Update on the well drilling project...

  

  Just thought you all would appreciate an update on our well drilling project… David R. has been working hard on the road all week, making it wider at some places and just smoothing out the rough spots so that the drilling rig could get up… Today, Mike, from the mission that was planning to drill the well, came up to make sure they could get up here with their rig… We were very disappointed when Mike told us that he’s afraid it’s too risky for their rig… They have just gotten a new rig that really hangs low to the ground, and he’s afraid the low clearance will make it hard to come up… Their old rig could’ve done it, but it’s already sold… So???? We’re left wondering what God has for us, but we believe He knows how much we need a well up here, and that He has something better… We’re knocking on any doors we can to see if we can find another rig to come up here… Water For Life could probably get up with their rig, but it sounds like they might be booked pretty full… It seems like NOW is the time to do something, as the road is good to go and there has been a lot of money spent in fixing it… everyone knows that the good road only lasts till we get a lot of rain… So please pray with us, that God would direct our steps, and contacts, and that He would work miracles and open doors according to His will…

In the meantime we’re going ahead on the shop… The men are hauling cement, sand, and stone for pouring concrete… Dad picked up the steel that we needed to replace what was damaged in the hurricane… so little by little, it’s coming together… keep that in your prayers as well…

Thank you for your interest and prayers!

                                           

Here's what's happening in Terre Rouge!

 

The guys are leveling out the ground

  and putting down stone getting ready for the shop floor.

 Maxo is bending wire in for the shop floor.

Homegrown pineapple...

                                                                How do you like this one?! :)

 Ok, I'm not crazy about lizards, but they don't bother me, and I enjoy watching them...

Today there were two of them fighting over the condensation on the outside of this cup... I could get very close to them, and they didn't mind... It was interesting to all us to watch them licking it off!

See his little pink tongue? :)

The following I received as an email written by another missionary, Clayton, who was in Port-au-Prince at the time of the earthquake...
 

Douz Janvye

(January twelfth)

"This is a day that will never be forgotten in the lives of many, many people. Probably all of us have some day every year that we especially remember. Maybe we had a child die, maybe an accident that crippled our body for the rest of our lives, maybe it was the day when the doctor came to you and told you that you were fighting cancer and the road ahead looked very very grim. Maybe you don't have an event like this in your life, I don't know. I didn't before one year ago today. Sure, I had a birthday, I had the day that I accepted Jesus Christ as my Saviour, etc. etc.. I had days that I remembered every year, but these were all happy things. Days that brought joy in my life.

For all of the Haitians and many others, the twelfth of January is a day that will never be forgotten. It is a day of reflection. For many they remember life when they had all of they limbs. For some, they remember life with a father and mother. For others they remember spending days trapped under tons of concrete before they were rescued. Hundreds if not thousands of people are visiting the mass graves where their loved ones no doubt were carried by dump truck and dumped in holes with thousands of others. As you can see today is not an easy day, for the nation of Haiti. For myself, I realize how easy it was to not deal with all of my emotions, but to just put them aside. Now a year later, they all come flooding back. It's hard and sometimes impossible to hold back the tears when I remember some of the things I seen that day. The pain and suffering was tremendous. Images of girls hanging from their waists, but with our tools and hands it was impossible to get them free. I remember a man trapped by his arm in between tons of concrete and a steel table, with no way to rescue him without jacks and the proper equipment. I remember being inside what was soon to be a collapse grocery store only hours before it went down. All of these things and many more bring tears to my eyes when I remember them. But I am saddened even more by the thousands of souls that are daily entering an eternity in hell. What am I doing to save souls? I see and work with people everyday who are on the road to hell. They are living lives of lies and immorrality. Am I showing them God's love? Am I telling them About Christ? Am I working for the Kingdom of God? Sure I can do alot of good things, build houses for people that need them and stuff, but many non-Christians are doing the same thing. But it's not about doing good things, it's about telling others about Jesus and showing them a better (the ONLY) WAY. There was much pain and suffering that day a year ago. You can still see the effects of that day everywhere you look. But that pain is nothing, Nothing in comparison with the pain that Jesus endured when He separated Himself from God and took on my sin and your sin that the whole world would be saved if only they would turn from their wicked ways and repent..."

One year...

January 12 - Today is the one year anniversary of the Haiti earthquake... It's hard to believe it's actually a year already. Today is a solemn day for Haiti... Everything is shut down, and they say even the trucks aren't running as the world remembers the hundred thousands who were killed in those 37 seconds...

We'll never forget...

And we'll never be the same... God has been good to us... It's amazing how something like an earthquake can affect you so... Even now when we get tremors, my adrenaline starts pumping. The children still scream if we get a hard one, and there's plenty of noises that can set us "on edge" like thunder, etc. I've woke up with my heart pounding in the middle of the night to something so simple as a water bottle getting knocked over or something or someone shaking the bed... When I was in the airport last week, the whole building shook and my first thought was earthquake! only to realize on second thought that it was just a big plane taking off... I can only imagine what it must be like for the ones that were trapped in the rubble for days on end...

Please do keep Haiti in your prayers... they say that Haiti is still at high risk for another quake just as strong or stronger than we already had, as the fault that ruptured was one that was previously unknown, and the Enriquillo fault still has a lot of pressure... I'm so glad that God holds the world in His hands!

 His eye is on the sparrow...

 This is how our house looked even though we didn't have any major cracks in the walls...

The palace.

 We still see many, many tent cities

 and while many places have been cleaned up,

 we still see a lot of this...

Snapshots from the States...

Greetings from the cold, snowy north!!! This Haitian thinks it's way too cold to be outside for very long, but indoors the cold doesn't bother me too much... I'm enjoying my time with my family and nieces and nephew very much... but I miss my children incredibly much, and I'm anxious to get home again next week... The children are doing well - Jess and Carol are taking wonderful care of them. 

Just thought I'd share a few pictures from up here...

 My little nephew, Wilson.

 My nieces' 2nd birthday.

 Sierra

 Monica and Melody playing...

 holding Wilson...

 Jingle Bells! :)

It snowed last night, so it was fun to hitch up and go for a sleigh ride! Dad loves driving! :)

Weston got a haircut!

 I had trimmed the top of his hair before, but this was his first real one...

 It makes him look so much older!

 He's such a jolly fellow!! :)

"Mommy, what did you do to me? I can't believe it!!! "

For your interest...

Last week Donovan was showing me pictures of a recent trip to T-Goave to get cement for the earthquake rebuilding project. The ship had just come in, so they sent him to the dock for the cement. So he got to watch the unloading process, and take pictures! I thought the pictures were so interesting and thought you all would enjoy it too, so got permission from Donny to share them with you...

 Part of the beach at T-Goave

 A fisherman in his wood carved boat...

 The ferry boats being loaded...

 See the skids of cement on the boats?

 This one is beyond my comprehension... how can a backhoe safely unload those skids of cement???

The boat that brought the cement from Kingston, Jamaica...

Bonne Annee 2011!!!

Happy New Year from Terre Rouge!

Jan 1 is also Independence Day in Haiti, so it's a very big party time for the Haitians. I've been hearing the music and parties going late into the night for the last week. The week between Christmas and New Year is major housecleaning time for them... They will wash all the clothes in the house, clean everything, rearrange, and buy new tablecloths and curtains for the doors. Some of the Haitians get their children up at midnight on New Years Eve, and give them baths! :) 

Anita H. (nurse at Allegre) Amy W. and Kayla K. are spending the weekend with us. We've had such an enjoyable time spending time together... the weekend's going by way too fast!

New Years Eve was spent with all the missionaries from Allegre. We had a snack and then played games till close to midnight... We saw the new year in singing on the roof. We could see a few fireworks that were set off at distant towns... The church at Besace rang the new year in with their bell!

2010 was a year that we will never forget - In 10 days it will be a year since the earthquake... We still have to deal with the memories and effects from that experience... God's grace has been sufficient... I cannot thank Him enough! What a blessing to realize that we don't have to worry about the future because He is already there!