Sad news...

Hey guys!
I'm pretty much the worst blogger ever...at least for blogging in a somewhat regular fashion. Anyway, I'll have to keep this post short, but I have some sad news--I will be leaving Haiti earlier than expected because unfortunately my grandmother has passed away. I was scheduled to leave Port-au-Prince August 7th, but I'll be leaving this Friday so that I can make it home in time to be with my family for the funeral. I just want to thank everyone who has been praying for me and has encouraged me throughout my entire trip, you have all been a blessing to me, thank you.
Now, since my last post we've had some pretty good times around here. Last week we didn't have enough people on our team to work with me on construction, so we "borrowed" a few volunteers from another organization on the compound. This team was awesome to work with. They worked well in the chaos of Titanyen and had a blast doing it. The team this week gave me one of those "it's a small world moments"...they're all from my hometown of Williamston. I did not know any of the them personally, but we all have mutual friends, so that was kinda cool. It was actually gonna work out great to go back home with them, but I couldn't get a flight with them on saturday.
I'm really gonna miss all the people that I've met here: my Old Order Mennonite friends, the many and wonderful Haitians i've had to pleasure to work with and befriend, people at Samaritan's Purse (who we share the compound with), and the list goes on. I'm excited to see my family again, but I have to admit I'm sad to leave. I hope to post one last time with some pics before I go!
Take care everybody,
Matthew ;^)

Where the streets have no name...

Hey guys!
So I decided to title this post after my favorite U2 song, and I'll tell you why. Here are the lyrics to refresh your memory:

I want to run
I want to hide
I want to tear down the walls
That hold me inside
I want to reach out
And touch the flame
Where the streets have no name

I want to feel sunlight on my face
I see the dust cloud disappear
Without a trace
I want to take shelter from the poison rain
Where the streets have no name

Where the streets have no name
Where the streets have no name
We're still building
Then burning down love
Burning down love
And when I go there
I go there with you
It's all I can do

The city's aflood
And our love turns to rust
We're beaten and blown by the wind
Trampled in dust
I'll show you a place
High on a desert plain
Where the streets have no name

Where the streets have no name
Where the streets have no name
We're still building
Then burning down love
Burning down love
And when I go there
I go there with you
It's all I can do
Our love turns to rust
We're beaten and blown by the wind
Blown by the wind
Oh, and I see love
See our love turn to rust
We're beaten and blown by the wind
Blown by the wind
Oh, when I go there
I go there with you
It's all I can do

We're working in the village of Titanyen, where the streets and houses all sprawl out from each other, with people erected their homes or shelters anywhere and everywhere they can afford to buy a small plot of land. Every street is lined with cactuses which they prune to act as security walls. Everyone in the village knows everyone else--heck, I've been here long enough I'm convinced everyone in the village knows my name, because every day people I don't know yell, "Hey Matye!" (that's my name in Kreyol). I've learned my way around the village, but there are no street names, and everyday I can't help but think about this U2 song...I'm working truly where the streets have no name.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QQxl9EI9YBg

In other news, Amber and I went to the beach with our Mennonite friends on Sunday. We rode in a big used army truck they use to get them and all their building supplies around in (see the pic). The water was crystal clear and we were surrounded by coral reefs. Luckily our friends brought snorkel gear so we all got to take turns swimming around discovering the colorful fish the swam in and out of the coral. At one point a group of Korean people arrived and we talked with them for a while. They were here to do reconstruction as well. Now, the language nerd in me couldn't help but notice that at this point there were speakers of Korean, Kreyol, English, and Pennsylvania Dutch all swimming in the water at the time and I wondered how often that happens around here!
Now we're just waiting for next week's team to get here tomorrow, but we'll be heading back to the beach with a few of our Haitian friends who drive and translate for us.
Take care everybody, be posting soon!
Matthew ;^)

Long overdue post

Hey guys!

Sorry for not writing in a while. Life gets a little crazy around here, with new teams every week and crazy schedules! The past two teams have been awesome and therefore have not be conducive to blogging as we have usually spent our free time talking and hanging out. In the past few weeks I've really been blessed to meet and interact with some awesome people...and not just the people on the weekly teams. As I said, the past two teams have been absolutely amazing to work with. Mostly, they were people that I could really get along with and have a good time with as we built the shelters and then back on the compound. I felt like I was really able to connect to last weeks team, and I made some very good friends--one in particular, Noelle, a restaurant manager who would like to come back for Samaritan's Purse, would stay up late and have really good conversation. Both those teams really tried to connect with the people in Titanyen, which makes the whole experience so much better. I've also made some friends with the horse-and-buggy Mennonites that are on the compound (for all intents and purposes, think Amish). One in particular is named Tim and he and I have talked about a lot of very deep topics and I have been thoroughly impressed by him. It's funny, he and Noelle and I were talking and we all commented that we felt like we all had known each other for a long time, and I really like these folks. Also, I've uploaded a picture of some of the volunteer workers from the village: (from left ot right) Jude Marie, Pierre, and Sanjus. I love these guys and that are a blast to work with. They don't get paid, but volunteer with us everyday. Usually the teams will give them a little something (which usually amounts to a decent week's wage here). Pierre is really cool to interact with because he's deaf, but he definitely knows what he's doing and livens things up on the worksite!

Well, I hope to have some more pictures and a future blog about my Mennonite friends. So stay tuned...

Matthew ;^)