A Day in the Field

So Rachael had a post of what our day-to-day activities are like in Port-Au-Prince . That was a great idea and you should definitely check it out. However, our lives can sometimes be pretty mellow in Port-Au-Prince as we work in the office each day. Our lives on the field, on the other hand, are quite the opposite. They're filled with new experiences, awkward encounters, language and cultural barriers, laughter, friendship, unity, and an understanding that goes beyond words.

Here's what a typical day looks like for me on the field in Jacmel...

4:00 a.m.- City power has just shut off and I wake up when my fan shuts off.
4:30 a.m.- Hear a rooster crowing outside my window. Fall back asleep.
4:55 a.m.- Hear the rooster crowing again. It seems as if he's found a friend.
5:30 a.m.- The roosters have found yet another friend. I think to myself, "They better learn Spanish quickly because I'll punt all three of them across the border if they keep it up!" Fall back asleep.
6:20 a.m.- Wake up, walk behind the church and get my shower ready.
6:22 a.m.- Hermanie gives me a bucket of water for shower.
6:45 a.m.- Dress and go inside. Apply bug spray. Brush teeth. Attempt to have pretty hair for the day.
6:55 a.m.- Attempt fails. Hair goes in a ponytail.
7:10 a.m.- Quiet time and read passages from 2 Corinthians.
7:45 a.m.- Hermanie brings me coffee, bread, and cheese for breakfast. Coffee is exceptionally good today because there is so much sugar in it that milk and/or cream is not needed.
8:15 a.m.- Help Hermanie and Migueli wash dishes.
8:30 a.m.- Clean room and collect dirty laundry.
8:50 a.m.- Meet Ricardo outside of church gate. Three people on a 2-seater moto- pray for protection and thank God for a good driver.
9:02 a.m.- Arrive at KALMI and start the first English class of the day. We grew by 5 people today.
10:50 a.m.- Laugh out loud when a 45-year-old man in my class wrote "I speak English like a native" and then again when he changed it to say, "a native with an accent." Good translation. He would get an A+.
11:00 a.m.- Dismiss class.
11:10 a.m.- Hop on the moto with Ricardo to buy more chalk. A box of 100 pieces costs 175 gourdes or $4.38.
11:17 a.m.- Kick a pedestrian in the gut and nearly flash all of Jacmel when trying to get off the moto in a skirt. Epic fail.
11:24 a.m.- Punch Ricardo when I see another Blan. He is startled when I punch him, which means I have to explain the game we know as "Punch Blan". He thinks it's funny, but I can tell by his laugh that he will never play it because he doesn't want to punch me. It's more of a love pat, really.
11:25 a.m.- Get off moto without kicking anyone. Winning!
11:27 a.m.- Return to KALMI and work on lesson plans.
11:43 a.m.- Walk to Jacmel Epi for lunch.

12:35 p.m.- Power goes out while I'm eating lunch. No problem.
12:42 p.m.- Power comes back on.
12:58 p.m.- Return to KALMI.
1:00 p.m.- Prepare lesson plans for tomorrow.
2:00 p.m.- Start class #2.
3:00 p.m.- Start class #3.
4:15 p.m.- Catch a ride to the Wesleyan Church with Ricardo. This time he gets no punches because I did not see any other Blan.
6:00 p.m.- At the Wesleyan Church I begin teaching class #4 to some of the members of the congregation.
8:00 p.m.- Class #4 ends- time to unwind.
8:14 p.m.- Eat dinner that Hermanie made and watch a soccer game with her, Migueli, and Manuel. Dinner is a salad, avocado, tomatoes, chicken hotdogs, and potato fries.
9:12 p.m.- Hermanie fills bucket full of water.
9:17 p.m.- Shower under the starts listening to a Compas band practice down the street.
9:54 p.m.- Crawl in bed and read The Things They Carried. Good book.
10:32 p.m.- Turn out the lights, yell "bon nwit" over the wall to Migueli and Hermanie. They yell it back.