Thinking back to the weeks before making the move that forever changed my life, I remember thinking:
"I'm going to be living in a hut, with mud walls and killing my own chickens for dinner. I will dress in a skirt and an overly modest shirt (like, I got this blouse from my Gram) on a daily basis."
So. very. clueless...
Then, I arrived in Haiti and found that walls are made of cement and roofs of mortar. Dead, cut up chickens can be bought at a local market. My dark blue skinny jeans can still be something I slip on. I was truly relieved (especially about the chickens).
As the months passed by I found out more:
When they tell you 5 P.M. they mean 6:30. P.M. It's called "island time". And you must adapt, there is no other option.
Currency goes as follows: 5 gourdes to a Haitian dollar. So that 500 bill in your hand is only 100 dollars. This is something that takes months to fully comprehend.
The electricity is never consistent. Not much else to say about that besides "Bonjou Mr.Generator and Madame Inverter!"
As the months grew to be many there was still more to be clued in on:
The language- one word can mean five different things. The word for "scared" is the same word for "peace". So figure.
Your facial expressions can literally redefine a simple statement.
This is Haiti and everything is done differently here. Never impose your own ideas and thoughts on a native. Respect them and how they operate.
I am now on my 15th month of missions and there are still things I am clueless about. Like, why they tell me to wear shoes if my stomach is acting up...but I wouldn't trade the journey to discovering it all for anything!
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