We went from a slow quiet week of healing for Peter to a busy week filled with gardening, teaching, clinic work and yes cheese! This week seemed like everyday was full and active with lots going on. We are happy to report Peter is feeling 100% better and back to his normal self, lots of energy and eating two servings at lunch.
The first week here Peter was introduced to a cooperative Vegetable farm, Raboure. He has been visiting the farm every Tuesday, the day the cooperative works together on their collective land. Last week they offered him his own parcel to work while he’s here, giving him a fantastic opportunity to learn how to grow vegetables in Haiti, experiment with some new techniques and varieties, and they’ll sell any vegetables to benefit the cooperative. Raboure also has a large flock of laying hens and two large ponds for fish farming.
The real excitement of the week was our visit with the Vermont Haiti Project group. It was so wonderful to see some familiar faces and meet some new friends as well. We had a total of 11 visitors, 3 Haitians, 7 Vermonters and 1 Californian. They arrived Thursday evening in time for a good meal, and some showers after an 8 hour ride in the back of a truck from Port au Prince. Thank you for making the long journey, Peter and I really appreciated you coming all this way! Friday we visited three schools in T.R. that have school gardens, we met with the IDDH folks to talk about their organization and then headed to Milot (about 1 hour away) to check out S.O.I.L, another NGO that makes composting toilets. It was fascinating to see the compost they are creating. We are hoping to keep working with S.O.I.L and maybe do some research using humanure compost or urine on gardens here in T.R.
Saturday morning we delivered a treadle pump, brought here by VT-Haiti Project, from Seeds of Self Reliance (John Hayden), to IDDH (complicated, huh). The pump traveled from Vermont to Port au Prince in a shipping container filled by Vermonters who have too much stuff. We then headed back to Milot to see the Citadel. An old fortress built to guard Northern Haiti against ill-willed foreign powers after the revolution. We headed part way up the mountain in the truck and then walked the rest of the way. It was amazing to think about the actual process of building the citadel, a massive stone fort at the very top of a steep mountain. Every piece of the Citadel was carried up the mountain on foot, and our “guide” said around 20,000 people died in the process. On our way home we stopped by Raboure to see where Peter’s plot is and the different projects they have going at the cooperative.
The real fun started that night though when Peter and I got to have our first cheddar cheese in almost 2 months… pure heaven thank you Ali and Bob. Kimball, Donna and co. were nice enough to carry some provisions sent to us by our parents back home and it really was like being 8 years old on Christmas morning. We got cheese and chocolate. Yesterday for breakfast and dinner we had fresh grapefruit followed by Shelburne Farms Cheddar with bread and crackers. We really felt like we were on our honeymoon!
Thanksgiving is right around the corner and we are sad not to be with family but at the same time we are feeling more thankful here in Haiti than we ever have. Normally at my house we try to say one thing we are thankful for at the dinner table while we eat our turkey. This year I feel like I could write a whole essay about what I am thankful for. Right now I am thankful for my and Peter’s health, having healthy food to eat everyday, and the access and ability to drink clean water. I am thankful that I do not have to use a pit latrine for the rest of my life. Most of all I am thankful for Peter and my whole family. We have truly realized that these things are all we need to be happy, the rest are just luxuries, but we am still thankful for chocolate and cheese.
Happy Thanksgiving everyone, enjoy the stuffing for us, my favorite part, and the mashed potatoes too, and the pumpkin pie!
Love,
Meredith and Peter
p.s. A couple of you have asked us about an address here for us. The best way to send anything to us is to give it to Kathryn, who is coming to visit the end of December.
Hey, you two!
ReplyDeleteIt's so great to hear that things are happening down there! With so much seemingly unconfirmed ahead of time, it's a relief to hear that you (Pete) are hooked up with a vegetable growing cooperative and are making inroads with school garden project, S.O.I.L. etc, and that you (Meredith) are already working at a clinic, and are meeting midwives. (Don't worry, Pete, my excitement doesn't illustrate an ignorance of your typhoid stint--I'm sorry to hear about that, but glad that you are well and eating two servings per meal!!)
It is good to have our comfort tested every once in a while to remind us of how very fortunate we are here. It is nice to hear about the lessons you're learning, the appreciation you are gaining, and the great attitude you seem to have.
Things are going well for me here. I'm heading down to Cannon Falls tomorrow for Thanksgiving. Karin is coming, too, and almost all of my extended family will be there, including the three relatives that she has yet to meet. After having gotten the go-ahead from my grandparents regarding my plans to start a farm there, and receiving overwhelming support from aunts, uncles, and cousins (and parents, of course), I will hopefully be ironing out the final details with them all this week. I'll probably move to Cannon Falls in January, and while I renovate an old chicken coup/barn into a living quarters over the next few months, I will be living with my aunt and uncle down the road from the farm. And to supplement income during this winter, I am going to be substitute teaching in several school districts in the area. Yay, things are coming together!
Keep the updates coming (and try to sneak in a few photos, if you can). I miss you both, but am happy that you're on this adventure together.
Dana