into words

New Blog Site

2011-07-25T13:25:00.002-04:00

Hey everyone,

I've moved my blog over to a new site, giving you more ways to keep up with what's happening in Haiti! You can expect regular blog posts once I've hit the ground in Petit Goave. There will also be pics and videos posted in the Media section, and prayer updates on the Support page. This is also where you'll be able to sign up for my listserve email updates and subscribe to the blog. I'll no longer be updating this site, so check out the new one (http://rjintowords.wordpress.com) and feel free to send me suggestions and questions - I'd love to hear from you!

-Rachael

The Background - Part 3

2011-06-08T17:37:00.006-04:00

In May of '08 I went with a few other students & volunteers on a 10-visit to Haiti. This crowd here - up dark & early for a 4AM flight:

That was the first time we got to meet Thony (pronounced like 'Tony') and see all the great stuff that WHI was doing in the country. One of my favorite things about WHI is that they only hire staff members who are native to the countries in which they work. This is a great method for multiple reasons, which I may get into another time.

Anyway...Thony really walked us through the shock of being in Haiti for the first time as he showed us the WHI efforts in Port-au-Prince, Jacmel, and Petit Goave. We were able to:
• Meet kids in the child sponsorship programs in Port-au-Prince
• help referee a high school track meet (also Port-au-Prince)
• participate in an HIV/AIDS awareness workshop in Jacmel
• put on children’s day-camp activities & help build houses in Petit Goave

Yeah, in 10 days! All of it was amazing work and each place was so different from the next. But the people in Petit Goave were the ones that really stole our hearts.

In our first debrief meeting in Petit Goave the entire team felt like this was the place that The Gathering (MBC's college ministry) was supposed to be. After spending 2 more days in the neighborhood of Percin we were sure of it. You know how it's sometimes difficult to put into words why you know something is the right fit...you just know?

Well that’s how this was for us. Each place we visited had some of the elements we were looking for; things that would provide a good fit for college students’ abilities to engage in and serve the communities. There was potential for students to get involved in any of the community development programs that we had seen that week. But we could actually visualize them building relationships in Percin. And the feeling was unanimous in our team of seven, so that’s how we settled there. Sarah & I returned later that summer for a few weeks…which is Part 4, for later.

The Background - Part 2

2011-05-25T23:34:00.004-04:00

Part-way through college, my church's college ministry had started learning about the modern day slave trade, and decided it was time to get the word out to our fellow students. I got to work with a great team of students to put on a fundraiser/awareness event on campus: Seesaws Against Slavery. We made a 24-hour seesaw marathon, where students raise $ to seesaw for an hour out on the main quad. There were some amazing conversations that happened, with people running around campus wondering why the giant seesaws were there...and wanting to be a part of it! Well, the campus community ended up getting so involved that a few thousand dollars! The funds were donated to help complete new curriculum used in aftercare centers, bringing restoration and healing to young women who had been rescued from human traffickers.

College students have an amazing ability to mobilize & lead their peers, and seemingly endless stores of energy. Or coffee on campus is just stronger. Either way, the people at WHI took note of what our little church group was doing, and asked us to be involved with their projects overseas. After many discussions to figure out the best fit, we all decided that Haiti was it! In spring '08 the first team of students went to see what WHI was doing in-country, and consider how we could be a part of it. Which is another blog post, because now I gotta go camping! Memorial Day weekend! Woo!

The Background - Part 1

2011-05-22T23:38:00.004-04:00

All this Haiti news is lacking some context. So to get you the full story, I'm putting up a series of posts about how I got to where I'm at now. A shout out to Kirk for pushing me to get him more background info, and thus kick-starting this series. Thanks, Kirk!

Here's Part 1:

It all started back in high school (yeah, I'm taking you that far back) when I started thinking "What do I want to study at college?" Well I was like, "You know what must be a big problem? Cross cultural communications in the global church." Right. I had never ever thought about that before and it just came out of nowhere. But I suddenly found myself with this desire to go spend enough time abroad in another culture to begin to understand it a bit.

Think about it, though...churches, NGOs, missionaries, etc. run into walls over and over again in this area. Culture is a really powerful thing, and miscommunication can occur very easily to slow down or even hurt the efforts in focus in a cross-cultural context. As I spent some time thinking about it, I realized this was an area in which I really wanted to work. So since high school I've always wanted to be a 'cultural liaison' of sorts between two cultures and enable the church in each place to work together more easily. I knew I didn't want to go to a faith-based college, which created some work in figuring out what to study in order to move forward. I knew what I wanted to study, but had no idea what it was called. Until, after hours of searching, I found out that it was called *drumroll...* ANTHROPOLOGY.

Anthro really fits perfectly with the goal that popped into my mind in high school. I looked at urban schools on the East Coast so that I could get some real practice while studying, and wound up at AU (really only because they gave me the best financial aid package). Thanks, AU. Anyway, I ended up going into the Anthro program there and loved it; the topics, the department, and the wonderfully strange student body that I got to join.

And that's really as far back as i can trace it. More to come later in the week!

The letter you've all been waiting for:

2011-05-07T19:57:00.005-04:00

Dear family & friends,

I can’t believe I’m finally writing this!

I sat down in my room to start writing this and kept thinking, “Yep. Wow…it is finally time to do this!” It seems so unreal to have waited for three years, and now the Lord has allowed the time to come…I’m moving to Haiti!

Some Background: The desire to stay at least a year in Haiti hit my heart in ‘08 when I spent the summer working there with a friend. Though I was more than willing to return immediately, it was clear that the Lord had more work to do in me before going. So I wrestled to obey, stayed in DC, enrolled in a leadership development program at my church, and have been working there the past two years. He has been faithful and I have been made more ready for this task!

The Details: This summer I’ll be moving to Haiti for 12-15 months to volunteer with a Christian relief and development NGO called World Hope International. I’ll be working alongside a ministry partner, Kerry, who is going with me to build relationships with the local Haitian church community. We’ll be facilitating teams of doctors from the U.S. in WHI’s mobile medical clinics and growing their child sponsorship program. In addition, we’ll be helping the Haitian church and WHI pilot new development programs. We’re excited to see the church grow in their ability to meet the physical needs of their community and share Christ’s love in some really practical ways.

Your Prayers: What I most greatly desire are your prayers. I can’t imagine going forward in this without them, and I’ve never been more aware of this need. I won’t be walking into a very healthy church upon arrival – the church where we will be is tired right now. So I ask for your continued prayers while I’m away. I need His grace to cover me and fill the gaps in my shortcomings. And in times when we’re leaping forward in Christ’s strength and provision, I’d love for you to be able to rejoice with me!

The Finances: I’m confident that God will bring in the funds needed in order to go serve Him in this way, and I think He has chosen to do that through His church. There is about $20K to raise, but we serve a mighty God, and it is the Lord who provides! I'll soon post about how to donate. Please prayerfully consider whether making a donation is one way that He would have you be a part of what is happening in Haiti.

The goal is not to ‘fix’ Haiti. The goal is to build strong friendships, share the Good News of Jesus Christ in word and deed, and be a light in the darkness! The goal is to see more brothers & sisters whose hope lies in Christ, our light & our salvation, knowing that they are loved by the King of kings and created for His glory.

I’ve never been more excited to watch the Lord work!

With love and a great hope,
-Rachael

“That is why we labor and strive, because we have put our hope in the living God, who is the Savior of all people, and especially of those who believe.” – 1 Timothy 4:10

Asking for: Prayer

2011-05-02T23:39:00.004-04:00

How to pray with & for me:

Consistently:
Whenever you think of it, please take a moment right then & there to pray for me! Even just 2 sentences. Or maybe choose a certain day of the week to spend time praying for God to be glorified through His people in Haiti.

Specifically:
As the year progresses, I’ll be posting regularly here on the blog. Sometimes it will be about prayer requests, and other times a story or thought. I won’t be able to share some things that happen for various reasons. However, this blog will be the best tool to use in order to pray as specifically as possible.

Together:
As most of you are all in the States here together, I want to encourage and ask you to make time to pray for me when you are with each other. Since I can’t be with you in person, when you are together in a group and notice/remember that I am not there, please remember to pray!

Isaiah 43

2011-04-04T21:58:00.006-04:00

This chapter has been taking over my brain ever since last week, which is a good thing. It's too long to post it all right here, but you can click here to see it.

I've been looking ahead towards Haiti more recently - looking at uprooting what's been established here over the past 6 years (friendships, my church, my connection to the city, etc.) and getting ready to step into something new that I don't know. But in all of the natural, human insecurity that gets brought up with that, focusing on God's possessive approach and love towards us (v.1, v.10) in Isaiah 43 has kept me more secure as I think about this transition.

Getting ready to go to a country where I won't have the social, cultural, or (especially) linguistic capital that I have here is pretty unnerving. (ah, Bourdieu. He was so smart.) But with all of that I'm reminded that He is literally with me in every situation in which I'll find myself (v. 1-3). And that's the most comforting thing right now. And I'm told not to fear (v. 1, v.5), that the Lord is strong (like, the whole chapter), that He's powerful enough to make a river spring up in the desert (v. 19), that He loves me and has gone to great lengths to make me His (v.25-). I've been spending a lot of time reading & sitting with that beautiful love expressed in Isaiah 43 for a week and am still overwhelmed by it to the point of being almost unable to get it out into words. But I'm trying. I'm still just amazed at this great, complete, personal, and tangible Love!! This week I have been especially happy to be His.

2011-04-04T21:39:00.005-04:00

I think springtime is here? Thunderstorms at night, cherry blossoms, daily high temps swinging between 80 and 50...yep, it's here. Also, I just finished reading The House on Mango Street, by Sandra Cisneros and the cover was turquoise, so that definitely makes it feel like springtime, the turquoise. I liked it. It's really easy to pick up and put down whenever and you don't have to put in any effort to getting in and out of a storyline, so that was a nice change from Oliver Twist, which is the other fiction book I'm (sloooowly) reading now. I think Oliver Twist is more of a winter book.

In other random news, I printed out all my paperwork for WHI today and will be filling that out this week. Finally, I have something to do for Haiti prep stuff. If you're just catching up, I'm planning to go to Haiti this summer for 12-15 months in a paired placement through WHI. I'll tell you more about that in another post. In regards to Haiti though, it looks like Martelly won the Presidential election. So we'll see how that goes...

It's an upgrade.

2011-03-30T19:58:00.004-04:00

Welcome to my 'new' blog page! I finally got some time to re-vamp the ol' blog and it's looking goooood. In fact. it's looking like I might actually use it now that there's space for things other than just posts. Those are sometimes the most boring part of a blog, I think.

Instead, now there's a twitter feed on the side, see? -->

No laughing...that's pretty technical for me. And i realized I can put up pictures and videos! And I can post quotes from the books that I'm reading! I know that makes me sound like an 80 year old, but hey, maybe I'm a little bit behind the curve? That's okay. Slowly but surely. If there's anything else that I can do with this thing you guys should let me know and soon it will be The Greatest Blog In The World. Or at least maybe just a little bit better than before since I actually want to use it now.

The internets are amazing!

Where Do We Go From Here?

2010-03-23T14:08:00.000-04:00

Last week I was in Petit Goave, Haiti, with a team from The Gathering. On Thursday afternoon, here’s what happened:

“…the last day of kid’s camp, we had special presents for the kids as they left – hygiene packs that students from The Gathering had collected the week before. When they saw what was in them, soap, combs, lotion, tissues, etc., they would come running back down the street with huge smiles to say “thank you, thank you!”

In the evening a bunch of guys from Percin came over to play soccer. When it started getting dark and they had to head home, the guys on our team were able to give away some of the full hygiene packs to them. Same thing happened. As each one saw what was in the pack, they’d turn around to say thank you, and shake the hands of the guys on our team…”

That afternoon reiterated something we’ve been learning in The Gathering for the last 2 years – the ongoing prayer and involvement of students here in the U.S. is crucial to what is happening in Petit Goave. God can use a week-long trip in some pretty cool ways, but what we do while we’re in the U.S. is just as important, if not more so.

Students here were aware of some basic needs of our brothers and sisters in Petit Goave. Students here collected supplies. Students here have been praying and praying and praying. Students here can tell others on their campus about the way that God used a donated bar of soap to remind people in Haiti that He is near, that He cares for them, and that He is Jehovah Jireh - our Provider. Students here can be confident that their continued prayer and involvement on the U.S. side of this relationship can often accomplish more than going to Haiti for a week ever could.

So, where DO we go from here?
Pray. Think creatively. Collaborate. Watch God work.

Team Details

2010-03-05T10:05:00.000-05:00

Dearest friends and family,

I'm excited to tell you that the Lord has given me an opportunity to go back to Petit Goave, Haiti from March 13th-March 20th! The team will be supporting an emergency medical clinic there, while helping to care for the local community. We're not sending out the traditional support letters for this trip because of the quick turn-around time for our departure date, but I've included all the details below. I'm asking that you'll stand with us in tending to the people of Petit Goave. Here's the info:

Who: Rachael Jankowsky (co-leader), Brett Becker (co-leader) John McGowan (Pastor), Laura Kalichak (Medical), Christina Buckel (Medical), Laurence Jackson (Video), Natalie Bingham (Ministry support), and Daniel Gochnour (Survival expert extraordinaire).
What: Medical Clinic and basic community support
When: March 13th - March 20th
Where: Petit Goave, Haiti
How: the team will be self-sustaining (bringing our own food, sleeping outside, etc)

The earthquake in January has really shaken up Petit Goave, and our friends there are struggling in every area of life. The Wesleyan church there has set up a medical clinic on their property, and World Hope International is sending rotating teams like ours to 'staff' it. Samaritan's Purse has gone through the property to set up a water desalinization system. I'm so excited about this chance to go back to the community in Petit Goave and serve our friends there in this time of desperate need. Even though not all of us can go to Haiti to help right now, everyone can help. Here are a few ways that you can be involved...

Prayer needs:
*we desire your prayers SO much! Having a community of brothers and sisters praying for the team is so important to the foundation of the work that will happen there, and as the effort continues upon our return
*the time for the team to prepare is short - please pray that the process goes smoothly. We want to be diligent in preparing our hearts, minds, bodies, and team supplies.
*for the community leaders in Petit Goave to be refreshed by our presence - that having a new team come in would be a blessing and not a burden.
*there may be other teams at the clinic while we are there - we want to form a great team with whoever is there, having the joint effort bring more glory to God than our individual abilities.

Supply needs:
*$750 for in-country transportation, security, and 1 meal/day
*$650 for plane ticket
*any amount over that goes toward purchasing extra supplies to take to the medical clinic and the church
*we're trying to meet some specific clothing requests for Sarah (Thony, the country director's wife) through the MBC clothing shop (2 casual size 8 dresses and a pair of size 8.5 sandals with straps) Or if someone would be interested in directly purchasing these new that's great too.

Speaking needs:
*Now that it's not on the nightly news, Haiti has already passed out of the realm of public consciousness and dialogue. The problems there now are just as drastic as they were when it first happened, simply in different ways. Yet we have a God who is able to overcome even the most desperate situations! Please continue to stay connected to whats happening and speak about it with people in your sphere of influence!

If you'd like to join with us by praying, supplying, and speaking, please visit www.haiti.gatheringonline.org. The team will be trying to keep this website updated as much as possible while there, and will maintain it after the trip as well. Below are some links where you can also track with my personal updates regarding the trip and further involvement with efforts in Haiti!
Thank you for joining with me in your heart and prayers for the people of Petit Goave!

love,
Rachael

http://twitter.com/rjankowsky
http://facebook.com

Returning the 13th!

2010-03-02T15:54:00.000-05:00

I'm going back to Haiti on the 13th of March!

These last 2 months since the earthquake have been such a whirlwind of emotion and business in dealing with everything on top of normal life, but now I have something solid to share! But between that and my horrible upkeep of this blog, here is a post for you!

World Hope is sending relief teams to Haiti and I get to go on a team based out of my church's college ministry, The Gathering. We will be going to Petit Goave, Haiti, which is where we have served consistently on each of the past trips. There is a medical clinic set up on the property of the Wesleyan church there and we will be based there. We have 2 medical personnel and a pastor on the team, as well as a few very capable volunteers (incl. me!) and the team will be helping to get basic supplies to people and care for people in the emotional, spiritual, psychological, and physical stresses being dealt with in the aftermath of the earthquake.

Not everyone can go to Haiti right now, but everyone can help. There are 3 ways that you can help the people of Haiti:

1. Pray: If you are a praying person - we need you. Most of the requests I've gotten from friends in Petit Goave are for prayer, more than anything else. Please pray for the people we'll be helping and for myself and the team as well.

2. Donate: Please be part of making this relief effort possible - you can do so by contributing HERE.

3. Stay tuned in. Keep up with what's happening in Haiti as the days go by. Don't let it slip out of your mind just because it's no longer in the media. If you don't know how to do that, I have an idea: subscribe to my blog, Brett's blog (he has great pictures from when he was there), or The Gathering blog. We'll work to keep you updated and when a post is written, BAM! It ends up in your email inbox. Super-easy!

2010-01-28T17:13:00.000-05:00

I'm sure everyone has heard about what's been happening concerning Haiti and the earthquake recently. First off, thanks to all of you who have been calling and emailing to check on me, see how things are going in Petit Goave, and asking about how you can help. I've been wanting to get something up on the blog, but have just been so busy working with people in DC on putting together response efforts. Thanks for your patience in waiting to hear an update!

A few pieces of info for you:

1. We did have a team of college students in Petit Goave, Haiti when the earthquake hit. No one was hurt (not even a little bit!) while there, and they all safely returned to the U.S. last week. Praise God! You can read a little more about what happened with them by going to the Gathering Blog.

2. Two friends, Dave and Wislo, have been able to contact me and talk a little bit about what's going on with them right now. It was so relieving to hear from them. They are both fine, but have lost thier homes and family members. Still have not heard how other friends and students are doing.

3. If you are a person of prayer, please continue to pray for the people of Haiti. Tomorrow I'll be posting some specific prayer requests that we've been getting. Please continue to look for ways to help and donate. Two great places to donate include World Hope International and The Red Cross.

4. Please check out Brett's blog He is the Gathering staff person who was with the George Mason team in Haiti during the quake. You can access it by going to http://lettherebelightphoto.blogspot.com/

Very Different Summers

2009-07-11T23:01:00.000-04:00

This past week marked the 4th of July, and all weekend long I couldn't help but think about where I was last year. Sarah and I had been in Petit Goave, Haiti for about a week last year when the 4th rolled around; we spent it playing with the kids who lived next door to us - substituting dollar store flying discs for fireworks.

Though this summer is very different in circumstance, my heart is pulled toward Haiti just as much as ever. I'm currently in a one-year leadership program at my church here in DC. As school came to a close this spring I thought and prayed a lot about going straight to Haiti after graduation. The result of that was an overwhelming feeling that I should wait. I am willing to get up and go whenever the doors open, but for now I know that God wants to prepare me more before jumping in. In the long run, the more equipped I am to work there, the better the relationship will be in the long run. So I decided to take this leadership program at my church, which will allow me to see what it is like to not only work in a church, but also see what it is like to start a church, which is what I will be helping with this year.

While I am waiting to see what the next step will be, I plan to help further the relationship between the college ministry here and World Hope Haiti as a volunteer. There 's a possibility that I may be doing a few different things. Some of the options I'm currently considering are grad school (though I'm not sure what degree yet...), going to Haiti, working with a church, working with an NGO/NPO, etc. Pretty much I want to do whatever I can to prepare myself to get to Haiti as soon as possible!

What to be happy for

2009-01-11T10:27:00.000-05:00

I got back from Haiti again on Thursday and have been adjusting back to life here again for the last few days. Its always so much harder to adjust to US life than to Haitian life. There's more to analyze, I think - because it makes you look at your life and your home culture under a microscope. I end up thinking- 'what can I cut out; what don't I need;how do I make my lifestyle less self-focused?'

These are the things that I keep learning more and more each time I go and come back:

-I don't need all of this stuff that I have
-I have grown into the habit of putting my wants over other peoples needs, without even knowing I was doing so - but I can change that
-ignorance is bliss, because knowledge carries responsibility
- the things I do have are a huge blessing from God
-I have to be a good steward of the blessings and opportunities He has given me
-my heart is very much for social justice and for Haiti

And this is what I woke up being happy for this morning:
-I have a bed and blankets to sleep on
-I had food for breakfast waiting for me upstairs
-I have an intricate support system of friends, family, and mentors around me
-I am healthy
Praise the Lord, right!?

An Audience

2008-11-15T17:21:00.000-05:00

While Sarah and I were prepping some stuff for dinner we had two kids staring in our window at us. They just kind of ran around the house and would say something then hide behind a window. For about an hour they stared at us through the window, I felt like I was in a zoo. Imagine having two kids stare at you through the window for an hour - it was so bizarre! I mean, I understand that Sarah and I are an anomaly here, but it would be nice to escape the constant audience when we get home at night. Just a good reminder about why we're here and that our time (and privacy) is not our own here in Haiti. And while it's tiring and annoying, these are the instances that will really try our hearts and teach us how to approach everything in love...when things are not so easy.

But they DO know they're not supposed to be there because every time that Dave would come by they would hide from him. Then finally he saw them and told them to get off the grounds. It was all really awkward and we both feel like it'll happen again. Anybody have suggestions as to what to do about an audience of children?

Flying Solo

2008-11-15T17:15:00.000-05:00

Up until now we've had Edzert helping us in the classroom each day with a little bit of translation, but today we went through a whole day without needing any translation at all. Actually, I think it went better than it has been, because the students are better able to focus on what Sarah and I are saying and teaching. That kind of forces them to learn it much faster than when Edzert is there. Its definitely a cool thing to see that we can put forth our best effort in the classroom and trust that God will make the rest of those connections that need to happen!

Going back, gearing up...

2008-11-05T11:02:00.000-05:00

I'm going back to Haiti in January for about a week to follow up with people we were working with this summer and to see how to move forward after the hurricanes hit the country this fall. Which means I'm jumping back into the fundraising process! Please join with me in bringing hope to Haiti by providing the means to make it happen!

Here's how you can donate:

Online...
...you can go to www.frontlinedc.com/global to donate online. The link is under the 4th heading from the top titled "How Can I Support a Team?" You'll have to register and sign in to donate - none of your info will be given out or used for mailing lists. You should see the team name "Gathering Haiti (AU)" in the drop down menu to select from teams. Just follow the instructions from there!

Checks...
...can be made out to McLean Bible Church. Please be sure to put my name and 'GI-Gathering Haiti (AU) 09' in the memo of all checks written. Checks can be sent to:

Rachael Jankowsky
4827 Yuma St. NW
Washington, DC 20016

If you have any questions please let me know!

THANK YOU!

Tarantulas!

2008-10-01T17:13:00.000-04:00

Yes, yesterday there was a tarantula in my room.

Those things are crazy! Lorette, the lady who runs the internet center across from us, came over to say good morning and ended up teaching us a valuable Haiti survival skill. Sarah and I wrangled it outside with some well-directed bug spray and she killed it for us with a broom. Which took a couple minutes - he was a fighter! He actually turned, reared up and hissed at us at one point. But he is dead and we are not.

Man vs. Nature? 1 Point: Man

Today was our first day of classes and it was interesting to say the least. Creole is pretty easy to pick up, though. So hopefully we'll be able to build that up quickly so that we can run the classroom by ourselves without Edzert's help. He helped with a little translation and explanation today, getting the classes organized.

Oh, and Lorette and Dave both said that we should expect more tarantulas, so I'll keep you updated on how that goes...

Let there be light!

2008-09-28T18:47:00.000-04:00

Still our first night in Petit Goave and still no electricity and still raining. But Dave brought us an oil lamp. I never thought I'd use one of those inside, but I guess it's normal here so, hey, why not?! We've got to get ready for school tomorrow somehow!

from 6/29/08

2008-09-28T18:36:00.000-04:00

I'm sitting at the table near the kitchen window writing this while rain is POURING down outside. It's only 6pm but its so stormy that there's just enough light to see (the electricity is out) and it's great. Right now we have to figure out how to find something to eat in the dark...maybe we'll move at each lightening flash. Thank God we have a good house though, because there are palm branches falling down everywhere and a mini-river that's started up right in the middle of the property, in between the top of the compound and the sea. And it's the rain ripping thigns up, there's no wind at all! I've never in my life been in rain that's this strong. It's like instead of just falling down, it's being thrown down to the earth...pretty powerful and awesome to see.

aaand, we're back

2008-09-28T18:34:00.000-04:00

It's September and I'm back into the swing of things with school and work and the new house. So I've finally found time to start up the process of transferring my Haiti stories onto the blog, so enjoy!

Cabinet...Fridge? Cabinetfridge.

2008-08-01T01:30:00.000-04:00

Due to the great numbers of man-eating rodents, and lack of clean cabinets, we have put all of our food into an extra, unplugged fridge to use as our cabinet.

Explanations:

1. "Man-eating rodents" - Thony said not to dangle our arms or legs off the edge of the bed while we sleep so that the rats don't bite us.
-"Haha, Thony, you're such a funny guy!", we say.
-"No. I'm not kidding they really will try to eat you. Don't do it."
We decided not to risk it...

2. "lack of clean cabinets" - Upon further inspection of the house, it appears as if the man-eating rodents live in the cabinets.
We decided not to risk it...

Thus, to solve these problems...CABINETFRIDGE!!!

Thank you.

Meet our bug friends...

2008-08-01T01:11:00.000-04:00

Please meet our friends, the bugs and critters. There are a lot of them, so we figured we'd be better off trying to live with them in peace than wage a losing battle all month long...

We'll see how long this attempt at a peaceful relationship lasts.

Back to Haiti

2008-07-29T20:37:00.000-04:00

We got into Port au Prince on time and our bags arrived and Thony was there to meet us (at what was close enough to being) on time. So that was a good start for the time we have here. We ran around town to get art supplies and stock up on food for the month and then drove to Petit Goave (PG).

But not without getting stopped by the UN, first. Which is a fairly constant thing with Thony. He really needs to get the government stickers for his windshield fixed...

We're staying at the Wesleyan compound (which used to be a UN compound) in PG and the actually have a entire house that we're renting from them. So we moved into the house and got the H2O running. We met the pastor's wife (Madam Paster - that's really what she goes by, we never got a name from her!) and one of her daughters and Dave, who lives with the family and will probably be really helpful for Sarah and I to have around.
And showered. After traveling and shopping and moving in, it was one of the best showers everrrrrrr. And I don't mind the cold water, but the faucet is about a foot too short for me to fit under. Soooo, we'll see how that goes.

I'm back!!

2008-07-29T20:28:00.000-04:00

Yes, I'm still alive!

Apologies for the lack of updates but there were some major problems with the internet connection while we were in Petit Goave.

Anyways, I wrote down all of what would have been blog entries in a journal, so I'm going to put those up as quickly as possible. I know it's after-the-fact, and it might not be quite as exciting since it's not in the moment, but please please still read them! It was an experience that is very important to me and I'd love to tell you all about it!

I'm going to put them up here as they were written because frankly, that's just easier for me :)
But just to clear up any confusion, I am actually back from Haiti, the posts are just going up a bit later than I would have liked...

We shall start from the beginning! ...

2 women, 16 kids, 8 two-year olds.

2008-06-22T12:14:00.000-04:00

A cousin of mine asked me a while ago to post about adoptions in Haiti. She said my letter made her want to go all Brangelina and fill up her house with kids who need a home. International adoptions are always a long process, and it's no different for Haiti. You can go to the State Dept. website to find a lot more specific info, but what I found was that for Haiti it seems to be an issue of paperwork.
A lot of people don't have any sort of nationally recognized personal ID. Many don't receive a birth certificate to start with, mostly because a lot of people aren't born in hospitals. This is just one more area where the lack of infrastructure creates a void of systems and processes that we're so used to having here on a daily basis. While we would worry about having our identity stolen, most of the people I'll be living with would be concerned with gaining some sort of official identity in the first place. So when there are no papers to be had in a process that revolves around paperwork, like adoptions, it causes major problems.

Anyway, there's a lot of kids who need a loving and stable home, and I met one woman, Connie, who is providing that for a group of kids Petite Goave in an amazing way. She lives about eight miles up a mountain in a village outside of Petite Goave with one other lady who helps. She takes care of 16 kids, 8 of which are two-year-olds. When we met Connie, she was with her oldest girl (who is 8) in P-au-P trying to get a passport for her. The common thread for the kids that Connie takes in is that their mothers all died in childbirth. So she takes them in and raises them up! And she has so much of my respect for dedicating her life to specifically walking in the command of Christ to care for orphans. I met her and thought to myself - 'who DOES that?!' I don't feel drawn to serve in that way, but thank God that someone has the drive and strength and guts to give up what they know in order to care for these 16 kids! Kids who have an amazingly blessed life compared to what they would have known if she hadn't been there.

And I think many of us can have an impact of that magnitude within our lifetime, but we don't submit to the possibility that God wants us to take part in such amazing things for His glory. But that drive and commitment that I see in Connie, that willingness to give it all up, I hope to find in my own pursuit of God's plan for my life.

Getting ready to go

2008-06-22T11:58:00.000-04:00

Ok. So, after about a month of waiting, we're finally up and running with a return trip to Haiti! YAY!

All the funds came in and we're looking at tickets for Wednesday or Thursday of this week. (still working on finalizing the tickets) Thanks for all your interest and prayers and support! I'm so excited to go and I feel like the timing will be just right. I've got a bunch of materials from my mom, a teacher, for the English classes. I'm most excited about the mini-chalkboards. Yes, that's right, mini-chalkboards. And I got a bunch of books about winter and snow, etc. (in case you're geographically challenged, they don't have that in Haiti) and I'm really looking forward to using those as well. And the picture cards, here's hoping we've got some visual learners!

So here's where you can help us out - - if you've learned a second (or third or fourth) language and have any fun drills, exercises, games, etc that helped you learn in the very elementary stages, can you let us know in the comment section below? We're trying to make this as fun and beneficial as possible, so leave your suggestions and help us out!

The coolest wasp EVER

2008-06-12T14:33:00.000-04:00

I was sitting outside on the steps of my deck this morning just minding my own business, when a wasp landed right next to me. As in, five inches from me. He just chilled out there until I went inside. Why would he do that? Aren't wasps, or any stinging bug, supposed to terrorize us with a kamikaze-style buzzing attack? Or at least be annoying? I figure he must be...

1. unaware of his role as a wasp in this relationship

2. a pacifist wasp brave enough to march to the beat of his own drum, while trying to build good-will in the wasp-human relationship

3. stupid

P.S - He was such a cool little guy I didn't smash him.

More steady than a mountain

2008-06-12T00:23:00.000-04:00

Going home always means I get to be in the mountains. It's something that I know will be part of each return because you really wouldn't be able to avoid them if you tried.

I drove up to Ouray (in the picture) with some of my family today to meet up with my aunt and uncle who are visiting... Sometimes I think that the mountains where I grew up are so pretty I might just die. As in, I might forget to breathe because I'm so absorbed in this beautiful creation in front of me. So it's a good thing that's involuntary (breathing, that is). Or the sight may just be too much for my eyes to take in, and one day I'll look at a mountain and will simply explode - with joy - but explode, nonetheless. And while niether of those scenarios are going to happen, one can see how they could seem like a possibility. So if the mountains stir up such awe and wonder, how much more so should the Creator who made them and will outlast them?

God is our refuge and strength,
an ever-present help in trouble.
Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way
and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea,
though its waters roar and foam
and the mountains quake with their surging. Selah
Psalm 46:1-3

Even when something that is so strong and enduring and beautiful falls to pieces, whether it's a steady mountain or a steady hope or any other steady-fill-in-the-blank that we hang on to or count on; God was there before it and is still going to be there when it breaks up and washes away. So there you go - there's something more steady than a mountain.

Haiti Photos Are Up!

2008-06-11T13:19:00.000-04:00

I finally got my photos from the team trip to Haiti posted online. You can flip through them at - http://picasaweb.google.com/rachael.jankowsky/HaitiMay08

Why am I going?

2008-06-10T22:26:00.000-04:00

The way I see it is that one of the basic parts of claiming Christianity is that my faith ought to result in action. Christ reached out to others because of His love for them. So if I'm taking Him as an example for how to live my life, it stands to reason that any Christ-like love that I have ought to result in action as well.

Last fall I found myself wishing that people were more compassionate and caring and giving and not so self-absorbed and living in a little U.S. bubble because I think that happens a lot (myself included!). And I was frustrated with how little I was doing to meet the immediate and tangible needs of others, especially those in poverty - a call to Christians that is found so many times in scripture. So I was thinking about that and figured I had better do something about changing that lack of action in my own life unless I want to be hypocritical.

From there I started to think about James 1:27 and then other verses along the same lines and it became very clear that I'm supposed to serve these groups of people in a close contact way as well. Those verses weren't written for somebody else, but for me! I'm supposed to act in this way. I'm supposed to care for those in need. I'm supposed to go to people as well. And so is every Christian, we're called to do that as part of living out our faith, to show Christ's love to people. That doesn't always means going overseas for everyone, but it did for me so I set out after it. And I plan to incorporate what I learn from this summer into how I live my day-to-day life when I get back.

I want to provide the opportunities for summer classes to these kids because I think that Christ loves them just as much as He loves anyone else and that He would want them to have these opportunities. God loves these kids and wants a good life for them; and I want them to grow up with hope for a future that can be better than the present. For a kid to know that they're worth time and energy and resources, and that someone loves them and believes in them is so important and can change a life. So we plan to show them those things by providing opportunity and hope in Christ's name. That's why I'm going! And whether I'm studying for classes, working, or volunteering in Haiti, I'm learning to walk in Christ's rescuing love more and more every day.

What's the deal?

2008-06-10T20:04:00.000-04:00

A friend asked me that the other day (I shortened it a lot) She wanted to know more exactly what she would be donating to if she were to help fund this summer, to make sure that WH wasn't taking part in some stuff that she (and I) doesn't support. It made my day to have someone check up on what the goal of my summer in Haiti is going to be. So here's what this work with World Hope is about. It's going to be a little long because there's just a lot going into it, plus I want to explain well where I'm coming from.

WH is a faith-based relief and development agency. They don't barge into a community demanding that people convert to Christianity; I don't agree with that approach and definitely wouldn't want to spend my time doing that. Instead, the goal is to serve and to help in areas where local people recognize a need within their community; while letting people know why we're doing it. And we're doing it because we're Christians.

So the community in Petite Goave knows that World Hope programs and such are coming from a group of Christians, they know that we're there because we're Christians and what we stand for, but there's definitely nothing even close to strong-arming people into conversion. Christianity should never be forced on a person. And the question that my friend asked is such a good one for everyone to ask when they encounter it - how are faith-based groups and missions teams going about thier work? Especially if you're a Christian, please look into the groups that you support or are involved with; looking to see if they do things from a Bible-based approach and with a Christ-like attitude!

Sure, I'd love for people to experience the kind of relationship with God that I do because I can't imagine living without it. God is the most important part of my life. Yeah, I get excited when people accept Christ because that means they get to have that relationship that I know is so important in my own life. But I'm never going to force that on someone. From start to finish, that's a choice that everyone will deal with personally. My role and purpose is to live out my faith boldly and to be unashamed about letting people know what Christ has done and that a personal relationship with Christ is a real possibility for anyone. And the 'living it out boldly' is a major part of the whole Haiti thing - this is getting a bit long, so more on that on the next post!

What about the food riots?

2008-06-04T00:26:00.000-04:00

As many of you know, there was some rioting in Haiti in April.

Safety was a concern going into this trip. But when we hit the ground in Haiti everyone we talked to, from Thony to our hosts at the guest house, said that safety issues now are about the same as just before the riots. The riots were blown WAY out of proportion in the international media. Now, there is generally a serious lack of food in the country, which is a huge problem that we'll cover later. But in talking with Thony, the riots consisted of groups of 20-50 people going down the main streets of P-au-P and protesting the government, mostly the PM, specifically in relation to food. They want some new people in office...and I can see why.

Most of the windows on the main streets were still broken from having rocks thrown through them. Protesters had broken into shops and trashed them, burned tires, etc. At one point it did get violent and 5 people were killed.

When I asked people there 'what about the riots?' I got an answer that I wasn't expecting. People said that they were frustrated with how it got portrayed in the media. The last two years in Haiti had been relatively peaceful, and thus had seen a lot of people warming up to the country. They felt that most of that progress had been lost due to how the country was portrayed in the coverage of the riots. So that was really surprising to see the contrast of an inside perspective from Haitians and the outside perspective from the media.

According to the State Dept. travel warning when we left, I should have been scared out of my mind even at the thought of going to Haiti. Sure we had to take precautions and safety is not the same as being in the US, but not once did I feel unsafe. Except for the crazy driving...but that really wasn't any different than riding with a cabbie in the states!

Go Ahead and Ask!

2008-06-04T00:23:00.000-04:00

If you have specific questions that you're wondering about or want me to elaborate on something, I'd be happy to do so. Any questions, or requests to post about something specific, let me know in the comments sections below!

So, how was Haiti?

2008-06-03T23:54:00.000-04:00

I've been getting that question a lot lately and I always wish I had more time to answer it. So I'll just write a couple posts about it I guess!

Ok, the basics:

Haiti was an amazing experience. I never would have thought that in the span of four months I would go from knowing nothing about this country to ending up spending my summer there! I went for a week with an amazing team of people to work on setting up a long-term partnership between World Hope International ( http://www.worldhope.org/countries/haiti.htm ) and my church on campus, The Gathering (http://gatheringonline.org/mainpage01/thegatheringdc.html). We went and saw all the programs that WHI has there to see what they're involved in and where we might be able to provide support. What I LOVE about WHI is that each country office and programs are run in-country. World Hope-Haiti is run by Thony, who is Haitian, which is how relief and development work should be, so that's great.

WHI-Haiti has programs running in Port-au-Prince, outside of Jacmel, and in Petite Goave. The Gathering and WHI have been working for a long time on getting a partnership started up where WHI-Haiti will have a well of college students to draw from to help out as they see fit in country. At the same time, college students will have multiple opportunities to get involved in something bigger than themselves and help in a tangible way with long-term effects. The trip that went out in May was with the purpose of seeing how these two groups might fit together in order to grow together. We saw a lot; there are a lot of needs and a lot of hope, so I'm excited to see where this thing goes!

I really dislike titles and think I will end up leaving this blank most of the time.

2008-06-01T02:05:00.000-04:00

The task of thinking up a title intimidates me...a lot. So much so that I actually just wrote an entire sentence for a title. And as I learned in English class - titles are not supposed to be sentences, oh well.

It's always the hardest part of a paper and I always do it last. There's just too much hanging on a title. Too much pressure. For example: what if you pick a boring title for something that is actually very interesting, but then no one reads it because you're such a horrible title-thinker-upper? All that time spent on writing your very interesting paper or book or blog post is lost because you have chosen a bad title. How stressful.

I got on here to write about something else but I don't remember what it was. But I'm sure it was more important than my title-phobia. That little box that asks for the title of your post popped up before I even got to writing and knocked it right out of my head. I'll have to figure out how to ignore that little box. Or how to title things. One of the two...

Hi!

2008-05-30T20:46:00.000-04:00

So, I'm starting this blog because I'm trying to keep people updated with my life because I'm going to Haiti this summer. And that's kind of an abnormal thing that is hopefully interesting to a few other people who will end up reading this. Goal = to put my thoughts and experiences into words to share with whoever's reading this; thus the title, pretty simple. I have no idea if I'm going to be sucessful in keeping up with it but, hey, let's give it a shot!

It probably won't always be super-exciting or super-interesting because life isn't always so. But I'll try and keep it interesting. It'll be interesting enough for me anyway, so there's that.

Posts have a good chance of being random and not necessarily tied into the previous ones, but they'll be something I think is worth putting up on here at the time. And let's hope that what I think is worth going up on the page is interesting enough for some people to read, right? Let's have a go at it.