I went to the kitchen early to try and make coffee I developed a new appreciation for the hard work the Haitian staff endure cooking with no coffee maker. I learned to make it from scratch with a makeshift filter and boiling water. It seemed like such a huge task when trying to do it for a large group of people. After a short day in the clinic seeing patient’s we saw fewer than before and ended early. I had planned on returning to PAP on Friday to arrange mobile clinics with Haitian staff. Since I had another delay in getting meds out of customs and want to use them for mobile clinics I decided to wait until Monday. Pastor Luc who I had met before came to the guest house to meet with me in PAP on Friday, as we were supposed to connect to plan for the mobile clinics. I did not realize he would just come early and I was sorry I missed him so we had to plan for another time. I learned how important it is to build relationships over time in Haiti. He wanted to sit down to meet to get acquinted before carrying on the business of mobile clinic planning. It was a lesson for me on putting people first over time even if it meant, as it often did, taking more time to get things accomplished. I learned to value this approach of building relationships first as it feels like it is something we lack in American culture.

I wanted to use the time after the clinic to go explore the neighborhood and a group of translators were going to head out with us. The clinic owners didn’t want us to go out so we stayed in instead. I was hungry and the Haitian cooks made me a snack with fried potatoes which were so good.

I called for my ride, a taptap from a driver named Bertrand and he came to get me. We drove through Carrefour and other cities on the was on the way back to Port au Prince where the Walls guest house was that I wanted to stay at that night. I wanted to get back to PAP for church in the morning at an English speaking service at a church called Quisqueya or Port au Prince Fellowship that I enjoyed before. I also wanted to make plans for the mobile clinic.

En’route to the guest house he took me to a market where I bought foods and some gifts for an old friend of mine. I was able to connect w him and drop off the gifts in PAP.

After arriving at the Walls Guest house I quickly met a large new group. Many of the translators/ staff recognized with the group recognized me and came to greet me with smiles. It was a nice welcome and pleasant surprise. I learned they were working with a large group from North Carolina – Duke University lead by a nurse practitioner to do mobile clinics which was really exciting. I enjoyed listening to the group sing Christian songs with a devotional led by Frantz, one of the translators. He spoke from topics taken from Matthew 25:14-18, and he gave a sermon and said prayers. I felt God’s presence in the midst of all of it and it was so moving and reassuring. It seemed this is exactly where He wanted me to be and I had no idea why I was wanting to come back to the Walls Guest house, just felt compelled to come back. I met with the group leader, learned about their plight for the mobile clinics which was consistent with what I was seeking to start so I was happy to make this serendipitous connection. They invited me to work with them and go to church the next day. The Lord knows how hard this trip has been and it was such a Blessing to cross paths and have this encounter, all by His design in my view. I even was given my own room by the hotel manager Veniel which was nice with AC. They’d move me into my own private tent the next night which was perfect. After chatting with several of the people and taking time out for prayer and reflections I returned to the dining area. The group was singing worship songs out of a book with a guitar, one of my favorites caught my attention, “You’re all I want.” Felt like confirmation for me that this is where I was supposed to be at this moment.