Now, the update:
I won't pretend this has been a smooth start to a new school year. It has been ROUGH in more ways than one. On the bright side, it has made us more dependent on the Lord than ever before!
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| This seemed an appropriate verse to put on our kitchen sign this past week. |
First, the amount of illness in our household and all around us has been unprecedented. In past years, we've survived chikungunya and zika and they were definitely ugly, but right now dengue fever is making the rounds and hitting MANY very hard. Dengue involves high fevers, body aches, headaches, loss of appetite, and a rash - all lasting for at least a week, followed by another week of very slow recovery, in fits and spurts. Melissa and I have both had it in recent weeks and are mostly recovered. Fortunately, I was returning to life by the time Melissa started her downward slide! Right now Samuel is in his 5th day and is feeling pretty miserable. Please pray for his recovery and that Hannah and Sarah would be spared.
Our new family next door, the Teichmers, suffered through dengue in July and have battled it AGAIN in recent weeks. Please say an extra prayer for them - they have been troopers but Satan has done all in his power to take them out of commission just as they are getting started. Several other teachers have also battled dengue or are currently under its spell.
With so many teachers on the sidelines, it hasn't been ALL bad that we've already missed FIVE days of class due to unrest in the streets and the fuel shortage. Nevertheless, it has been extremely frustrating and sad to be kept apart and yet, again, it keeps us in prayer. We take nothing for granted.
On the bright side, our staff has been proactive this year in setting up some contingency plans for making the most out of missed school days. The younger grades have had pre-made packets to keep the kids progressing while the teachers of older students have been posting assignments and interacting with students on Google Classrooms. This online education stuff has been a steep learning curve for students and teachers alike, and it's far from perfect, especially since some of our students don't have internet connections at home (or even dependable electricity, for that matter), but it keeps the days from feeling like a complete loss on the whole anyway.
The streets were quiet today, so we will restart classes again tomorrow, God willing. (Last minute update: this evening Melissa is hearing rumors of renewed protests tomorrow, so now we are in doubt again! Please pray wisdom for her as she is the one who has to make the final call.)
The political conditions causing the protests in the streets have not altered, so life won't return to "normal" anytime soon. There are rumors of fuel flowing now in Port-au-Prince, but none has come north yet as far as we know. Also, politicians have announced a coming price hike on diesel and that may reignite tempers when it becomes a reality. Protestors have shut down nearly all traffic movement through most waking hours this past week, burning tires in the streets and throwing rocks and bottles at any motorist brave enough or foolish enough to try to get through.
I feel the need to repeat what we often say to friends and family members back in the States: our safety is not at risk through all of this. When the streets heat up, we pretty much stay home and out of the way. Our hearts ache, though, for friends and co-workers and the MILLIONS of innocents across this island who suffer ever deepening hardship while political figures battle for wealth and power.
Furthermore, as draining as these circumstances are, they do ultimately deepen our resolve to keep at the work God has called us to do here. This nation NEEDS a new generation of Godly leaders with acute problem-solving skills to step up and THOSE are the students we see every day - when school is in session! - at Cap-Haitien Christian School. God bless them - they'll undoubtedly see many difficult days ahead...
A couple of Praises:
1) On Monday, as street protests began, most of the teachers were still able to gather at the school for a training day. We were blessed to have Helen Vaughan, PhD., with us from TeachBeyond to share about transformational education and cooperative learning. She was a trooper and a true encouragement to Melissa, myself, and the whole staff, coming all the way from North Carolina to spend the weekend with us.
The streets were quiet on Sunday, so we used Helen's visit as an excuse to visit a pool at the Christophe Hotel downtown. I can't tell you how sweet it was to forget about the HEAT for a few hours.
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| Sarah always has a lot of fun with the Teichmer kids. |
2) Just as we and our little community of teachers on the hillside reached our last two days of fuel and starting to get a bit nervous, OMS Haiti lent us some extra diesel to keep the generator running here. We now have at least an extra 8 to 10 days of fuel to keep the lights and fans on and the water flowing and the refrigerators running. We anticipate being able to buy more diesel at a station before this new reserve runs dry.
3) Caleb seems to be doing well with his transition to college life and that is a great comfort to us. Please pray that he would continue to find and build solid friendships with classmates and especially some like-hearted believers to stand by his side.
We thank God for you and for all who lift us and Haiti in prayer on a regular basis and who make it financially possible for us to be here. We are eternally grateful!
