Our last full day!

Our last day in Haiti is drawing to an end, and we are amazed at how fast it went.  This week has been full of love, joy, and many cherished memories made.  Today we started off the morning with a great time at church.  The missionary families here have their own church service each Sunday morning, and we had the opportunity to lead praise and worship for them.  Kayla Ulferts valiantly lead us in guitar as well.  She did a phenomenal job, especially considering she has only had four lessons so far! Then we took the kids to have a childrens' service outside, while the parents listened to their sermon.  We had very short notice of doing this, so Dan shot from the hip and corralled us together to perform a few skits of some Bible stories.  The children loved it and so did we!

Next we ate an early lunch and headed out for the Cidadel.  The view from the back of the pickup was beautiful as we bounced and bumped along the winding, treacherous road to the mountain.  Finally we arrived at the bottom of the mountain where the Cidadel was.  As we crawled out of the van on our wobbly, stiff legs, we were engulfed by Haitian people asking us to buy their gift items or horses.  How adamant they were!! So today we learned the valuable lesson of learning to say "no."  Thankfully our Haitian tour guide took care of all the communication for us and found us each a "horse" to ride up the mountain on.  These animals were far from what our American standards of horses are.  It was especially interesting for me (Christine) to compare these horses to mine at home.  They were tiny and as thin as it gets.  Not only that, but when we were riding the horses up the mountain, the Haitians repeatedly whipped the hind ends of the horses with sticks to keep them going.  Needless to say, these poor, visibly scarred horses, live a lifestyle far different than my pampered furry family members at home.  

Anyways, we all made it safely up the mountain on our trusty steeds and arrived at the huge stone fort, called the Cidadel.  This fort was made in the early 1800's when Haiti got their independence from France.  It was built to defend against the French in case they came back to claim Haiti again.  20,000 workers died building it, and they worked for food and water. The mortar between the bricks was made out of cows' blood and sugar cane!  The Haitians never ended up using this building for its intents, as the French never came back to fight.  The architecture was amazing, and it was unfathomable the amount of labor that went into creating it.  We learned a lot of history during our tour and saw many cannons and cannon balls.  

Lastly, we arrived safely back at COTP, tired from our adventurous afternoon.  Then Julien gave us each a ride on his moto around the area, and we spent some time relaxing and coloring together.  For supper we had goat! It was very tasty and was fun to try something new!  To conclude our last full day here, we plan on doing devotions as a group, playing tons of games, eating a midnight snack of macaroni and cheese, and enjoying each other's company as we have been all week long. 

Throughout the week, we have had exciting new experiences and many comfort zones stretched.  Minus a few tarantula sightings, which we survived, our time here was filled with wonderful opportunities and activities. All these adventures are helping us grow in positive ways.  Personally, I am gaining a deeper appreciation for many parts of the culture here in Haiti.  The sense of community is uplifting, as most everyone helps each other out and sticks together.  The joy and contentment of the people here is both encouraging and admirable.  I have loved the "go with the flow" mind set of the people here and the lack of a strict time schedule.   I believe we have made a positive impact on those we have come into contact with here in Haiti.  Our goal was to bless people down here, and simultaneously, we have recieved such a blessing and refreshment from the loving people here.  Each member of our team is using their own gifts to encourage and help others, and it is a beautiful thing to see.  I am so thankful for each person here and for the love that God has placed in our hearts for others.  We are seeking to glorify God with our words and actions here and always.  We are so thankful for this amazing opportunity and all those who are supporting us with prayer.  

-Christine Mikelson