First let me thank Shannon Kelley of Shannon Kelley Photography for the incredible pictures of Haiti and of Berline.
Where do you start? To quote that lyrical poet that I am so fond of...
"Lookin' back at my background wondering how I ever got here,
somethings are still a mystery to me but others are much too clear"
We have all been subjected to different types of catastrophes through out our lives especially with the availability of news coverage. I can remember all of the big events starting with 4th grade when President Reagan was shot, Desert Storm/Shield, the tsunami in Indonesia, September 11th, the second war in Iraq, and all the way up to last year's earthquake. I am sure there are some that I have missed but it is safe to say that there have been some major calamities during my lifetime. Things that changed the world.
Throughout our entire married life Christy has wanted to return to the Caribbean on a mission trip. When we had just met back in the early 90's, she had gone to Trinidad on a mission and was stuck in country due to a Coup d'Etat. I remember the story of how she broke curfew and snuck out to get on a flight back to the U.S. She always talked about wanting to go back and do some type of mission in the Caribbean. I always believed that she should go - Hey if God calls then you should follow His will. I will happily sit here in our nice house, take care of the kids, and support you fully. That was the extent of my involvement in missions. Little did I know at the time what a joke that was.
I had always been active in church during my life. I was the good little Baptist. I went to church on Sundays and Wednesdays. I participated in all kids of youth activities. I gave to missions. I did it all or so I thought. When Christy told me that she wanted to take Savanna to Haiti in February of 2010 I was very happy. I knew it would be a great thing. Savanna could go and see that the rest of the world was not like the United States and Christy could fill a need that she had to serve plus I could spend some time with Emma. I didn't have to do anything except throw money at missions(my good Baptist upbringing) and everyone would be happy. Then the earthquake hit in January and our world changed forever.
I remember getting a call from Christy telling me that Haiti had been rocked by a major earthquake. The country was in chaos and there were possible hundreds of thousands of people dead. At that time I did not realize the extent of the devastation but I began to watch the news reports and stories coming out of Haiti. There have been many horrible earthquakes through out my life. Iran, Turkey, and China have all suffered with thousands being killed. To me this was no different initially because it was a foreign country a long way off but then we heard that the orphanage at Coq Chante, the one that Whitestone supported, had been destroyed and know one really knew what had happened to the girls there. We went to a prayer service the next night at Powell Church for the orphans. This was really the turning point for me. The connection that I witnessed that night between a group of believers and a tiny island country was incredible. The genuine out pouring of love and support was unbelievable. I realized at that point something had to be done, I had to get off the couch and do my part.
Christy and I went to several meetings about the situation in Haiti and the orphanage at Coq Chante. We even threw our names into a pool of applicants to host the girls in the event that they could get out of Haiti on Humanitarian Parole. That for me was the key. God helped me to realize at that point that I had a greater responsibility to do more than I was doing. I knew at that point that if I was willing to open up my home and family to a stranger in need for a temporary time then why not go even further and change a life for ever. Christy and I began discussion the possibility of adopting a child from Haiti.
To be continued .....
No comments:
Post a Comment