I went into work later in the day and checked in with a blog of a missionary family that has been living and serving in Haiti ( www.livesayhaiti.blogspot.com ) and found a link to a newspaper article with pictures, very graphic ones, of the rubble and some of the people and so forth. One of the ones that disturbed me most was a picture of a little boy getting his hair cut in the street, with tears running down his face. The caption below the picture said that he was crying because he was hungry. This broke my heart.
Tyler and I are blessed to be able to take our children to the doctor when they are running a fever, sniffling, or even if we just have a "feeling" that something is wrong with them. We have been blessed to be able to put a roof over their heads, clothes on their backs and food in their stomachs. Although we don't always have the extra money to spend on the things we sometimes want, we are still able to do what needs to be done and sometimes a little more.
but these parents can't.
I can't imagine looking into the face of my children day after day, not knowing how they are going to be fed, watching them cry because they are hungry, or because they are afraid of sleeping in the street, or that the earth is going to once again shake beneath their feet and take more from them. I can't imagine trying to stay strong in such despair.
Then I read some of the comments at the end of the story...
Some said the same things I've been feeling; how sad it all is and how they wish they could help and how they feel such sympathy for this hurting nation. Then came the idiots, who say the Haitian people are just waiting for a handout, taking advantage of the aid that is coming their way, sitting on their butts while we are doing all the work, etc. And it made me a little angry.
How can we POSSIBLY understand what these people are going through? Their entire world has literally been moved from underneath them. Everything they once thought was "safe", has now been shattered. They have watched as their homes collapsed, their loved ones dying in front of their eyes, people being pulled from rubble, burning and burying corpses because help is not getting to them fast enough. I could go on for days. And we have the audacity to sit back and pretend that we have ANY sort of an idea of what we would do when presented with the same situation. These people are trying to do the best they can to survive. Granted, there may be some who are going about things the wrong way, but from what I can tell, most are doing more than their fair share to pick up the pieces and make a new life for themselves and their families. They have no choice but to rely on outside help and aide from other countries, because there is NOTHING left in Port-au-Prince but rubble and people.
If you disagree with any of this, fine. That's your right. But if you can do nothing besides sneer at these people and their time of despair, pray. Ask God to help you see them through HIS eyes. Understand that they are hurting, and that this grieves the Father. I pray that more help may be able to be sent in. I wish I had the skills that are needed so that I may be of more help than I am. For now, I'm a warrior on my knees. Continue praying for this nation and her people. Even when the news forgets them, and chooses to only show the bad side of the situation, continue to pray. Know that we serve Jehovah Jirah, God our Provider, who will take care of His people.
Kenbe Fem, Haiti.
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