Re-Entry

So as I am sitting hear in my apartment the day after getting back from Haiti, I am thinking about all that I experienced on our trip. Honestly it is a lot harder than I thought to come back to the States after being in Haiti. It’s almost like over stimulation when you come home. There are so many more choices here and people are in much more of a hurry than in Haiti. I have talked to some of my team members and they are also feeling the “re-entry” effect.

As I think about all of the things I experienced on the trip there is one story that has really stuck with me and it would be the letter that we got right before we left. Our week was spent working on cleaning up the first floor of team housing. There are five boys who live down there that Sandra and Nixon sponsor. They are able to go to school, have meals and get mentored by Nixon. We worked on renovating their rooms, kitchen, dining area and bathroom. When we first saw where they were living it was not very good. Paint was peeling, mold was growing on the walls and we even found remnants of where mice had been there. As we fixed up the rooms, I found myself thinking we should have done more, it should be nicer than we are making it, but of course we ran out of time. This is where the letter comes into play. The night before we left the boys wrote us a thank you letter that Nixon read to us. It was so sweet. They were so appreciative of their new rooms and one boy thanked us for his new shower. It made me realize that the little things really matter. This was a huge deal to them and they were able to see and experience God through our scraping and painting of their rooms.

Even though “re-entry” is very hard we can all hold on to the stories and experiences we have had. It has helped me to see God in even the small things. Thanks for all of your prayers and support. I can’t wait to share more pictures and stories with you all.

-Johnna