To the Market

With no crafts to prepare for the next day we had time to rest and regroup before the next Haitian outing. Later that afternoon Greg takes us to the Haitian market so we can experience and understand Haiti a little deeper. The market was just a few blocks from where we held VBS. On the way we passed a funeral traveling to the grave yard. I don’t know if it was the body or the smell of the meat in the market but the oder in the air smelled like what you would imagine a week old body would smell like. A Hurst leads the way. The Hurst was missing the driver’s side door and the driver was missing his left arm. I’ll let you put those pieces together. Haitians followed behind the Hurst, dressed in freshly pressed black and white dress clothes. It seemed odd that in Haiti they had clean pressed black and white dress clothes.

As we park on a street corner curb, I look at Greg and ask if we are safe. He looks at me, raises his eyebrows and smirks. I took that as a “not really’. The team leader, Wick, (aka Papa Bear) gives us the talk, “do not give away anything, don’t even act like you understand what they are saying, stay close and keep moving”. As we step on the street of the market a Haitian lady squats down beside me. I watch to see what she is doing, shockingly realizing that she is urinating on the street. Not 1 cm beside her a lady is selling her goods (food). Even more shockingly none of the Haitians seem to see this as inappropriate or out of the norm.
The market was lined with venders, mostly women and all selling the same things. I can only imagine what we must have looked like, a parade of white people. They stared and talked about us just as we did them. We could hear them calling out “white people” in creel.

Matthew 10:6-8
But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. And as you go, preach saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand. Heal the sick, cleans the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils: freely ye have received, freely give.

My little black Nike watch is a part of me. I use it every day at the gym. I’m sure that some clients would love for it to disappear; some insist that it is broken, but it is something I never leave the house without. Most of the time, I don’t think about it being on my arm, it’s always there. This day I should have remembered. Haitians crowded the market street amongst the venders and their merchandise. As we walk in our little parade line through the market someone touches my left arm. I pretend like I didn’t feel it and keep moving. Moments later someone on the right taps me and gestures for my watch. As I look in the guys eyes the words of Papa Bear circle in my head, “don’t even act like you understand what they are saying”. Shortly another man gently grabs my arm and gestures for my watch. I look him straight in the eyes and no other words were needed. Three strikes, so I took off my watch as discreetly as I could and put it in one of the girls back packs.

The photos below were taken by an extremely talented young photographer on our team. The most impressive thing is that they were taken incognito by pointing and clicking. No looking through the lenses, focusing and then clicking, just point and shoot. The down side to these photos is they are so pretty you can’t really get the feel of how grouse this place really was.

James 4:7-8
Submit yourselves, then to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.

Job 22:26-30
Surely then you will find delight in the Almighty and will lift up your face to God. You will pray to him, and he will hear you, and you will fulfill your vows. What you decide on will be done, and light will shine on your ways. When men are brought low and you say ‘Lift them up!’ then he will save the downcast. He will deliver even one who is not innocent, who will be delivered through the cleanness of your hands.