Nativity Day 3: Water Truck Day

Today in Cite Soleil, we delivered 10,500 gallons of water to three different stops. What that means is we brought a water truck with us and parked on a street in the city while the citizens lined up to get buckets full of water. When we got to the site, we would step off the tap-tap (bus) and were thrown into action until the water ran out.  Immediately, we were swarmed by the children begging for attention.  When the water started flowing, two of our team members would hold the hose over buckets and the Haitian women would direct others to lift up water buckets onto the heads of women and children and also carry water to homes; with a constant stream of children grabbing, talking and climbing on us.  Each stop and community had different characters and occurrences.  What really made it difficult was the emotional aspect of it all.  Nothing could have prepared us for what we experienced.  Although Cite Soleil is the poorest city in the western hemisphere, among the sewage, trash and malnourished children, we saw laughter, dancing, splashing in the water, beautiful smiles, and many thanks.  Cite Soleil is not just a statistic, it's a living, breathing, vibrant, loving community with beautiful children and families.  It will take us a long time to process what happened today, and we may never be able to put it all into words, but it will be an influential experience for a lifetime.

Julia & Elena

Carrying Water

At the Guest House