Change… Tonight I was
recalling an event that happened yesterday.
I paused and had to be sure—was it only YESTERDAY that we did our water
truck delivery? How could only one day
have passed and yet I have changed so much? Who could have told me even one day ago that
today I’d be rubbing lotion over the bodies of sick and dying women of all ages
ranging from younger than my own daughters to women older than myself and be
completely comfortable with it? And how
could I have known I would have the opportunity to visit a school that my
beloved late uncle helped to fund and see 625 smiling faces of children, being
taught in classroom settings that are primitive compared to what we are
accustomed to at home and they were thrilled to meet us? I visited a medical clinic so far behind
United States standards that there was no comparison, but yet I found myself
truly impressed with what they DO with what little they have. And finally, that I would go to an orphanage
filled with so many sick and dying babies, hold them in my arms and feed them
and love them and somehow be able to walk away broken-hearted at the end of the
day only comforted by the fact that I WILL be back to see them again?
Everything about today was so detached from my “real” world
but yet so completely comfortable for me to do in the world I live in here in
Haiti.
I think our Lord is allowing me to experience this knowing
that I will go home a “changed” person. My
picture of what Father Reiser saw here in Haiti, what moved him, and what
inspired him to want to help these people is so much more clear to me. The importance of what we are doing at Reiser
Relief has deepened. My interest in continuing Father’s mission
has turned into a passion to continue.
We ARE needed here in Haiti.
Blessings,
Ann
My word for today is SERVANT. We started the day riding to a home for
dying and destitute adults. The plan was
for us to rub lotion on the arms and legs of dying women while our talented
Creole guides sang hymns of praise. They
were warming up their act on our way there, and they soon started singing Fr.
Resier’s favorite hymn in Creole: “How Great Thou Art.” What an excellent moment. I couldn’t help but remember the beautiful
final verse that we sang around Fr. Reiser’s bedside shortly after he entered
eternity: “When Christ shall come, with shouts of acclamation, to take me home,
what joy shall fill my heart. Then I
shall bow, in humble adoration, and there proclaim, My God, How Great Thou Art!” What a humble servant of God; Fr. Reiser
lived to serve others. It set the tone
for our day.
God used me today to serve the dying. With massage, prayer, touch, smiles, and some
very awkward singing in Creole, I knelt before these women and offered what I
could to ease their journey. While
serving them my mind wandered back to Holy Thursday service where, like Jesus,
we kneel before each other and wash feet.
It was beautiful to hear (those who were strong enough) sing along with
great joy and enthusiasm.
God used me today to serve children. We toured Terre Promise School, and came to
learn and understand the needs they have and how Reiser Relief can better serve
them.
God used me today to console those who were crying. We finished our day by visiting a home for
sick and dying children. I held and
comforted babies who wanted nothing more than love and attention. I fed babies who were hungry. I cried over babies who at 12, 18 and 22
months were skinnier than most newborns.
The Sisters do an incredible job of caring for these little ones, but
the needs are so great.
Peace,
Joyce
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