Miss lists

My recent trips from Haiti to the USA and then to Costa Rica, have opened my eyes to the things I love about each place. Living in Haiti definitely means sacrificing some comforts from home, but I also find myself sacrificing when I am in the USA, because some things from Haiti I just can't find there.  I thought I'd illustrate this for everyone a little bit. I've always been a fan of lists, so here's a miss list for each of the two places I love.

Minnesota


I miss my friends. The ones I grew up with, the ones I went to grade school with, high school with, college with, and the ones I've worked with.  I miss coffee dates, happy hour munchies, sleepovers, walks and runs, dressing up and going somewhere fun.

This goes hand in hand with the above, but I miss GIRL TALK. I miss having girls around me, being able to sit and talk over the same situations over and over until we have dissected every detail. I miss talking about boys. I miss knowing the daily things my friends are going through and them knowing the same for me. I miss not knowing about their new boyfriends, husbands, and babies... jobs or anything else new and exciting that is happening in their life.

I miss driving. First of all, having a car to drive and the freedom to go anywhere in my car. I especially miss night drives. Enjoyable and the cool breeze with windows open on a summer night, playing music on a radio, no crazy bumps or potholes to swerve, no goats or cows in the road to slow me down, lights that make the road visible...

I miss a quiet place to sleep. I miss a bedroom that is really mine, filled with my things and my decorations. I miss silence when I'm trying to fall asleep, during my night, and when  I'm waking up in the morning. I miss the feeling of my room feeling truly clean. It always still feels a little too much like Haiti in my room.

I miss ice cream. Especially Edina Creamery and my favorite Caramel Cookie Praline ice cream. Any dibs on an ice cream date next time I'm in town?!

I miss my church, the church family, my pastor's sermons. I miss knowing people in church, understanding the sermon, chewing on the things I learned during the service, going to Wednesday night Bible study, feeling like I'm growing and understanding more about God each week. Yeah, I really miss that. And need it too.


Yet, when I'm in Minnesota or anywhere else but Haiti, there are also many things I miss...


I miss people greeting each other as they pass in the street. I miss meeting someone new every time I go for a walk outside.

I miss babies. I miss lots and lots of babies and being able to hold and cradle them whenever I want to. I miss people handing me their babies to hold during church services, mommas handing me their baby to hug and kiss when they see me eyeing them with the desire.

I miss hearing Haitian Kreyol, practicing it, understanding it.

I miss the heat. Yes, that hot and sometimes miserable heat... I miss it! I also miss the sun, which is shining almost every single day in Haiti. Along with this, I miss the beautiful, breathtaking sunsets.

I miss my Haitian friends and being able to talk to them on the phone without paying international rates, the chance to see them or visit them so often, to spend time with their families, to understand more about Haiti through them.

I miss time being more about people and about the needs of the moment rather than efficiency, money, or whatever else people in American seem to be racing towards with their time.  I miss people being around on weekends, not being busy, just being at home with their families and relaxing.

I miss island time! I'm never "late" in Haiti ;)

I miss feeling like I'm really where God wants me to be. Which is how I feel each day I wake up in Haiti. Such a peace, such a confirmation, that yes, I'm still in the right spot.

I miss not caring about money, not worrying about my savings, my retirement...

I miss loving each day even when the day is very similar to the day before and even when the day was challenging. I miss the concept of time meaning something entirely different. My agenda and plans cast to the wayside as each day is just that- a day. It's not tomorrow, it's just whatever day it is and that is how each moment is seen in Haiti.

I miss seeing a very clear vision for my purpose as a nurse and feeling like somehow I'm getting closer to fulfilling it.


That's what I've got for tonight :) I guess it's a good thing that the lists are about even. In fact, the Haiti list may be a little longer, so I guess I'll just stay in Haiti for awhile ;)

Pura Vida en Costa Rica

I made it safely to Costa Rica. The trip started out as quite the adventure and there have been a few more little aventures along the way. Adventure 1, my luggage did not make it with me to Costa Rica. (Gretchen?! My fears were not made up!) Also, for the first time ever, I did not have a roll along carryon with necessities. That means, I had the dress I was wearing, a couple clean pairs of undies I stuffed in my purse (just in case!) and my electronics. The airlines were very nice in trying to help me find my luggage, but the truth was that they had no idea where it was. They said Haiti uses a different way of tracking luggage and so they couldn´t locate my luggage in their system. I let them know that I had my bag in Miami and checked it back in. So I knew it made it that far. They woul try to find my suitcase and then hopefully it would come in on one of the 3 flights the next day. Then they would drive it to my Dad´s little town of Mata de Limon. My dad gave a 10 minute instruction on how to find his house. There´s not exactly a well known address. In fact, most people have never heard of his town. I wasn´t expecting to see my luggage anytime soon.

Minor addition. Adventure 2 was that hot sauce I brought for my dad spilled all over everything in my suitcase. 4 loads of laundry later and a thorough job of srubbing down my suitcase, and everything is clean again!

It was about 9pm by the time I made it outside the airport. My dad was pacing the pavement outside the doors. Clearly he had been worried that I wasn´t on my flight. I explained what happened and BEGGED to stop somewhere so I could scavenge for  a few things to make up for my lost luggage. Pajamas? Deoderant? A toothbrush? Simple requests at this point. He was doubtful anything would be open. Good news... they now have a Walmart in San Jose! I thought he was joking when he told me. I had never been so happy for the chance to go to Walmart! I stocked up on face makeup and mascara, sunscreen lotion, a pair of sweatshorts, and a swimsuit. Unfortunately, I didn´t try it on and the swimsuit was very unflattering and tight in all the wrong places. $10 doesn´t buy a good suit! Luckily, none of the costs would burden me. The airlines gave me up to $125 they would reimburse me for.

After many MANY calls the next morning  to the airport in San Jose and then to American Airlines in the USA, my bag was finally located! Turns out that over 20 bags had not made it along with mine. It would be on the first flight of the day in! I was so happy to see the car carrying my bag bumping along the traintracks along the path to my dad´s house later that afternoon!

It has been very hot here. Usually in the 90s. I have been lucky to be here for the second rain since January. It has been hot and dry the last few months so the rain was welcomed! My days here consist of Cribbage games with dad, reading ( I just started the Twilight series), taking walks in his town, and going to the nearby ocean for swimming. Time goes by so slowly here, but in a good way.

Last night was adventure 3. I came back from a night run to find my room swarmed with flying ants. They were everywhere!! They were jumping on my bed, my body and all over my room! My dad came running in with some sort of poison and sprayed down every ant we could find. I was releived when they were all dead. We swept up hundreds of dead ant bodies. I got up after a few hours of restless sleep. I kept praying to God that I would relax and sleep. I left my room to go to the bathroom and realized I was probably poisoning myself by sleeping in the room. I didn´t realize how strong the chemicals were until I was out of my room. Thankful that I had woken up with still a few brain cells in tact, I headed into the living room and slept on a couch the rest of the night.

Today I went into a nearby city of Puntarenas. It has a port that a lot of cruise ships stop in. There are little vendors sprinkled across the ocean front. I bought a sarong and a cowboy hat. Two things that will make my beach experience just a little better! My towel that I have right now is smaller than my body and I leave the beach with black sand all over me and even in my hait. I found beaufiful fruit at a fruit stand here. Pineapple, Papaya, Mangoes, and even APPLES! I never get to eat apples in Haiti. Such a treat. I am looking forward to an afternoon of fruit when we get back to my dad´s house!

So, that is Costa Rica for now! I don´t have any other adventures to share. Oddly, I miss Haiti a little already. I definately miss speaking Kreyol. I´m pretty annoyed with Spanish and it is not nearly as fun as speaking Kreyol!