Thank you to the random guy at Mountain Maid restaurant for snapping these pictures of Ednel and Losentia.
While the mission team was here a week or so ago the kids got a special treat: visiting Fort Jacques and eating lunch at the Baptist Mission restaurant. When I arrived with the van to pick up the kids in the morning, they were all waiting outside, dressed in their new clothes, shoes, and hats, ready to go. I made a point to tell the kids they had to sit in the van, not stand, and they had to be quiet and no fighting…all the standard rules I spew at them on an almost daily basis. But they knew this time was different, special. During the 20 minute ride the kids were absolutely silent. I kept turning around to make sure they were still awake but there they were, eyes wide, looking out the windows.
When we arrived at Fort Jacques our kids and workers went on one tour with a Kreyol speaking guide and the team went with an English speaking guide. I was nervous that without more adult eyes watching them the kids would declare anarchy against me and the 3 of our staff that joined us and claim Fort Jacques as their new stomping grounds. But the kids were surprisingly well behaved. I expected more pushing and shoving and craziness considering this was their first outing as a group. But they were awesome. My favorite part was when the guide led us into rooms that were once used for sleeping or prisons or meetings…these rooms were like caves. Every time we walked into one of these at least 4 kids latched onto me, just a little afraid of what might be in there. Overall, it seemed the kids enjoyed learning about this part of their country’s history.
Then came lunch. On the ride to the restaurant I rambled off rules again and again they sat in silent anticipation. As we unloaded the kids from the van I paired two kids to every person on the mission team. The kids grabbed the hands of whomever I assigned to them and walked eagerly toward the restaurant. We sat them all down, again in almost complete silence. Each kid got a bottle of coke or sprite and a piece of pizza. They all sat with hands on their laps until everyone had a slice at which point they recited their usual mealtime prayer aloud as a group. I was impressed that even though they were excited about pizza and coke and sitting in a restaurant booth they still took time to thank God for their food. After the prayer they still sat with hands in their lap, staring at their plates. It dawned on me then that they had no idea how to go about eating this giant triangle of cheese, sauce, and bread. I showed each table how to “properly” hold a piece of pizza, some of them were just too hungry to wait and started picking cheese off the top. Most of the kids liked the pizza but the few that didn’t quickly found others willing to take their slice. I think Emmanuel ate about 5 slices when it was all said and done.
Then came bathroom breaks. I showed them where the bathroom was and waited outside, sanitizer at the ready. Nerlande was the first to come out and I asked if she had flushed. She replied, “No I couldn’t find the water.” These kids are used to flushing with a bucket of water so the thought of flushing any other way didn’t even occur to them. I laughed to myself and then showed her how to flush. She watched with a stunned expression and quickly told the other kids news of these amazing toilets with swirling water inside of them. Oh mountain children.
Some of the team went on to take the kids to a small zoo (rabbits, goats,birds, snakes) on the mission’s property where the kids marveled at the animals, some of them they’ve never seen before. They played freeze tag in a clearing nearby until it was time to head back up the mountain.
Seeing as how the kids are already asking me when we can go back to Fort Jacques and the restaurant I think I can say they all had a great time and I thank everyone on the mission team for sharing this special experience with the kids.
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