It's A Small World After All...

The first day we were in Haiti, we didn't go to the orphanage. There were some political protests in the plaza across the street and it was a little dangerous for us to venture out. Day number two was more of the same with an added twist. The employees at the hotel asked us to stay inside because the police had just fired tear gas on the protestors and there was "a little bit of gas in the air". Now I don't know much about tear gas, and I think I'd prefer to keep it that way. We stayed inside.

On Wednesday, I was able to join a group of amazing people going to the orphanage to drop off supplies and do a little work to improve the living conditions of the sweet little children living there. I had a little project to contribute myself. In retrospect, it probably wasn't much, but I hope it will bring a few smiles to some precious little faces. This is the wall before I got to it. Sorry Mr. Alien, but you are in my way.

This was the finished product. These are pictures of the children and some of their forever families. Sorry I can't get a tighter shot, but there are a few privacy issues I don't want to violate...

Most of this I did with an adorably plump (not sure how he managed to be plump in an orphanage) little boy on my hip. I tried to put him down, but he kept tapping on my knees, and it didn't take long for him to break down my resolve.

I hear the map fell down about 10 minutes after I put it up. Apparently that tacky clay stuff doesn't hold up so well in when subjected to blistering Haiti heat in the middle of June. But hey, neither do I! 1,002 uses for duct tape!

We were able to bring down some fans for the orphanage, so that when it actually has power, they can cool it down a bit. And by "we" I mean the real hero's and volunteers. I just rode in the van.

Stay tuned for the next installment. Things really got fun when we LEFT the orphanage...