Take a Look

Tim saw the funniest sight the other day as he was waiting to cross a busy intersection near our apartment:  two men were walking along the road with a pig that had a girth of nearly 72 inches (we got out the tape measure and put it around one of our room fans to get that measurement).  One man was pulling the pig by a rope from its front end while the other fellow was attempting to "boost" the pig from behind.  The “kochon” (pig) must have been hot or tired or both but it simply decided it did not want to go any further and put the "brakes on" by dropping its hind quarters and the men nearly tumbled one over the other.  Of course, it was one of those times when Tim did not have his IPhone with him but still and all I could imagine what a picture it must have made.

This incident reminded us that when we write to friends or talk with family via Skype we tend to forget that some of our everyday experiences and activities are really out of the norm for those with whom we are corresponding.  Like the way we get our water.  Firstly, we keep an eye out to see if the little blue window shutter is open at our neighborhood watering hole.  We then drive up to it and take a couple of our 5-gallon containers to the window where the fellow places each one under the nozzle of a plastic PVC pipe.  For a mere 60 cents a bottle the pipe funnels water out of a huge storage unit on the building's roof and into our jug and we're on our way.

And bathroom accommodations…over the years and across the countries we have seen just about every type of “loo”, “water closet”, and “wash room” one could imagine.  In fact, just a few days ago when we went to Croix des Bouquets to look at some of the UCC-Fuller Center partnership houses, Jimmy, the young fellow overseeing the construction, drove us to the various building sites. He took the time to show me how they place re-bar and the kind of mountain sand they use for the foundation but he especially wanted me to see how they dig/build a latrine.  As I approached the 2-ft. square hole, I saw a fellow pulling a bucket of dirt up from its innards and when I peeked down into the hole I was greeted with a big smile from the fellow who was putting all that dirt into the bucket.  He was so far down in the ground, maybe 15-feet, I almost could not see his face and…he was still digging!  Now I have to tell you, being married to a construction man I have seen my fair share of latrines but I still have great respect for anyone willing to go down into the earth’s bowels on a 98 F. day so a family will have access to sanitary facilities.                  

The different ways we look at things are not unique to people in the States because our Haitian friends get a tickle over some of my antics (Tim is so much more dignified!) They actually laugh out loud when they see me runnin’ for the hills whenever I come into contact with a prehistoric-size roach or a spider that could have been used in any one of the old Godzilla or King Kong movies.  Haitian women will simply grab a broom or something similar to chase the unwelcome house guest away while I, like Elvis, “have left the house.”

We have truly enjoyed learning about various cultures and how each adapts to life in their particular part of the world.  Most are so practical and down-to-earth that we sometimes ask, “Now why didn’t we think to do that?” while others are so peculiar and so very different from our experiences that we simply stand wide-eyed and scratch our heads.  Nonetheless all have reminded us that the good Lord loves diversity and variety.  We do, too.