Saturday, day 2 - the day is a scheduled travel day from Port-au-Prince to the village of Bohoc, approximately 90 miles north of Port-au-Prince. But due to road conditions, this is expected to be a 6 hour journey for our team and two other teams that have joined us.

Today was about the journey.. A journey of bonding with fellow teammates, a journey of seeing the beautiful Haitian countryside, a journey of seeing a glimpse of the Haitian people outside of the capital city. And, for me, a journey of dealing with humility, patience, and control (or lack of). The first several hours of our journey to Bohoc went relatively smooth. We had an incredible driver that took our Toyota cruiser van through Haitian terrain like none other. We were traversing mountains roads on what I affectionately refer to as HWY 300, part asphalt and (a lot) part  rock, dirt, holes, and mud. There were multiple points where we had to pass through riverbeds and huge mud holes, but somehow making it through each time. Around hour 5 of our ~90 mile journey, it was time to take the Toyota cruiser mud bogging as we approached one more muddy pool. With no way around, our fearless driver made the decision to forge through the middle of this road pond. Unfortunately, with weight of 34 people onboard, we began to spinout and sink into the murky waters on this part of the HWY 300, slap in the middle of this beautiful Haitian country. After several attempts of slamming the vehicle into reverse, and trying to rock the vehicle out, we simply were just stuck… stuck in the muck!

It was amazing how, what seemed to be out of nowhere, all these Haitian children, teenagers and adults came to give us a helping hand. This is where the other part of the journey began, the one regarding letting pride go and tasting a bit of humility. This is hard for us Americans. Several of us from the back of the bus thought we needed get out of the bus to help ourselves out of this muck… typical backseat drivers… However, our leader, Ronald, thought we should only get out to assist as the last resort, not the first. Watching this group of Haitains that come to assist us …willing to get knee deep in mud …was very hard to swallow. Is it American pride, the need for control, or just not thinking it is right to sit idly by watching others try to pull us out when we have a bus load of  guys fully capable of  getting in the mud? I suspect it is all of the above.

After multiple attempts by the locals to fish out the van, by God’s grace and His perfect timing, a  United Nations vehicle arrived behind us. With the assistance of the Haitians and the UN officers (from Nepal), they were able pull us back out of the muck. After unloading the van and another mud bogging attempt by our driver, the van was finally on the otherside of the of the muddy hole. We were ready to continue our  journey to Bohoc. Who knew Triple A (AAA) services = United Nations? What an awesome blessing for those officers and the locals that did not hesitate to give us a hand!!

With two days down in Haiti , it is easy as an American to view the living conditions, the people and the surroundings with a materialistic lens (be it good or bad)… the haves and the have nots, the rich and the poor, always wanting more, looking for a better quality of life from a materialistic perspective. I am very thankful for what God has blessed me with... He  has blessed us tremendously, and just as important He has blessed them, just maybe in different ways. 

Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you. -Romans 12:3 

-Billy