We went to Play in Cite Soleil

Today was day three and it was incredible! We headed into Cite Soleil for the second day in a row with the sole purpose of playing with the kids in the commiunity. Bubbles, basketball, jump rope, and volleyball were some of the things we brought out into the community. But the most popular was by far the joy of music and dancing. You would have never known there was a language barrier by just looking at the interactions between our team and the people of Haiti.

Being my first trip to Haiti, I had heard what to "expect" when walking into the city, but you really never know the severity of the situations you will be walking into until you have experienced it first hand. The love and affection we gave the children today through the simple act of holding a hand or picking them up and twirling them around is worth more than any gift or gadget. It is amazing looking at the kids faces when you lean down and give them physical touch! Something that is so normal in the American culture but so foreign to the culture of Haiti. This is not due to a lack of love the people have for their children but because of the exhaustion the women have after a day of laboring and surviving.

But there is a lot of Hope for the country of Haiti and we got to see the power of this hope through an amazing place we were fortunate to visit called Papillon. This is a business that creates jobs for Haitians who are sometimes the only income provider of their family. We were able to head to the cafe, shop in the store, and take a tour of the production facility where all the products are made by hand. It is a non-profit organization that is helping to empower people and "be the change".

We ended the night with another amazing dinner and some may say too much laughing but we aren't convinced there is such a thing. The community this team has built in these first short days together is far beyond anything we all could have ever thought was possible. We are so thankful for the present and excitedly anticipating all the Lord is going to do through us the rest of the week here!

- Madison Stilp