Once again we celebrated 6am Mass. The mass was filled with more people, including many children. Some were from the visiting Chapels, others from the parish. The youth choir sang beautiful songs that would resonate in your soul. The acoustics are so awesome in this simple church, or perhaps it is the strong accapella voices. Regardless, it was wonderful. Fr B had us stand & he announced our departure today. They thanked us & all the people of St Stephen’s for supporting & praying for them.
Mass ended by 8 am. It went by surprisingly quick since we don’t know Kreyol. Pere Bertrand had many of the older students paired with the visitors of from the surrounding chapels as hosts. They were ambassadors for them. After mass the students took them for a breakfast at school & later hosted some classes for them. They plan to be in Cerca La Source till Ash Wednesday.We quickly had a bite to eat, said our good byes, & were off to Port au Prince. It was a bitter sweet….sad to go……but happy that St Francis seems to be thriving. The return trip was long but we knew what to expect this time. However we weren’t expecting to have 2 live chickens in the back along with some dried fish we picked up. We also had two additional travelers, Noceline, a young girl who is studing to be a nurse in Port au Prince and another girl who needed a ride to Port au Prince.We managed to be patient as Junior’s gas tank could only be filled part way or else it would leak. Only a few times did my mind wander thinking how far we would have to walk if we ran out of gas.! But God is Good & we made it 7 hours later, intact & safe. The last 1 1/2 of travelling was on paved roads but quite winding & mountainous. This improvement has made an impact, not always positive. We saw 2 serious accidents. One involving a Tap Tap, the Haitian bus loaded with people & stuff and the other a car & truck. People are able to drive faster but the risks seem greater because people & animals are still walking on the roads. In addition, there are many more vehicles & curving blind spots that can cause deadly consequences. We were fortunate Junior was a skillful driver using his horns around all curves!We arrived in PAP before dark, with the chickens still alive!. We dropped off Noceline & saw her apartment. It wasn’t like the standards we are use to, but I am sure it was exciting for her to have “a place of her own” We stayed at Matthew 25 visitation house that night. There, we met Vivian & Patrick , the managers who are from Boston. They have been a part of this ministry for 4 years.The next morning we were up early to go to the airport. We stopped briefly at Junior’s “community center” where he hopes to have a youth recreation center, provide English classes, & a guest house for visitors. He has quite a dream. The building he rents has a lot of potential. We boarded the plane set for the USA taking in the last sights, sounds & smells of Haiti one last time.We thank God for the opportunity to grow with our Haitian friends and to continue Holding Hands with Haiti.
