Haiti, Day Seven: Yahve Shamma

We spent most of our last full day in Haiti at the Yahve Shamma orphanage. School was out for the summer at 11:30, so we headed over there as soon as the school kids had left.

They're a little more serious about guarding
their pizza outlets than we are.

We'd decided to throw the kids a pizza party in honor of summer break starting, having passed a Domino's Pizza in Port au Prince. But guess what? They don't have the $7 medium carryout special there like they do here. But we all chipped in and it was so worth it to see the kids' reactions!

Many of them had never had pizza before, and while at first we were impressed that all thirty of them waited while we handed out slices and drinks, we realized after the blessing that many of them had no idea how to eat the pizza. Later, we learned from Jean Alix that they are taught at the orphanage not to use their hands when they eat (I imagine this is a huge change-over for a kid used to living on the street). But even considering that, our interpreters had to show many of the kids how to hold the pizza on the crust side and go at it from the point.

After lunch, we did crafts with them, and most of us walked away with pictures created for us by our friends, complete with our names spelled correctly and everything! Lina painted me a picture, while James got artwork from Marceylle and Naderson and several other boys.

Photos from this day start here; click on the picture to go to the album:

Lina took my camera and was snapping pictures of James, me, her friends, and eventually disappeared into her room. She took a picture of her bed because she wanted me to see it, and also of her door. When she saw that other girls were getting their hair done, she sat me down and pulled my straight hair back into a very tidy ponytail, pinning down the short, stray hairs that kept blowing in the wind.

When it was James' turn to have his hair put in corn rows, Lina acted as an assistant to the girl who was braiding, and held the comb when it wasn't in use. James' friend Marceylle watched with no small amount of skepticism.

Again, the kids honed in on James' tongue ring. They also wondered about the earring Andrea has in her upper earlobe. It might be the voodoo influence, but they were quite concerned that either might have sinister connotations. Both our interpreter Dario and their pastor Gaetan assured them that the piercings were fine and not indicative of anything dark.

At one point, James was carrying a little boy around and walked him up a hill near the edge of the property. The little boy indicated that they should just keep walking, out of the orphanage and on. James said that that was a bit poignant for him. All of the kids I saw appeared happy and well-adjusted, they were charming and endearing. But I can imagine some just want to be in a small family and even though Help One Now has assured Pastor Gaetan that no one is coming to fish for adoptable kids, I can't help but wonder whether the kids themselves hold out some hope of that.


Legacy Project from Help One Now on Vimeo.

This project was actually funded and the school building is mostly up. It will be an awesome resource for the kids and the community. Help One Now constantly has projects in the works to work with Haitians to improve their lives. If you are at all inspired by these stories, then you should go read about Ferrier Villiage and think about making a donation. I will always want to be a part of what's going on here, now that I've seen it for myself. And I'd love to have as many friends on board with me as possible.