Bon Ane Nouvo!

Happy New Year's!

(since I never know if I'll be online on New Year's, I'll just wish it now.)

I always have mixed feelings at the end of a year. Another year gone??? Am I happy about how I lived it or would I change it if I could? It's a good feeling to be able to feel that I wouldn't change anything. (not meaning I was perfect, just in general, where I am). This has been a great year. A year ago I did my last shift in Canada, and that was that. I left a country of ease and went into the unknown. Though life here isn't what you could possibly call 'easy', it has been a year full of blessings: - a new fulfilling job that is way above my league but I'm enjoying because it feels so worthwhile, lots of new friends both N. Americans and Haitians, exploring and getting to know a new country and culture, - I won't go into detail - it would get too long.

I do want to thank all of you who have been a part of my life this year, and the impact that has left on me.

And now I've loaded up some pictures for you to enjoy.

Bobi's brother Kyle and mom Barbara visited her for a week. They helped out tons with all the Christmas preparations. Thanks for visiting! I feel almost like I got a new family myself!


Also visiting us for 10 days over Christmas and New Year's are Tyler and Nick, medical students from South Carolina. They also got roped into helping their first day here. But we did take them to a nice resort the next day. They've helped out with two clinic days and two Medika Mamba days. This is Tyler on our way to our friends Chris and Leslie. He checked out how it felt riding on top of the taptap, on metal bars. Not sure if that was a better place than our jammed full ride standing up.


Graduation day for one Medika Mamba child!

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Tyler and Nick helping at our Arcahaia Medika Mamba. Since there was no school, Bonnie took the time off to come with us and see how we worked. Her nurturing person even got those little ones to sleep.

Graduation from Middle school to high school for 5 Canaan students
Nancy

Micar

Ismael

Daniel

Zilpa



It was fun for all of us to dress up - Me and Bobi

Pascal, Gerson, and Beno having fun making Mr Robin (after all, what would you do with a lot of grass around the place?

Cadet (our baby)

If you don't have marshmallows, how about candy? Joel thinks it's fun and good!

Bobi and me relaxing at the resort in our new clothes! That was fun!



May the sunset of this year bring you a great sunrise for the new year and may it be good and joyful and fulfilling! Make it so with God's help if the past one wasn't!!!

Elsie

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas!!



It's kind of strange (and nice) to be away from all the commercialism of Christmas. It didn't feel like Christmas at all till a couple nights ago when Bobi's mom, whose visiting her for Christmas, gave me a piece of fudge. It's interesting how certain things (like foods) can send your feelings down memory lane.

Now this place is humming with preparations. All the decorations came out of storage, and we're trying to see where they can be placed. The Christmas lights stay up all year, but I have yet to see one lighted.

Tomorrow, the 24th, is the big day here. Not just Christmas, but they're also planning a graduation. 5 of the kids are entering high school, so they're having a nice graduation for them. It's to inspire the others to keep working towards the goal. There are also three little girls graduating from preschool. Family members have been invited and lots of food is being prepared.

The program is suppose to start around 3, I heard once, and who knows how long it'll be. They also have a Christmas program, so it's a do-it-all-at-once program. It's going to be interesting to see what the traditions are here. Apparently soup is on the agenda for midnight.

We're blessed to have internet again. It wasn't working for about 5 days. That's hard for us down here. Ha!

I'm being called for a medical need so I better go for now.

Have a great holiday season!!!!

Elsie

Wed, Dec 10

Good evening!

Wow! It really has been 12 days since my last post. Hope you got a good rest! Ha!

It's a challenge to my "emotional well-being" to be without a computer here. Some days it feels quite healthy; others, it should be hospitalized! Tonight, it's the latter. So, I'll try to be brief, since I have only half hour on it now. That just might be good for those that think my blogs are too detailed. That's OK. I sometimes feel that too. It's ok to skim over them. 

My parents have come and gone. It was great to have family here, let them see what I do. It was a busy week though and I wasn't able to take as much time off as I had hoped. The first sunday I took them for a drive to St Marc and a little beyond. We spent one day in Port. We only got to go swimming once!

One of the reasons it was so busy is we spent two days opening a Medika Mamba program in Arcahaia. 

                                                                             Bobi and me taking a "break" 

That's about an hour south of us. Thursday Sister Gladys, Bobi, my mom and I went to "scout" the area. We found 13 children that were malnourished. So Friday Bobi and I went back and entered them all into the program. We didn't have a vehicle to go with so the "10:30" time that we told everyone got extended to about 1:00, keeping all the parents and kids waiting. It allowed me to almost finish my morning clinic, but wasn't very nice for the kids. On that note, I have a request for you. Please join us in praying for a vehicle for the Medika Mamba program. Vehicles are quite expensive, especially since it has to be a strong one - 4 wheel drive, able to do mountains, diesel, 'lockable'. We'd rather not have a new one (it hurts too much when {not if} it gets it's first dents  but it has to have a good motor. Sister Gladys says a Land Rover is perfect and lasts forever almost. Maybe, but the price is scary! The need is everywhere; we have the Mamba, but don't have a way to take it to the little kids. We could "extend our borders" a lot if we had consistent transportation. So we're putting the word out there and if there's any way you can help in that, we would appreciate it. If you've always wanted to learn to do fundraising, or need a cause to do it for, here's an opportunity!   It is so awesome to see the health of the children when they're ending the program. I'm learning to appreciate chubby babies!! Today I had a really chubby one at the clinic, and he just looked SO GOOD! 

  

Things are feeling very quiet here right now. Yesterday we said goodbye to Lydia, Kristie, and Bethany. They were here for 2 months. Steve and my parents left the same time. And today Bobi's two friends visiting left as well. That leaves Bobi, Bonnie and me for foreigners. Sister Gladys and Pastor Henri also left today for a week in the States. 

One answer to prayer is we've hired a new nurse. She's Haitian, her name is MarieElise. Please pray for her as she learns the ropes, and me as I teach her. It will still take a lot of training, but she's already helping and I think will work out real well. After my difficult experience in the beginning, I'm happy to expect something different. She's staying here at Canaan, and therefore will be able to help in the Medika Mamba as well, which we really want her to be able to help us with. She knows very little English, so it's a challenge to my Kreyol, but good for it. Teaching everything through a translator is not the easiest thing. Thankfully she's quick to catch on and can go from there. 

Despite the new nurse, we are in need of some trained ones, either short term or longer term. If there's any nurses, doctors, etc that want to come help at the clinic,  please contact me. I would like to take some time off: 

1) to teach the nurses that I have (it's becoming so busy I don't have time to do teachings) 

2) to do some traveling in other towns (to see about starting the Medika Mamba program), 

3) in the summer I want to take a month or two off to go to North America. I'm looking for someone to come work while I'm gone. 

OK, time's up, gotta go.

Elsie