Being thankful…

I live in the U.S. – we have LOTS of problems; however, reading things like this remind me to be thankful for the problems that we have.  I’ve never once thought of getting on a boat and casting out to sea to gamble with my life trying to find a job in another country so I can feed my family…

 

Sea search for 70 Haitians to resume at dawn
Search teams waited anxiously for daylight Wednesday to resume the hunt for nearly 70 Haitians missing after a sailboat splintered on a reef and spilled nearly 200 migrants into rough seas.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/32198394/ns/world_news-americas//from/ET

A little rain goes a long way in Port Au Prince Haiti

 

It seemed to rain almost every day in Port Au Prince, Haiti when we were there in May, 2009. Most of the time that we were out driving in the rain there was no way for me to video it; however, our friends Ernie and Wayne who were also in Haiti at the same time did get a quick video. I was amazed to see people actually driving (or walking) down streets that were completely flooded out!

 

Driving in Haiti

 

On this rainy Saturday afternoon, I decided to blog something from our Haiti trip.  This is just a quick video snippet – not much here – but plenty more where this one came from. 

 

Like so many other things in Haiti, when you get in a vehicle it is obvious that you are putting your life in God’s hands.  No real speed limits; hardly any traffic signs, road signs; the only real law seems to be “honk before you hit someone or something, or it is your fault”. 

Driving in Haiti, you cram 2-3 times as many people in the vehicles as the vehicle was intended to hold; no seat belts of course; no emissions regulations either – so you’re breathing thick black air poisonous air, your hair and skin is covered in dust and powdery black substances (soot?) when you get to your destination.

The roads are very adventurous though; huge potholes, stream beds, etc. 

 

So… why could we only fit 25 people in a 14 seat van?  See below for the answer!