. Yesterday, Haiti broke me out of that. It was impossible to shut off my emotions as I drove through Port au Prince and thought about all that has transpired in the last six months for these people around me.

There was rubble all around us, piled high in the streets because the crumbles of concrete have nowhere else to go. Everywhere you turn, there are tent cities where thousands upon thousands of people have been living since the beginning of January. Some of them are real tents, but some people don't even have those, so instead are living in tent-like structures made out of tree branches and tarps provided by aid organizations. There is no running water or sanitation in these tent cities, and each one has only a few portable toilets for everyone to use. The smell is unbelievable when you open windows in the bus or get out of the car, and it is heartbreaking. Port au Prince is a sea of humanity, with millions of people packed in, trying to get back to their normal lives. There are markets, people selling clothes and food on the side of the road, and people clearly walking to or from work just on any other day. But amidst all of that normalcy are collapsed buildings, signs saying 'We need help please,' people still recovering from injury, tents in front of collapsed houses which have yet to be repaired, and spray-painted indicators on each house telling whether they are condemned, fixable, or already livable. Proof of the earthquake is everywhere, and it is hard to imagine how this city will ever recover.

Even as we entered the grounds of Mission Rescate to unload supplies and work, our last view before turning into those gates was the severely damaged and partially collapsed Presidential Palace. It is impossible to forget why we are here and the tragedy these people have survived. We unloaded our 3000 bottles of water, clothes, and medical supplies, with the help of 5 lively, smiling, energetic young boys. They greeted Anna and Emmanuel, the leaders of Mission Emanuel's Haitian Care Team, with hugs, jokes, and laughs. They sang American pop songs to us that they learned from the radio. We introduced ourselves, hung out with these kids for a bit, and then got put to work elsewhere. Half of our group was packing food bags for families containing rice, water, and other essentials. The other half went to the clinic, where patients came in, gave us a paper proving they had seen the doctor, and then were given one of these bags of food. Standing in the clinic, I had a few minutes alone with a 12 year old boy named Emmanuel, Mani for short. We talked using a combo of french, spanish, and english (the only time high school french has ever paid off in the DR!). As we talked, laughed, and got to know each other, I was struck by the knowledge that this sweet young boy who didn't want to leave my side had suffered the loss of most of his family only six months ago. He is living in a tent, in a city full of despair and sadness, and yet he stands beside me with a smile on his face. Maybe he is young and resilient, maybe he is in denial, or maybe he is trying to move through tragedy the only way he knows how. No matter what the reason for the smiles, I still find it incredible.

There is so much I could describe or tell you, but I just don't know how. Mission Rescate is doing incredible work, and has assembled a team of people willing to sleep in tents and live in poor conditions themselves in order to care for the Haitian people. Just as the Haitians live without running water or sanitation, so do these missionaries at Mission Rescate. There were Dominicans, Haitians, and Americans working here to help the city of Port au Prince recover from tragedy. I am incredibly thankful for my day there, and humbled by the way these people are willing to sacrifice in order to help other children of God. It makes me think about what I can do for Haiti, and how I am called to give back to these people who need so much. I am praying and hoping God will show me a way. Will you pray with me for the Haitian people? Will you pray for ideas and resources to help? I know I didn't go to Haiti just to see it and forget about it. So now the question becomes 'what next?' How can we do more for the Haitian people? How can we help Mission Rescate with the incredible work they are giving their lives to?

Road trip to Port au Prince, anyone??

It is true, my friends. I am taking a road trip to Port au Prince tomorrow. Me and 15 others...we are loading the staff, the leaders of the Haitian Care Team, 3000 bottles of water, medical supplies, and clothes into the guagua (bus), and hitting the road for Haiti at 2:45am. Why so early, you may wonder. Well, that is because we will have to sit at the border for hours and wait to go through passport and security checks not once, but twice. Once with the Dominican border patrol, and once with the Haitianos. This is going to be quite the ride. We will be in Haiti for the afternoon, delivering the water and supplies to Missione Rescate, which is located in the center of Port au Prince directly across the street from the national palace. We are going to get to see a good bit of the city on the way in and out, but are largely making this run to deliver the supplies. No time for tourism or scoping things out! I am excited to just ride through the city and see for myself what is happening in terms of relief and recovery since the earthquake. I imagine it is still going to be quite the mess, but we are all looking forward to seeing for ourselves.

So, please pray for safe passage through the border, safe travels, and for our own processing as we return from our day. Mostly though, I would love prayer for the missionaries and relief workers we will encounter. I know they need to be loved on, encouraged, and strengthened for all of the hard work they are facing. Pray that they have the strength to continue serving God in such a tough environment, and for Missione Rescate as they bring in aid, workers, and ministry to the people of Port au Prince. I can't wait to send updates your way!

Miss you all,

Deeds

I started writing this yesterday, and then ran out of time...Oh well! Here it is, one day later!

Happy Friday!

We have made it almost completely through week one! The group leaves tomorrow, and the only hiccups of the week have been a lot of rain and a pretty nasty stomach virus hitting the staff and group. Since I am not in charge of viruses or weather, I think I did ok! We completed Carina's house, and were able to join them today for a dedication. The group poured floors, primed, painted, and the family is ready to move in! The hardest work of the week, though, was on Glendy and Bijo's house. We poured the footers all morning on Wednesday. If you are not used to construction in the DR, this means people lined up from the pile of cement next to the cement mixer, a lot of buckets, and a lot of passing buckets to get them across the lot to the footers. Shoveling, passing full buckets, passing back the empty buckets...we all arrived at lunch on Wednesday covering in cement and sweat. This is the most difficult part of any house we build, so it is nice to have that behind us! Walls are beginning as we speak, and the house will continue to progress throughout the month.

By far, one of my favorite parts of each week is Wednesday evening. The staff has some fun alone as we spend the evening in Cielo cooking together for the American visitors, and then going to church. I love that time when we are halfway through the week, dressed up for church, fighting off the mosquitos, and gather around the grill to cook. We listen to music, tell stories, get work done, but mostly act silly. It is always a fun time to be together. Then, it is topped off by a wonderful worship service with all of the people we only see on Sundays and Wednesdays. Every worship service feels like a reunion, and is a great time to greet friends and be reminded of why we come to the DR and why we serve. This week was different though. Thursday was a holiday in the DR, so everyone had the day off of work and school. In the US, that means a cookout, a party, inviting friends over, whatever. Here, that means they drop everything and spend the entire evening at church, worshipping from 8 until midnight. It makes me wonder how Americans would respond to that idea...I imagine they would not be lining up to attend. There is such a huge difference between the American church and the Dominican church. I have watched it for years, and I continue to think that the daily dependence on God for basic needs is a major source of that difference. This stay-at-church-all-night-for-your-holiday-extravaganza just feels like another example of that. A day off of work is a day for celebrating what God does each day, and what God provides each day. I am challenged and convicted by it. I think I need more celebration with God. I think the church needs more celebration with God...of God...

Group number one

Hi friends!

First of all, thanks to all who have been praying. Our first two days of work have gone extremely well. I was a little nervous Monday going into the week, because I am not used to being in charge without anyone to defer to when it comes to decision time. Monday was the first test of that, and all of the work projects went well. Javier, the Dominican Director of Mission Emanuel, has done an incredible job of setting up the projects, so he is making my job look easy. He is really the one in charge, and it is a blessing to work with him and watch him serve these communities and these crazy Americans so well. We are currently working on two different houses. The first is for a woman named Carina, who has one child in our school, and came to Mission Emanuel asking for help on their home. They have slowly been building their own home, a piece at a time when they have extra money, doing all of the construction themselves. So, for the last year, their entire family has been living in half of a home. In Cielo, that means living in about 1 room. They asked for help with materials and labor, so the group will work this week and complete their home. We went to visit them on Sunday, see the construction site, and pray with them before our work began. It is always beautiful to stand with a family and know that at the end of this week, their dream of a complete home of their own will finally come true. It is pretty amazing to watch their joy and excitement. These days of construction bring so much hope to their lives, and I am thrilled to dedicate their house on Friday morning. We will all gather with them, share in their joy, and pray for the life they will have in this new home. What an amazing moment to witness! We poured the concrete floors this morning, after hours of bucket lines to move all of the materials yesterday. The only thing left is to sand the walls, prime them, and paint. So exciting!

The second project is for a family who has worked for Mission Emanuel for many years. I helped build their current home when I was here for a spring break in college. They have been living within the compound of the ministry, with the husband taking care of the grounds and working with maintenance, the wife teaching in the school, and their three children always around to play, help out, and even serve on summer staff. This is a well-known family to all who serve Mission Emanuel, so it is special to build them another home. We are moving them because their first home was converted to offices for the mission, as they need to move in order to have a little space between work and home. This house means a little less insanity, more privacy, and some space away from work. Just like I wouldn't want to live in a manse attached to my church, they want some space! So, footers have been dug, rebar laid, and pouring of the footers begins tomorrow. Hours and hours of concreto!! My favorite :)

So far, all is going well. There are a few things about this trip that will be different for me. I am trying to view this as two months of living here, rather than visiting. So, my camera is safely tucked away in my bag, because I am no longer a tourist here. These are my friends, my community for two months, and my job. So, there will be a lot fewer pictures this time as I simply live here, rather than view moments as photo opps. My life in the DR this time will be much more like actual life, instead of a fun visit and adventure.

Continue to pray for our progress, strength and energy in the heat, and for all of the teenagers with us this week. I know how much international missions and service to others can change the life and attitude of a teenager, and I hope that God is doing a lot of that this week. I do sometimes need to be reminded of how I was so deeply changed at their age because of trips like this. God spoke to me then and continues to speak to me now...I sincerely hope God is speaking to these kids now and will continue to walk closely with them.

Thanks for your prayers!

Time for another adventure

The time as come for more fun and hard work in the DR! I leave tomorrow for two months of work with Mission Emanuel, and am excited to see what the summer holds for our staff and for the teams coming to work. Our staff is larger this year than last, and our groups are smaller, which will be an interesting change. Then, after 4 weeks of groups, I have a month to live with my friend Anna in Cielo and get to know regular life in the DR. So far, I have only experienced life there as a short-term missionary, living in a hotel rather than the community, so it will be interesting to stay a bit longer and see what it is like to be in Santo Domingo without groups to lead around or projects to coordinate. It will just be me and the few permanent American missionaries. My Spanish will really be put to the test during that time, so I am thankful that I get to spend my mornings studying spanish with my dear friend, Emmanuel. I am hoping for a lot of growth and progress in that time!

I look forward to updating you with fun and exciting stories over the next few months. Please be in prayer for our staff arriving Friday and Saturday, and for our first group from Alabama arriving on Saturday as well. I love this group and their leadership, so it will be exciting to see them and catch up over the course of that week. Nothing makes a project more fun than an energetic and silly group of high schoolers, so I am excited to get to work with our group from Frazier UMC!

Much love,

Deeds

My trip came to an abrupt and unexpected end on Thursday morning when I got a call that my grandmother had passed away. I left the DR Thursday afternoon, flew to Philadelphia, drove to Princeton, unpacked, repacked, slept for 4 hours, headed back to the airport in the morning, and flew to West Virginia. It was really difficult not only to leave, but to leave so unexpectedly, without goodbyes, without any kind of end. Please pray for my family, for the team still in the DR, and for my friends who are driving to Haiti today. 

Love to you all

I haven't posted in a few days, but I don't have a lot of time, so this will be short! The week is going really well. I am having a different kind of week here than I normally do, because instead of spending a lot of time in the village with Dominicans, I have been spending a lot of time in the Haitian community here. Mission Emanuel started a Haitian Care Team right after the earthquake, which is providing lunch for children everyday. I have gone with them to serve lunch each day this week, the first two days for about 80 kids, and today, to a smaller group of 40 students who attend the Haitian school. The difference between these Haitian children and the Dominican children is astounding...the Haitian children are so well-behaved, polite, easy to work with, and very appreciative of the time we spend with them. They have loved the simple songs, games, and crafts we have done with them, even if they are not as exciting as they could be. I can't explain why, but I am loving entering into the this new community. This week is opening up a whole new side to Cielo for me, and I am so thankful for the moments to learn and see something entirely new. I jump at the chance to go spend time with these kids everyday, and am passing up work on construction projects to do it (if you have ever been on a mission trip with me, you know this is rare). God is doing something beautiful in this Haitian community, and I feel so lucky to work alongside great people and be a part of this crowd for just a few days. 

On Saturday, a few of us from Mission Emanuel are going over to Port au Prince to visit some of the aid and relief organizations we have been sending our supplies to. I am excited to go and see what the disaster relief looks like and is accomplishing, but I also know it will be an incredibly difficult and emotional day. I would love your prayers for safety, and even more for my return and what it will mean to process what I see there. Only 5 of us are going, so please pray for our time on the road, our conversations, the people we encounter, and the work we may do. Most importantly, continue to pray for the Haitian people who continue in need of water, food, and shelter. 

It has been a good few days, relatively low-key and uneventful until today. We have mostly been doing preparation work for a ground-breaking ceremony tomorrow for a new expansion of our medical clinic. A lot of cleaning, moving things from one room to another, setting up for the events, etc. Necessary, but certainly not exciting. A great part of that time has been working alongside friends and getting to catch up on what has changed in their lives in the last several months. Several of my closest Dominican friends have changed jobs, moved, or had major changes in their families since I last saw them, so it was a blessing to talk with them while doing some mundane tasks. As things get busier over the next few days, it gets harder to find those moments for extended conversation, so I am thankful for the time to be with them. They enrich my life so much, and I am always most challenged and enlivened by my time with these friends while I am here. 

Sundays are always special here, and today was no exception. We started the morning at a Haitian church, which is backed by and connected with Mission Emanuel. This church is where our Haitian Care Team is doing much of its work in response to the recent earthquake. The church community has grown a great deal since I was last here, because of the number of refugees coming to Santo Domingo. We got to sit in worship with them for about an hour (probably only 1/3 of  their worship service!) and enjoy their prayers and memorization of Scripture. I love sitting in the room with them when they do this...one person stands up and walks them through several verses, phrase by phrase, asking them to repeat after the leader, until the whole group has succeeded in memorizing the verses without ever seeing it written down. Then, a few brave souls will stand up and prove their skills of memorization. It is really helpful for me in learning new words in Creole or Spanish, and something about the repetition is entertaining for me. Grandparents, teenagers, little kids, all participating in this memorization together. I love it! 

After their worship service, we left and went to Cielo to the Dominican church. This feels like an extension of my own church family as I am greeted with hugs, kisses on the cheeks, questions about school and home, and am able to chat with families I only see on Sunday mornings. We got to work after this 2nd service of the day, and dished out 200 meals of what they call here the Dominican flag: a traditional DR meal of rice, beans, chicken, and salad. We took the packaged meals over to the Haitian church, serving each person 1 box of food of their own, and one to take with them to deliver to a friend. People ate together, laughed, mingled, and had a great time. This actually didn't feel drastically different from all of the meals we serve, eat, and share at Broad Street Ministry, where I work in Philly.  

The highlight of the day came for me as we stayed for some extra time at the Haitian church, about 6 Americans from the Mission, the Haitian pastor, and 2 other members of the congregation. As we stood and chatted, about 10 of the Haitian men began practicing music they will sing in a few weeks. They stood close together, and started singing this beautiful song in Creole. We all stopped talking, struck by the incredible beauty of the song, partly because of its simple harmonies and lyrics, and partly because they sang with such passion that you couldn't help but stop and stand in awe. Pastor John leaned over to me and said, "They are singing 'Father, Father, how long must we suffer? Father, Father, how often to we complain for nothing?'" These simple moments strike me...cause me to tear up...make tragedy real rather than abstract...teach me what psalms of lament really sound and feel like. 

Pray for this Haitian church, as they work to care for these new refugees in their midst; as they try to care for their own members who are grieving losses; as they try to blend these two groups together into one community brought together by God. Father, Father, how long must they suffer?

Back in the saddle...

Well, I am finally back in the DR after too many months away! I arrived safely last night, and have already been out to Cielo to catch up with a few old friends before the work begins. Our group of 60 college students from Wake Forest (Go Deacs!) and UNC (Boo Carolina!) will arrive on Sunday, so the next few days consist of preparations, relaxation, and updates on what has changed in my months away. It is crazy to think that since I was last here, the ministry has continued to grow and change so much that several friends of mine have joined the full-time staff, a new office building has been set up, our physical therapy clinic has been completed, a new generator is getting ready to be installed, and the Haitian Care Team has been established to help with all of the refugees that have flooded into Cielo and Nazaret. Things look different here so quickly...I miss a lot when I am away for 8 months! 

I would love your prayers for the group about to arrive...many of these college students have never been here, and thus will have a pretty eye-opening few days. You can pray for their construction projects, for the energy and strength to work hard at some seriously physical labor over the next week. For their visits with the Haitian Care Team, as they feed children each day and provide them with activities to fill the void now that they have left their homes. For the team dynamics...that they will love each other well and deeply, in spite of personality differences or conflicts, and the challenges of being in a new and unsettling environment. For their leadership, for their times of worship and prayer, for new relationships forming between Americans and Dominicans, for God's presence to be seen and known. God is always so evident to me in this place, and I hope this will be the case for these students as well. I long for people to love this country as much as I do, and to see how these communities have been so drastically changed, healed, and helped in the last 15 years of Mission Emanuel. The Dominicans who serve here constantly are doing incredible work, and we are blessed to come alongside them and be a part of it. It is a blessing simply to witness what is happening here! God is good, and I look forward to seeing prayers in action this week. Hopefully I will have some interesting updates to share!