Haiti!

So, my plan was to keep a journal of each day while I was in Haiti so that I would never forget a single moment, and be able to share it with everybody later. However, I learned a lot about myself while I was in Haiti. Ironically I learned that I do not like journaling. Therefore, this is going to be a rough overview of what happened and will be inspired by pictures that I find and choose to post for all of you to see. Mostly, I fell in love with the kids there, so this is really a blog about them. I'm going to have to do this in two installments, because this took forever! So, this is part one. I'll try to keep it as chronological as possible -- Here it goes!


The first day, Dani and I found the twin babies. Their names are Stephanie and Stephania, and they're 14 months old. Their mother died during childbirth, and they had been at the orphanage since they were 2 days old. A woman from Kansas had been supplying the orphanage with formula for these two since they had been there, which is such a blessing! These girls were so different from each other and so fun to be around! Stephanie (or Fanie) was active and curious and wanted to be everywhere all the time. Stephania (or Fania -- my favorite little one!) was quiet and content to be held. These two were the babies I hung out with most of the time that we were there.



This is Daphterly. She was the most captivating little girl I had ever seen. One day, we gave all the children coloring pages and crayons, and sharing was difficult at first, but all the kids were so proud of the pictures they drew. However, the most entertaining thing that Daphterly did was show off her modeling skills. She is such a ham, and loves the camera -- too cute! Watch this:





Napping on the porch was another favorite past time of the trip (This is Stephania on the left, Daphterly on the right). Since it was consistently about 90 degrees, we got tired enough for naps about every day! Plus we had been working hard. These little ones were so cute and comfy to snuggle with, but if you can imagine it did get pretty warm! Naps were good and relaxing, but sweaty.


We had the opportunity to go on several different "trips" while we were there. The first one was to a village in the mountains. It was about an hour away from the orphanage, so we all piled into the truck. This little one was the first "native" we saw. All the children we saw were not quite clothed, and covered in dust and dirt. The reason for this trip was to understand how the majority of suburban Haitians live. This particular village (as well as those surrounding it) travels over 2 miles for water. They don't have access to a well, or the means with which to build one. Because communal living is so emphasized and embraced, just one well would be enough to supply water for the over 100 people in need.


Also, in the last year, the orphanage built a new nursery with cribs to boot. There are two full time "mamas" that sleep with the babies. They definitely keep busy with over 15 of them to care for! One of the mamas is pictured here, and two toddlers are eating one of the two meals they are served each day. The babies and toddlers eat and sleep in the nursery, while the older children eat in the dining room and sleep in boys' and girls' dorms.

Hospital Stay

If you're ever feeling under the weather, and think the hospital might be a good place to visit for some much needed rest, you're wrong.

After my brief stay there I am an EXPERT.

The problem may have started with me. Maybe it was my fault that I went to the emergency room when I was sick AND tired. Perhaps both issues were too much for this particular hospital to handle. Either way, if somebody is sick, and the best prescription the ER doctor can offer is "rest" and then insists on admitting you, you've got yourself a pickle.

So, skipping past the lengthy and inconvenient triage portion of the Emergency Room, I'll take you straight into the awkwardly sectioned-off-with-curtains portion. I got there at about 10:15, which you should also try to avoid. 11pm is a popular shift change time, and being able to stick with the same doctor offers some much needed consistency for a speedy diagnosis. But either way, the seemingly unnecessary questions about bowel movements (yuck) and other such personal questions were a breeze, comparatively speaking. The worst part was the other patients.

Now I do have a heart. I offer this as a disclaimer because the baby with the 105 temperature next door was probably very sick and uncomfortable. Guess what? So was I. And the gunshot victim that was rushed in quickly thereafter? Probably in much more pain than the child. Arguably, however, his was self inflicted. For the cherry on top of self inflicted ER visits, though -- my third roommate was a passed-out drunk. But not for long! She woke up in enough time to be annoying for the following two and a half hours as she sobered up. Needless to say, rest in the ER is impossible.

So when they asked if they could admit me for observation, my first question -- at 3am -- was: "Are they going to let me sleep upstairs?" The doctor responded quickly and assuredly. Also, however, inaccurately.

After the paperwork (which must be complicated, because it took them plenty long to fill it out), I was taken upstairs around 4:30am. They proceeded to ask me the EXACT SAME QUESTIONS as the other two doctors I had already seen. The only difference was this time there was more of them. Apparently the hospitalist (that I never actually saw, but prescribed me everything while I was there) "had to have these answered before he administered me any more anti-nausea or pain meds". Well, when I started throwing up again halfway through the questions at 5:15, the nurse decided it would be better patient care to go ahead and give them to me then.

I then proceeded to fall in and out of sleep in 5-10 minute increments until somebody would come in, insisting that I needed one of the following things checked:

• blood pressure
• temperature
• heart rate
• IV site
• level of pain (on a scale from 1-10)
• severity of my nausea
• swelling in my ankles
• my comfort level

There are a few other things that needed to be checked. However, my comfort level remained low, and my irritability remained quite elevated. After FOURTEEN HOURS of this, the doctor that I had been waiting on to discharge me came up to check on me at 6:30pm. I had been in the hospital 21 hours at this point, with approximately 4 hours of sleep total. Needless to say, when they finally released me at 7:15pm, I was more than ready to go! The 15 hours I slept once I got home definitely made up for what I lost in the hospital.

So here is my advice to you as a future patient:

• Go just after a shift change (7am, 3pm, 7pm, 11pm)
• Be well rested
• Have some scripture on patience memorized
• Write down the questions they ask you so you're prepared for the second, and third, and fourth rounds
• Don't have them put the IV site on the inside of your elbow (whenever you bend it, the machine will beep until the nurse readjusts the needle)

And for all of you in the medical field, this is for you:

• Don't tell the doctor things you haven't checked with the patient about
• When in doubt, look at the chart!
• Don't tell the patient one thing, and the doctor another (or the patient's family..)
• If someone is vomiting, nausea is probably one of their symptoms

Funny Friends

Sometimes my sense of humor is under-appreciated. Apparently, I always think I'm funny. Others do not. Because of this, I am especially sensitive to other people's feelings when it comes to their senses of humor. So I would like to recognize a few of my friends who have shared some pretty funny statements as of late.

After Challenge...
Christie: This really nice mentally handicapped guy at challenge, you know, the one that gave me like 20 hugs tonight?
Laura: Just because you're wearing scrubs doesn't mean you can hug every mentally handicapped guy, Christie.

About 10 minutes later...
Laura: I think I met my husband at Challenge! I forgot to tell you. We kept running into each other. Literally. I think it's meant to be, because every time I turned around we were touching.
Paul: Which guy was it?
Laura: Well, I mean he was wearing a white something on top.
Paul: What, like a smock?
Christie: Or scrubs?
Me: Oh, Laura. He was wearing scrubs. He just thought it was okay to hug every mentally handicapped person he saw.

At the library one day after class...
Laura: Matt! We forgot to tell you. We thought that it would be cheaper to consolidate, so all of us girls are moving into your house. My mom wouldn't really approve though, so each of us would have to marry one of you. We would save so much money on rent and living expenses though!
Matt: Sounds like a plan. In fact, this would make us better friends... and better people.

Playing Say Anything...
Chris (reading the game question): "What is the weirdest thing that could happen right now?"
Kristin Weatherford: The Rapture.
::Everybody laughs::
Kristin Weatherford: Kari would be left sitting here by herself wondering where all of us went!

Paul wanting to play a 4-player game...
Laura: I'll play.
Paul: Alex, Christie, you're playing.
Me: I don't want to.
Christie: I'm tired.
Paul: Okay, so you're both playing.
Me: I said I didn't want to. And Christie said she's tired. This is a perfect opportunity to teach you an important life lesson. "I'm tired" actually means "No." This will be important to you later in your marriage.

Christie needing me to bring something to church, asking via text message...
Christie: Would you mind bringing my black boat to church?
Me: It's kind of bulky to drag behind the car, and I don't think there's room for it in the parking lot.
Christie (clearly not realizing her mistake yet): Haha, well just put it in the car and bring it.
Me: I don't even know where your boat is.
Christie: Oh, funny. My COAT is in the closet.

Paul and Christie trying to make plans via text message the next day...
::Christie sends a cryptic text message::
Paul: That didn't make much sense, but I'll be here ready at 7. And I'll bring your black boat.

8:52 Sunday morning...
Laura: Alex! We have to go to church! (as if I didn't know it started in 8 minutes)
Me: Oh, is it Sunday already? Weird.
Laura: Haha, but it's like 8:55.
Me: And the church is 3 blocks away! How are we ever going to make it?
Kristin: Laura, I think Alex is funnier than you.

8:58 Sunday morning, Laura and I in the car on the way to church, having a different conversation entirely...
Laura: I think Christian would draw the line if that happened.
Me: I don't know that I've ever witnessed Christian drawing a line.
Laura: Well, that one time... we played pictionary telephone... and he drew a line..
Me: I'm telling Kristin you said that.
Laura: No, don't! It was supposed to be funny. That's funny! Don't tell her, please!

Paul and I sitting in the living room having a conversation...
Paul: Do you know what my coin jar is for?
Me: No.
Paul: It's for an engagement ring. My friend bought an engagement ring this weekend. You know what I did?
Me: No.
Paul: I started a dollar jar.

Movies

I'm really tired of watching movies. All the time. We watch movies. It's not fun. I'm pretty picky about movies. I usually fall asleep. That's not true: I always fall asleep. Nobody talks. Everybody's silent. Staring at the TV. Some movies are worth it. Most aren't. Sometimes I'm in the mood. Even then I'd obviously rather sleep. Movies are about as exciting as this paragraph was to read.
Here are a few reasons why I am not any longer going to choose to watch movies with large groups of people at night:

• I can use my time much more wisely. I love cultivating friendships. I love talking, and I love listening. These things are eliminated as options when a movie is turned on. It gets dark and silent.
• It wastes time actually deciding on a movie. If watching a movie was an event, and there was a particular movie many people had been talking about watching, I could and would make an exception. However, people can't agree quickly enough to make it worth the time it takes to choose a movie.
• If my life is so boring that I have to watch the TV for two or so hours about somebody else's made up life, then I should be attempting to make life more exciting than just being complacent. After all, complacency is sinful, right?
• Most movies don't glorify God. Sometimes a psychological thriller is fun to watch because it's intellectually stimulating. But usually they're scary or gory. I don't like to wonder what could happen if that murderer had broken into my house. Also, movies are generally filled with cursing, drinking, smoking, nudity, sex, divorce, adultery and other socially acceptable sins of sloth, greed and lust.
• Girls hearts are fragile enough without chick flicks to add to the list. I was perfectly content the other day until I turned "The Notebook" on. This used to be my favorite movie, but now Satan uses it to drag me back into woeful sorrows of my singlehood. I appreciate my life, so why would I want to watch something that is fake and untrue that is going to drag me backwards away from Christ?
• Playing games is apparently underrated now. It's a social event that can include any number of people and can last for a determined and finite amount of time. We can play for 30 minutes with 4 people, 3 hours with 12 people, 45 minutes with 10 people.. so many combinations! We could play Mao, Spades, Rook, Settlers, Ride that Train, Onze, 123, Speed, Egyptian Rat Screw, Presidents.. it makes me excited to think about it.

In case you didn't get it, you shouldn't ask me to watch a movie any time soon. You shouldn't ask me to go to a movie. You shouldn't suggest we watch one, you shouldn't try to convince me. It's not going to work.

The Servant

I've often prayed for a servant's heart. A true woman of Proverbs 31 has one. I have dreamed of the day that a guy compared me to this.

This day finally came.

However, it wasn't quite as I imagined it.

Tonight Laura, Christie, Matt and I were having a conversation about marriage. I'm not sure why this is our topic of conversation so often, but tonight it was worth it. Matt was helping us girls to understand how some guys try to interpret marriage, relationships, dating, etc. He used Paul as a specific example when we started to ask questions.

Me: He talks to me about relationships.
Christie: Yah, about lists and stuff.
Me: I don't agree with most of what he says. But he asks my permission to do stuff.
Matt: He just has an Old Testament view of things.
::Christie and I are both looking at each other, obviously confused::
Matt: It's like Isaac. He's sending out a servant to find him a mate.
Me: ...Am I the servant in this scenario?

In any other situation I probably could have taken this as a compliment. Sorry Matt, you're not fairing so hot lately on this front.

Lists

I was informed the other day that guys have at least one thing in common. This information was a disappointment to all of womankind. I was told that guys form "lists" wherein they name each and every girl they know. The list, however, is not set in stone. Though it is hard for a girl to be removed from the list, there are rotations. Some girls move up, others are shifted lower. In this scenario, the girls are rated by the guy's level of interest in them. Back to the fact that this is a disappointment to all womankind -- Romantic much? This seems like not.

• Girls, wouldn't you like it if the guy that was pursuing you wanted YOUR HEART ALONE!?

• Wouldn't it be awesome if he wasn't thinking "At least I've got a number 2...and a number 3..."?

• Don't you want your man to be chasing after you wholeheartedly, so much so that he can't even think of any other girls?

Well, apparently this list isn't true of all men. But in an effort to fully mock it, Matt Mills shared this anecdote:
"It's like this, you know, sports stats. It's the rankings. You've got a top 25, but there's a goal in mind. One girl's got to make it to the BCS Bowl."
These words melted my heart (NOT). I can't wait for another guy to relate my future marriage to the BCS Bowl. I don't know if it can be done. Also, if girls were to have lists, I think that guys who attempted this feat would be immediately removed.

Guarding My Heart

A few relationship-based issues have been brought to my attention lately. I would now like to bring them to your attention and let you ponder them. Hopefully you can confirm my suspicions. If not, I'll learn something new. Maybe what I'll learn is what's keeping me from being in a relationship? Just kidding but I want to guard mine and everybody else's heart. It's important.

So, relationships are complicated. You know what else is complicated? Not dating. Laura brought to my attention recently that this is a term that was coined by one of our friends last semester. There were a few sets of guy/girl couples that had paired off and were spending significant amounts of time together. This was distressing to other friends who were definitely single. One friend in particular said "All my friends who are NOT DATING are off doing things together." This term is referring to those that appear to be dating, but in fact are not. This phase of any relationship is difficult. Therefore, how are the onlookers supposed to handle it? Should they ignore it? Should they encourage it? Should they incessantly probe and tease, creating as many awkward situations as possible?

How about the situation of the girl that likes the guy? This one doesn't baffle me, except for those girls that choose to share with me their woes. In this instance, I say "It doesn't matter." That's my most typical response. If a girl likes a guy, it doesn't matter. Mostly because of Proverbs 4:23. If a girl is guarding her heart, liking a guy shouldn't matter. This is multi fold. 1: She should be a quiet servant of the Lord with a gentle spirit. Though her heart desires something, she should guard it to protect her LIFE. 2: No guy deserves any part of any girl's heart until he asks for it. 3: A girl can't and shouldn't read into anything a guy ever does unless he flat out says "I want your heart...I want to date you...I want you to be my girlfriend"...etc. If guys don't take hints, I assume that they also cannot give hints. This is for both the girl's and guy's benefit. However, is this the correct response? Should I encourage girls to share their feelings with other girls? How about with the certain special guy?

Those that are dating... Is it weird to ask when you're getting married? That is after all the goal. Maybe it takes the mystery out of it to ask, but I would assume that if wisdom is involved then there is at least a faint idea that it is in fact inevitable. I don't believe I agree in setting a date and booking a church until it's official, but does that make it a taboo topic?

Can girls even talk about the concept of marriage whilst guarding our hearts? If one girl likes a guy, whether she's dating him or not, is it healthy to think about marriage? I feel as though maybe it would be leading myself on. However, I don't necessarily think it's healthy to assume I'm NEVER getting married either. I believe that God is big enough to provide me with what I am to have. Right now I'm not supposed to be married or I'd be married, but I can't speak for my future. Does that mean I never should?

I feel as though I already know the answer to most of these questions. Proverbs 4:23 was a good start, but it's not the best. 1Corinthians 10:31-11:1 says it better: "So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God. Do not cause anyone to stumble, whether Jews, Greeks, or the church of God-even as I try to please everybody in every way. For I am not seeking my own good but the good of many, so that they may be saved. Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ." This is a good reference because the answer I've found is a quality response to all the questions I asked above...

"DO IT ALL FOR THE GLORY OF GOD!"