I took my first mission trip to Haiti in October 2005. I fell in love on that trip and left a piece of my heart there. Since then I have made a trip in December 2007, December 2008 and February 2009. My Daughter, Tiffani, made her first trip in December 2008 and then back again May2009.
Well, I guess Tiffani has now boarded the plane for the long trip home from Haiti. She left last Friday, May 22 for the long journey. I cried to see the team leave, but not because I was afraid for my precious daughter to be going. I shed tears of saddness because I wasn't going along with them. It is really hard for me, but I knew that God DIDN'T have my name on this trip. I am sure there are many reasons why, but I believe in my heart that it was a time for my daughter to grow without having me to lean on. She is such a sweet, God loving young woman. I am so very proud of her.I have spoke with her briefly twice since she has been gone. She sounded so good, so at peace with where she was~she is a little home sick, but made the comment that once she is home, she knows she will shed tears missing the girls. The second time I talked with her was VERY brief. She called to tell me that Saintemene had pulled her aside to ask her (in creole~Tiff is learning) if they could get the phone and call Mama Paige. Tiffani got the phone and with Saintmene in tow, headed to the roof to call me. Little Saintemene, "Yaya" is her nickname, got on the phone and said to me (in English~she's learning) "I love you Mama Paige" and "I miss you Mama Paige". It was the sweetest words I have heard in a LONG time. Oh how I long to be there just holding her in my arms. She is a "Hoot" as "funny as they come" LOL She makes me smile just thinking of her. I miss all of the girls. I was glad that Tiffani was there to represent me and let everyone know that I love them and I am praying for them. I hope to be making another trip there very soon. All the while, I can't wait to welcome my princess, Tiffani, back home. I have missed her deeply.
Sunday, December 1, 2008
Wow!!! I can't believe it, I am finially here again. I am in Haiti with my friends. I love this place. There is so much need here, but so much "faith". It just makes me feel good being here, so close to GOD. I can't explain it. I wake up in the mornings here in Haiti and I say, " God what are you going to do today?" "I can't wait to experience all that you have for us today". When I am at home, it seems that I am so "tied" up with life, that I wake and say "Oh God, what do I have to do today?" I just want to have at home what I have here.
This trip is really special to me because I am here with my daughter. I am so excited to experience all of this with Tiffani. She has such a sweet, loving, giving heart. I am so in love with watching her with the people here. She is embracing it all just as I knew she would. She has fallen "in love" also.
Tiffani and I have made several attempts at coming here together, but each time something happened and we couldn't make the trip. Orginally, we were to be on this trip, but I became pregnant and had to cancel. I was so overjoyed with the thought of becoming a mommy once again that I knew Haiti would wait on us. Tiffani was excited about the baby, but sad that we weren't going to Haiti together. On October 15th, sadly, I lost our precious baby to a miscarriage. In December, just two weeks before the team left for this trip, I got an email stating there was room if Tiff and I would be able to go. I prayed about it, without question, I knew that God intended on us being here at this very moment. I am thrilled to be here~~sharing this time with my precious daughter.
Something very special happened today here in Haiti. Of course, each one of us take away from here something different, but I KNOW that this happened today FOR ME. God knew that I needed this. . . we got to share in the experience of childbirth. I held the mom's back, Lori held her hand, while Casey helped coach her through birthing her baby boy. Immanuel Greg was born on this first day of December on the concrete floor of the church at Coq Chante. Our whole group was there together to experience this miracle. Tiffani had an upfront and personal seat at his birth. What an awesome experience for her. Thank you God for this blessing!
Sunday, December 2, 2007 ~~exert from my journal
Today was our first morning to wake up in Haiti on this trip. We are staying at Kamatin on this trip. It is beautiful here. It feels like I am home again, just visiting. I love the people here and the way they make me feel. I feel almost selfish for wanting to come back here. Yes, I do want to bless and serve the people here of Haiti, but I feel as if I am the one who is blessed. I feel even closer to God when I am here. It is as if, I can sit on the roof and reach out and touch HIM. Who wouldn't want to feel that? Ahhhh it's amazing!!!
There is a total of 27 of us on this trip. WOW!!! This morning after breakfast, we decided to break up in groups of three and head out to Belloc and Coq Chante. The last group will stay here and visit the people of Kamatin. I of course choose Belloc. Belloc is the village that we stayed in 2005. I have many special friends there. This is the village that Wousamy, the little Haitian boy that my friends, Mike and Karen are adopting, lives with his family. Wousamy is a very special little boy to all of us. This will be Mike's first time to see him in many months and I want to share in that joyful time. Our group consisted of, Me, Mark, Mike, Jackie (Wousamy's soon to be Aunt), Rachel, Brian, Scott, Tracy and Luke (Missionary from Knoxville that is currently living in Porte au Prince, Haiti).
As our truck traveled down the road toward the church at Belloc, we passed Wousamy's home. He heard the truck and ran out of his house to chase us to the church. My heart raced as I watched Mike move to the back rail of the truck. He reached his arms out for Wousamy and shouted his name. Wousamy ran toward the truck and lifted his little fingers to motion Mike to come to him. He was shouting in Creole. It was a very emotional reunion for Mike, Brian, Mark, Jackie and myself. We had been there together as this relationship blossomed just two years earlier. Wousamy knew this was his papa. Mike jumped from the truck and grabbed Wousamy up. Mmmm that was some good stuff. . . God is so amazing!
We went on into church for the service. Luke and Scott Warwick both preached on "HOPE". After they preached, we took communion. When I "took the cup", it was actually wine~~VERY STRONG~~LOL, it burned from head to toe. What an amazing experience with our friends here. After church, we met up with all the others and walked through the village of Belloc. I got to see many of my friends, SamiLee, Weenzy, Bobby, Janis,James, Wilson, Estephania, Wonshelove and many others. This was a day that I had been dreaming of for two years now. I had promised these kids I would be back and I am finially here.
Tuesday, November 27, 2007
Almost Ready For HaitiTonight was our last meeting for our mission team as we prepare for our trip to Haiti. We actually leave in three days. I am not nervous at all, I have faith in what my God has called me to do. I am only anxious about leaving my family behind. Nathan will celebrate his tenth Birthday on Thursday while i am there. That saddens me, but I know that he too will learn from this. He is making a sacrifrice also. He and I talked yesterday morning on the way to school. I know he understands why I need to do this. Birthdays are so special to little children. It really saddens me that the kids there in Haiti have no idea of what celebrating a birthday is like-they usually don't even know they have had a birthday. We had a time of stillness and prayer tonight before we left our meeting. I have a feeling of peace about this trip. I know I am in God's will. I know that God called ME and that makes me feel special!!!
September 6, 2007
Hello Friends and Family,
I am writing to share some information that is very dear to me. A little less than two years ago, Chuck and I, along with fourteen others traveled to the Island-Nation of Haiti. We visited places called Coq Chante, Kamatin and Belloc. See, these are not places you would hear about on our local news. But, there are children there.....many children. These are children that suffer from malnutrition, ravaged by disease. These children go for days without eating anything at all; they are literally starving to death. These little ones I now call my friends. I promised when I left there, that I would not let them be forgotten. Many of these children have watched their parents die or even seen their brothers and sisters die. They must face this harse reality at such a young age. They are alone, without family, in a country that offers very little hope. See, they have no government to help them and very few organizations, if any in their area.Our Church, Whitestone Fellowship, has been involved with a pastor in Haiti for about four years now. When Chuck and I traveled there in October 2005, I fell in love with these children. I can still see their desperate, yet smiling faces. These are little children that deserve a chance to live; and I promised...I promised to not let them be forgotten.So, I am going back. The first week of December 2007, I will see my little friends once again. I will travel there with a group of twenty others. We will spend the week providing food, clothing, medication, health clinics, classes, music and programs for the children. Most of all, we will share the love of God. I look so forward to seeing their little smiling faces once again.One of the things that stands out in my mind is that a $26 bag of rice would feed a village for approximately one month; and people are starving to death there. They have little access to paying jobs. But they stick together, they share and help each other to the best of their abilities. I know that I can't change the world, but I want to bring them hope. Just as God says, "I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you." John 14:18. Deciding to go on this trip was a little difficult for me. I felt God tugging on my heart strings, but I also had a overwhelming feeling of obligation to my family here. My youngest son, Nathan will celebrate is tenth birthday while I am away. A "big" day for a mom to miss. But, God revealed to me that it is not about me or even my little Nathan. It is about doing his work...about completing His will for my life. It's about spreading His love--His word. It's about bringing hope to the "hopeless". Amazingly, it's about teaching my young son this lesson also.But, as we all know, God is so good. Last week, when given our itinery for the week, I noticed something different on the agenda. See, Pastor Juste has been wanting to take us to the beach each time we go, but we say no. We wouldn't feel right about that, we were there to help; not vacation. But, he wants to show us the beauty of the Island, so we agreed on one conditon; that we would be allowed to take 13 orphaned girls from Coq Chante with us. These children have never been outside of their own village and definiately never seen the ocean or even riden in a truck before. While at the beach, we will get to treat them to ice cream for the first time in their lives. To say more about His goodness, this is to take place on MY son's birthday. It will be a celebration that I will never forget, nor let him forget. God is so GOOD!!!I would like to ask each one of you to pray for us. Pray for God's guidance for each one of us. I am also asking you to pray about helping us, help these children. If God stirs in your heart, then let us know. Please remember to pray for us. Pray also for Chuck and the kids, as I will be leaving them behind to care for each other.
