| (The Summer of 1986) | | | | or at least you are somewhat prepared for them, |
| I used to travel a lot, 713,000-air miles as of | | | | when they do come, and they do come. |
| today, and this writing. In 1986, I traveled to Haiti | | | | Anyhow, slaves intermarried with the French, so |
| for a two week stay, to do some missionary | | | | you get some lovely women there with mixed |
| work up in the mountains; so I really do not know | | | | blood. I noticed a handful of white residents in the |
| how it is today, other than some of the turmoil in | | | | republic back then, not many, mostly |
| the newspaper I've read; and the updating I used | | | | concentrated in Port-au-Prince. French may be the |
| get in letter form about every three months | | | | official language, but Creole is the spoken one |
| from certain folks I've met back then-stopped | | | | when I was there. Mixed with Creole is English, so |
| some years ago also, but let me tell you about | | | | listen closely: there is a saying in Haiti: the poor |
| the Haiti I knew back in 1986, it may come out | | | | man doesn't dream of a chicken; he dreams of an |
| better. | | | | ox: Cbien derrie cbien; devant Cbien: Monsieur |
| First of all the people were very warm, kind, but | | | | Cbien; accordingly, this leads me into my next talk. |
| poor, for the most part-some very poor. I was in | | | | Like in Peru, the Haitian peasant has what you call, |
| several locations, but Port-au-Prince, was my first | | | | honorable stealing...and perhaps a little fighting |
| stop where I stayed and slept on top of the roof | | | | mixed, but I've only seen a very limited part of |
| of an orphanage and brushed the cockroaches off | | | | that Haiti, I was of course careful, and I'm sure I |
| my back when I was trying to get to sleep (I did | | | | was lucky. They are good-humored and to a |
| some puppet playing with the kids there); after | | | | certain degree philosophical, not sure why, they |
| two days there, we drove by truck to the | | | | are poor as mice, but they smile all the |
| mountains (not steep mountains like in Peru, but | | | | time-nonetheless, they appear to have a good |
| difficult to drive a truck up, and muddy), and | | | | outlook on life. |
| settled at a Baptist Church, slept on the floor, like | | | | Because they are poor, and because of this lack |
| everyone else does up there, wooden flexible | | | | of income-especially in the mountainous |
| rugs-we did bring along some blowup rubber | | | | areas-they get their neighbors to help them do |
| mattresses, so some of us got a better night | | | | big jobs, like: building a shelter, that is more like a |
| sleep than others: the village was very small-called | | | | shack or something on that order, and in return, |
| Rankeitte (forgive the spelling, that is how it | | | | they help them later in the construction area. And |
| sounded). It only had about a hundred folks there, | | | | normally a feast is done soon after the |
| and occasionally I went to Cap Haitian, a few | | | | construction is complete, that is to say, similar to |
| miles down the mountain from where I was. I | | | | the Peruvians- |
| helped build a medical clinic for the poor folks | | | | When we built the clinic we did pay the help-some |
| there, the doctor said he wouldn't treat them | | | | of the help that is, and we did have a gathering in |
| unless someone did, so nineteen of us-out of | | | | the mist of a fire, and some eating, with the |
| Minnesota (young, old, male and female), jumped | | | | midnight moonlight overhead, and we danced and |
| on a jet, and flew into Haiti, and did just that. | | | | celebrated for putting that last brick into place. |
| The blacks are descendents of the African slaves | | | | In the day you see them, [them being: the |
| imported into Hispaniola sometime in the 16th | | | | Haitians, the common folk] preaching Christianity, |
| century. The Mulattoes I recall were descendents | | | | and at night you hear the voodoo drums. That is |
| of these slaves. I took a six week course back | | | | what I call red beans with sweet potatoes. Well, I |
| then before I went to Haiti and here I only | | | | could write on and on about Haiti, and its lovely |
| stayed in Haiti for two weeks, but I felt-as I | | | | people, and this is really my second article on Haiti, |
| often feel-it is wise to know the background and | | | | I did one back in 2005. Haiti never gets old for |
| culture of a new place in the world, in which you | | | | me, I am still fond of that country, and I do hope |
| are intending to visit; thus, you get less surprises, | | | | they will find peace among themselves. |