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| This was taken just before I left Chaveneau Pictured eftL to Right are...... Ezechiel, Isaie, Dorothy, Me, Jephty (Caleb & Mis-Rose were at school) |
I love many families in Chaveneau but I truly consider my friend Isaie one of my closest friends-in Haiti or the USA. Not because we have had deep conversations (though now we have- Praise God). Not because we share the same faith (though we do). Not because we are both mothers (but we are). But because I have had lots of time to OBSERVE her. You see, when you can not speak the language well, you sit a lot. And, I do not sit still very well. I am always doing something. So,… if I can’t talk- I watch. And watch. And watch.
Over the years and many trips to Haiti I have watched this woman raising her children. I have watched her interact with love. I have watched her discipline with firmness, but also at times with great tenderness. I have seen her get up early to start cooking meals for her own children but also for me or my teams hosted at her home. I have seen her sleeping on the floor in her main room because I was in her only bed in the house. I have seen her eating a small plate of food while her children are eating large portions. I have seen her so tired at night sitting by the lantern sewing something for a customer to earn a little money for her family. I have seen the look of sadness, grief, pride, lonliness, etc… over the years on different occasions when she doesn’t know someone is looking. I have watched her talk to her neighbors. To pray with them. To encourage them. To listen to them when they sit and tell her stories (when I know she has a ton of work yet to do) And, I have grown to admire and truly love this woman I call friend in Haiti.
Isaie has seven children- Nadege, Jephty, Nazaire, Mis-Rose, Caleb, Ezechiel, and Dorothy. ALL are very respectful and well mannered. The three oldest live in Port au Prince. Nadege is a nurse. The rest are in school. Isaie is the church secretary, a seamstress and teaches at a nearby school. She lives on the church property in a home that is owned by the church. It has three small rooms and lost most of the roof in the hurricane. Her home & yard is the community hangout area since it is at the church. Everyone in the area knows and respects her.
When I saw where Hurricane Matthew was headed way back in October, I knew there would be trouble. I knew what a powerful storm did to well constructed homes after traveling to Mississippi and Louisiana after Hurricane Katrina in the USA. I could only imagine the devastation that Hurricane Matthew would to and, unfortunately, we all know that those predictions were right. But, praise God for people like Isaie and her family in the community of Chaveneau- to arrange for and help us with distribution of food, supplies, seeds, plants, etc. Praise God we know and trust her to know and clearly communicate the true community needs and to guide us as we navigate how to best help these people there. May He continue to be her strength and may she continue to serve Him and be a light in this community.
So…. here are some photos of the family so you can put faces with names.
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| Mis-Rose |
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| Caleb |
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| Dorothy |
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| Ezechiel |
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| Isaie |
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