Master Bedroom Makeover

Before Jake left for Haiti I decided that I was going to use those two weeks while he was gone to be super productive... in a tangible way.  I set the following goals:

• Replace the broken blinds in one window with 2" faux wooden blinds for all three windows in our living room.  I know the math seems off- one set of blinds was broken and three ended up being replaced- but I couldn't bring myself to replace the basic blinds with more basic blinds.  When we moved in I wanted to get plantation style blinds and this was my window of opportunity (pun intended).
• Deep clean the house (including Jake's bathroom).
• Makeover the master bedroom.

And here's what I accomplished:

• I purchased new blinds from Home Depot and recruited my brother-in-law, Will to install them.
• The house was professionally cleaned, but not by me (although I was able to keep it that way for a week until Jake got home).
• I painted our bedroom (Palladian Blue by Benjamin Moore) and Will helped me I helped Will hang curtain rods.
• Ordered a new duvet from Kohl's and then one from Pottery Barn, both of which did not end up working out.  Ugh.  I'm currently waiting for this one to arrive to test in person.
• Picked out and ordered linen fabric and blackout lining for custom curtains.  It sounds crazy, but I really love the Pottery Barn blackout linen curtains at 96" but can't afford four panels at $119/panel.  Who can?  I mean seriously.
• Purchased a fan for our bedroom and requested estimates for installing it.  However, based on the  quotes I got and the fact that we don't know anyone personally who can install it, it will just have to wait.  Hopefully we'll find the time (and money) before it gets warmer.

Before and after shot of our living room window.

More Than Names

I find it's easier to connect to a person, story, or situation when you can put a face to a name.  Here are just a few of the sweet, sweet faces from Haiti.

Let me introduce you to Oxilous, aka Freebird.  He is the second youngest camper and I pretty much fell in love with him the minute he stepped off the bus at Kaliko.  He is deaf and doesn't really speak.  He definitely understands sign language and body language but during Camp Jake we only witnessed him signing once.  He was dropped off a week before the first Camp Jake back in January and the returning counselors said his interaction this trip was world's better than the last's.  I could just eat him up.

This is Jean... another sweetheart in the group.  He is exactly what you would expect of a boy at his age, but was such a helper when given a task and a little direction.  He was eager to fit in with some of the teenage deaf boys, also content with the younger guys too.  He was so fun to be around and full of energy- I'm definitely already missing him.

photo courtesy of Howe Captivate

Marieline was born without part of her left leg and with a right club foot.  No one ever taught her how to use her prosthetic so she either didn't wear it or didn't put weight on it.  She received physical therapy from Jake daily (sometimes twice a day) and her improvements could be seen immediately.  She loved working with him and was receptive to us both early on in the trip.  She was one of the ones I was surprised to see crying through the bus window on the last day.  She has such a strong spirit that her emotion caught me off guard.

There is so much more I could write, and a lot of other campers I could talk about but it would take forever. I'm sure if I have the opportunity to talk to you personally I won't shortchange you on the details!

I'm not sure what I expected

I don't know exactly what I expected our time here in Haiti to look like because there were so many questions as to exactly what we'd be doing, but knowing how emotional I am, I should have known that this trip would pull at the heart strings.

They hadn't even finished unloading from the bus when I pulled my sunglasses down to hide the tears.  It only took a few minutes to know for certainty a couple things.

1. They are thrilled to be at Camp Jake... a majority of them for the second time.
2. There are a lot of them and with that a huge range of handicaps.  There are several blind and deaf campers as well as a fair amount in wheelchairs, all with unique stories and needs.
3. They love, love, LOVE each other and care for each other well.

I could honestly talk about the first day and some of the campers we've learned the stories of for awhile, but in effort to make sure I actually keep up with the posts I'm not going to put every detail onto these pages.  I hope to share enough to let the family and friends supporting us from home feel connected to us and what's happening here.

Today was a total whirlwind.  It was emotional, it was fast paced and slow moving all at the same time (I'm learning about Haitian time and how to tame my Type A tendencies quickly), and it was intense.

Getting 45 campers into their rooms across two floors (some in wheelchairs) was tough.  Helping to get them seated and fed was also tough.  But getting them into the water to relax and swim which they don't have the opportunity to do at the orphanage was easy.  Getting them to grab instruments and participate in creating music (for a couple hours) was also easy.  The best part is that the music came as a plan B for tonight's activities... only when our French dvds wouldn't play on the American dvd player did we have a change of plans.  Regardless, it didn't make much difference.  On a whim a few of the musically inclined counselors started playing the guitar and drums at the end of dinner for fun and that quickly transpired into a camp-wide activity that only thunder and lightning could out a stop to.

To avoid the storm we piled into our meeting space and picked the beat right up where they left off.  The most beautiful part was when the songs turned into worship music, completely at their direction.  When they started singing, "We Worship You" I honestly couldn't take it.  I teared up watching them sing those lyrics from the heart.  I know it sounds cliche, but it was anything but.  This group is faced with some hard challenges daily and despite that their faith is like a rock.  They sing with pure joy in their hearts.  It's inspiring and not something I'll soon forget... you simply can't forget such beautiful souls.

We've Arrived in Haiti

We arrived in Haiti around 2:30 yesterday afternoon after some intense traveling.  I won't go into too much detail but originally we had a 6:00am flight out of Norfolk which was cancelled (after midnight), so we rebooked a 7:20am flight out of Richmond.  Brutal, I know.  However, the other person traveling to Camp Jake from Norfolk, Kelly, was really great and recruited her Dad's SUV and generosity to get us there.  After that, everything felt into place as planned.

Once we arrived in Port-au-Prince things got crazy, which we were warned they would.  Not in a bad way, but in a OPEN YOUR EYES sort of way.  They have one carousel for luggage and then a big open area where bags just are put out for pick up.  There are so many people hoping to provide service to arriving travelers the minute you walk in.  Our group had a ton, and I mean a ton, of bags.  People brought all kinds of snacks, games, and gifts for the campers which led to over 20 suitcases for about 10 counselors.  We loaded them onto an open truck, hopped into two vans, and made our way to the Kaliko Beach Club about 2 hours away.

Kaliko Beach is amazing.  We are staying in colorful bungalows that are so close to the ocean that I could hear it as I fell asleep.  The food has been different from the states but good so far, things taste so fresh- even the juices are made on site.  Everything about where we're staying is much nicer than what I expected... which I felt weird about at first.  I guess I felt like we were coming to a third world country and it seemed odd that we'd be spending our time at one of the nicest resorts in the area.  I wasn't sure how that would help us understand and relate to the true poverty right down the road.  And then I understood.  It's not about us- it's about the orphans coming from St. Vincent's and what this experience will be like for them.  The campers that are coming here tomorrow are the ones at St. Vincents that do not have families to visit or a place to go when school is out, so they are coming here for their summer break.  Their comfort, interests, and needs are at the root of every plan in place for the next two weeks.  I have never met a group like this group.  Tom, the camp director has thought of everything.  He has purchased and planned for things I would have never thought to bring for or do with the campers that will make their time here and their perception of themselves that much more special.  I wouldn't even know where to start with examples, but I'll try.  I think as things come together and I share the stories with you it'll be easy to see what I mean.

For now feel free to also follow The Red Thread Promise's blog, as Sonya is blogging consistently from Haiti during the trip.

Counselor bungalows

View of the pool and the ocean just beyond it

back in the states

I won’t even both apologizing for the lapse since my last post, because I’m sure by now you’re tired of reading my excuses.  That said, I’m going to dive right into the subject of this post and will keep my fingers crossed that you haven’t given up on me yet.

I mentioned before that Jake was in Haiti and I’m happy to report that he has arrived back home safe and sound.  He got back Saturday evening and it’s been a whirlwind since.  I would have been happy just to sit in a room with him and hear him talk about his trip for hours… but that isn’t realistic.  There is so much to do now that he is home and so many people who want to talk to him about his experience.

Last night his trip finally caught up with him and he was exhausted.  I used this as an opportunity to seize my one on one time with him and just hang out, plain and simple.  We walked over to redbox, rented a horror movie (crazy, right?), and relaxed- it was A W E S O M E.  But enough about that, I want to share with you guys about Haiti!

For starters, Jake said it was a great trip.  It took some adjusting in the beginning, but once he had patients, he found a groove.  He talked about how quickly they responded to treatment and how they made certain accomplishments look like nothing.  One of his videos has a woman not only walking with her new leg, but balancing a bucket on her head at the same time!  Nuts.  But that’s how it is there.   Not only do they need to regain function in their legs, but they need to be able to move without any hindrances because their families depend on them to contribute.  It’s really amazing and humbling at the same time.  He made some great relationships with locals at the clinic he worked at and I wouldn’t be surprised if he went back next year.

If I had to guess what his biggest struggles have been since coming home, I'd say two things.  First, the excess in our culture; just all the stuff we have and "need" as Americans.  I imagine its really hard to see, let alone rationalize, after being surrounded by poverty and in a country so behind America in so many ways.  Second, I'd say the difference in patients.  He went from having patients travel from who knows how far and then wait hours just to be seen, to being one of hundreds of therapists in VB that a patient could choose from and then decide at any time whether the appointment was worth keeping.  His first two days back were filled with last minute cancellations and I could tell he was struggling to believe being in that clinic was a good use of his time.  I think he is slowly getting settled and adjusting to his old routine.  I find his response to the transition encouraging- I would hope that an experience like that would have a long lasting impact.

Here are some pictures from the trip, the whole album can be seen here.

Haiti

Hopefully most of you know that Jake is currently in Haiti with a group called Physicians for Peace and has been since the beginning of February.  He went there to work with recent amputees as a result of the earthquake.  I saw myself posting more about his trip, but since our communication is limited I don't have much to share.

What I can tell you is that he arrived there safely and said its worse than he had imagined.  As in, the pain and devastation there is really bad, but he doesn't feel like he is in grave danger.  From his emails, I've come to the conclusion that there are just a ton of people there hoping to be seen by these physicians and they most likely won't be.  In the beginning I could tell Jake was frustrated by this.  He of course is helping as many people as he can with the time and resources hes been given, but its hard not to notice the people waiting in line for hours.  I know Jake, and if he could he would work all day and all night just to make a dent in the line, but that isn't realistic.  I've encouraged him to make most the most of the time he has with the patients he sees and to stay focused on them.  I'm not a physician, but you don't have to be to understand how difficult working in that could be day in and day out.  What hes got to keep in mind is that he is helping some, and that matters, it makes a difference.

I'm really proud of him for going on this trip.  He took the initiative to go and I know its going to have an impact on him long after he returns.  I'll be sure to report back once I hear more.

previous Physician for Peace volunteer in Haiti, hope to update with pics of Jake soon