Skip to main content

I Can't Imagine

Can you imagine being whole one minute and being broken the next with no warning, and everyone around you is just as broken or in even worse shape? I can't, and when I watch the news footage coming from Port-au-Prince, I can only stand in awe. Awe, as in awful. Breathtaking, as in the oxygen has been sucked from the room. Heart-pounding, as in what these people must be feeling in their chests as they scramble to find their missing friends and family.

I talked to a local pastor yesterday who is mobilizing a group of people to go to Haiti at the end of next week to help an orphanage with 146 children. It's in a very poor area several miles away from Port-au-Prince, with people living threadbare under the best of circumstances. The dormitories of the orphanage have been declared unsafe, and the kids are now sleeping on the ground. Their security wall has been destroyed, and their food supply is running out. The director and the other staff members are now trying to figure out how to keep all of these parentless children safe and fed and feeling secure. How can they possibly do that?

What I most appreciate about this pastor's effort is that he is opening up his trip to anyone with a passport who wants to come along. He doesn't care what church you go to or if you go to church at all. These people are in desperate need of help.

A few locals have commented online to Small Town Newspaper that they don't intend to send a dime to Haiti because they've already paid taxes that will go toward national aid, and they think "throwing money" at a failed nation won't help anybody (thank you, Rush Limbaugh). I lump those people in the same category as Pat Robertson who thinks this is another result of a 200-year-old pact with the devil made by a Haitian slave leader who revolted against the French. You lose, is what I have to say to them.

You lose because you miss the meaning of the brotherhood of man. In times like these, nations don't matter. Church affiliation or un-affiliation doesn't matter. All the debates about taxes and political parties and self-righteous judgment based on a myth meant to discredit a slave revolt become meaningless, not that they had that much value to begin with.

I can't imagine what the people of Haiti must be feeling and fearing. And I can't imagine not wanting to help them in any way possible.

Comments

Alifan said…
Oh Robyn it is indeed a sorry state when we cannot help those in need, it is also hard to think what they are going through, makes our sorry nation with all its debts and horrible government seem pale by comparison..

I heard they are still getting people out alive...
3:19 AM
MmeBenaut said…
I agree with every word you've written. Are you going to go on the mission?
I wish I could take just a couple of those little orphans; but I don't think that Haiti will release their children and our country has very tough overseas adoption laws; there must be a country to country agreement in place.
5:24 AM
Scout said…
To Anonymous, I understand the myth and that it has endured since the nation's independence. But suggest that one act that is nothing but legend is the reason behind the suffering of this nation is ludicrous. Tell that to the many Christians in that country.
4:56 PM
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Classic Green Bean Bake

In anticipation of Thanksgiving, I feel I must post a recipe with plenty of good old American tradition. The classic Green Bean Bake was invented in 1955 by Dorcas Reilly, a home economist who worked for the Campbell's Soup Company. A study was done determining that 50% of all Americans have eaten the classic Green Bean Bake, and 38% of those believe it is best served during the holidays, mainly Thanksgiving. So, for the other 50% and for those in other countries where this dish may be unfamiliar--my treat: The Classic Green Bean Bake serves 6 to 8 1 can Campbell's Cream of Mushroom Soup 1/2 cup milk 1 teaspoon soy sauce Dash of fresh pepper 1 20-oz. bag frozen cut green beans, thawed* 1 2.8 oz can French-fried onions -Preheat the oven to 350 F -In a casserole dish, combine the soup, milk, soy sauce and pepper. Stir in the green beans and half of the onions. -Bake until bubbling, about 25 minutes. Top with the remaining onions and bake for 5 more minutes. Serve hot. *Or cook 1 ...
7 comments
Read more

Bring On the Bombs

In today's edition : I generally try to keep on top of cultural trends even if I don’t adopt them, but there is a growing movement that I have only just discovered. Not long ago, I was walking along in Berkeley, California while visiting my daughter, and I saw a signpost that had been covered with yarn, like someone had sewn a knitted scarf to it. It was colorful and randomly striped, and I pointed it out as if it were the most unusual thing in the world. That’s when my daughter explained the nature of what is known as yarn bombing. It’s when knitters attach something they’ve created to a public object, most often doing their deed stealthily and anonymously. They leave a “bomb,” so to speak, for no other purpose than to brighten up the place and to bring a little cheer to those passing by. Their work has been equated with graffiti, except that the woven yarn is not permanently installed and does no damage to the object it covers. And instead of signifying the territory of a street ...
2 comments
Read more

Cindy Loo Who In October

What is it with people and Cindy Loo Who? Of my last one hundred blog hits, forty have been direct visits from regular readers, and fifteen have been as a result of people searching for "Cindy Loo Who," the little pixie from Seuss's How The Grinch Stole Christmas . A couple of years ago, I posted an image of the original Seuss illustration as compared to the TV cartoon image, and for some reason, that post is bringing in the crowds, relatively. Maybe it's the weather. It isn't even November yet, and already we've had frost and have had to dust off our winter coats. When it gets cold like this, I start to think about Christmasy things like listening to Nat King Cole and decorating the tree. It's ironic because I am offended when retailers start pushing holiday stuff early, but I don't mind my own private celebrations. When my sister and I were much younger and still living with our parents, we would pick a day in July, close the curtains to darken the ...
8 comments
Read more