group of farmers getting the ground ready to plant

When they plant a crop they pray and hope that they will have a good rainy season to produce a good crop for their families.  They work together to harvest the crop.  All the family, kids included, help with the harvest.  All the beans and corn have to be shelled.  Many times they will keep part of the harvest to sell until the next crop comes in.  They dry the beans and corn and sell them at a later date.

corn drying in the trees and out of the reach of rats

When mom and dad are working each day they get tired.  They work hard.  They begin working early in the morning and end late in the day.  When mom gets home she is weary but still has to prepare a meal for the family.  She cannot just go inside and turn on the stove.  She has to collect pieces of wood or purchase charcoal to begin the meal.

She starts the fire and cooks one pot at a time.  The beans have to be boiled.  The rice cleaned and cooked with the beans once they are cooked. If they do have meat, which most do not, they have to prepare and cook that as well.  They also will make a sauce to put on top of the rice and beans mix.  It takes several hours to prepare this meal.  Many times they finished in the dark with an oil lamp.

Mom separates out the food for everyone.  Hoping that it will stretch and fill every-one’s bellies for the night.  In the villages that kids like Mackenson comes from they usually only eat one meal a day.  Many times in the morning they will drink coffee and have a small piece of bread.  Many, many kids tell us that they eat every other day. Is all of Haiti like this? no  But the majority of people that come through the RC are.

Mackenson oldest sister went to visit her mom and dad.  She saw Mackenson and begin to cry.  He was very weak and did not feel well.  His mom wanted to bring him to the clinic but did not feel like she could give up two days (one day to walk down, then sleep in the village, and the other day to walk back up) of work in the gardens to come.  They had to get the crops planted. The family has to eat.  The sister walked down and brought him to the clinic.  She told him he might get to stay in Cazale.  He waited in the long line outside clinic and got to see the nurse around 2pm.  The nurse called me and said she wanted me to see a sick child.  When I walked into the room Mackenson said – can I stay with you for awhile blan?  He is a very sweet boy that just needs to eat.  We at RHFH pray that he recovers quickly.  We pray that God will use his illness and malnutrition for good.  We pray the family will grow closer to Mackenson and God each day.

Mackenson with his oldest sister

This is Mackenson’s admit picture.  I turned the camera around so he could see his picture.  He laughed and thought that it was funny to see himslef on that little screen.  I told him he was beautiful and the picture would look so much better if he smiled.

Here is his smiling picture.

Here is his embarassed picture after seeing himself smile.  Too cute.  Love this little boy so much already.

Psalm 119:47-49 (The Message)

^41-48 Let your love, God, shape my life
with salvation, exactly as you promised;
Then I’ll be able to stand up to mockery
because I trusted your Word.
Don’t ever deprive me of truth, not ever—
your commandments are what I depend on.
Oh, I’ll guard with my life what you’ve revealed to me,
guard it now, guard it ever;
And I’ll stride freely through wide open spaces
as I look for your truth and your wisdom;
Then I’ll tell the world what I find,
speak out boldly in public, unembarrassed.
I cherish your commandments—oh, how I love them!—
relishing every fragment of your counsel.