Comfort and Music- Jennifer

Here on Day thirteen, Mary introduced me to two amazing comforts: How to freeze your water bottle at night so it's frozen the next day for your water, and the fact that our seats in the Arnoldmobile recline a little bit so you can chill on the way home. There is a big group staying at the guest house now. Forty-five people from a mission in the US. So, last night I was the expert at where the restrooms are, and where the hidden light switches are, how to find the water, and things like that. I hatched a plan to tell them how mean Dr. Bernard is-- a real tyrant, and not to look him directly in the eye. I tried to convince him it would be fun to be like Hitler for a day. I'm sure he will follow through. I showed him how you can see his house and the pool on the GPS and he was amazed.
Today we continued the ongoing of our legacy of bringing American Slang to the clinic. Today's glossary includes: "Take a load off", "What the heck are you doing", "Chillax", and "That sucks." So the guys went around saying, "that socks!!" Translator Quotes of the Day: "Cats and dogs will be raining tonight!" and "Jenny-fer will be gently to you."
I exchanged addresses with two of my female patients today. They are so sweet and so beautiful and we love each other. They are fighting so hard to recover from their serious injuries. I told them that even if it takes twenty years, they need to come to my doorstep and stay at my house. One of them is named Elita, and she asked me if I could give her something to remember her by and I told her I would. Then Mary and I sat around racking our brains for something we could make her or give her. In the process of doing that, the "lost boys" (five or six children that befriend us daily) saw us playing with a few colored paper clips and immediately wanted to construct something with these interesting new objects. We showed them what they were used for, but we were struck by how these children's brains are so active, creative, ingenuitive...moreso than priveleged children in the US, and how noteworthy that is. What a lesson.
Guibson is continually and tirelessly recruiting patients for us. He is worried that if we don't grow as a clinic, he will not have work. Today he hit the jackpot with a four year old boy named Junior that lives near him who has a below-the-knee amputation. He has no crutches, so for two months he has been hopping on one leg. He is excellent at it, but we gave him a pair of crutches to use for when he gets tired, and we showed him how to make his limb stronger and ready for a new leg! We are in the process of connecting Junior to a prosthetist because I know he will be one of those who instantly puts it on and runs around.
I've decided they need more music here. At night, in the tent cities, I am told there is lots of music, singing and dancing. I think music heals the soul and I want some big name musicians to set up on the street and play free concerts here right in the middle of town. I see how popular my ipod is with the young men and young patients here, how they want music that lifts them up, and empowers them. They know the words to popular American music and they crave it. It is this hunger and perseverance that will rebuild and heal things here. It can only get better, that's for sure.
Haiti Dum Dum Sucker Flavor of the Day: Sun-dried Fish
Craving of the Day: cottage cheese and pineapple
Haiti Myth #212: You should use caution when passing on the left, when on a curve, when on the side of a mountain.