T-4: Another day in Port

Once again I am thankful for our new truck and the blessing it is as I travel back and forth to Port-au-Prince on a regular basis.  I didn’t expect to put quite so many miles on it, but the air conditioning makes it much more pleasant.

Many things are returning to normal both in the city and in the countryside.  I needed to get the 3000 miles oil change and service done on the truck.  I had heard that the Nissan dealer was open again.  The main facility downtown did sustain some damage and it turns out they are only doing major mechanical work now.  So I drove up to Petionville to the other location.  Just quite as fast as Jiffy Lube but they did wash the truck for me as well.  The view is beautiful up here, hiding much of the destruction and suffering that is never very far off.

I was struck again in driving up the mountain that the earthquake hit everybody.  Both the rich and the poor suffered.  You pass many large, beautiful homes that are cracked and or crushed.

Someone asked me today if I had met Gudu-gudu.  Who is he?  Well it turns out that is the name people are giving to the earthquake.  The earth shook, it went gudu-gudu-gudu, shaking all around.  When the aftershocks come they say, “Did you feel Gudu-gudu last night?”  It is something of a joke but it is part of coping too.  The guy I talked to said Gudu-gudu showed up in Chile the other week.  Where will he show up next?  Thankfully there have not been any aftershocks you can feel in the past two weeks.

I also got a chance to spend time with Randy Lodder and Kim Gringhuis, both working for Coram Deo International Aid (CDIA).  They are back in country, busy helping provide for the families of those in the school they helped run.  The Lodders house is something of a food clearinghouse as you can see from the picture.  It is still unclear when the government will reopen schools in Port-au-Prince. 

URGENT PRAYER REQUEST: I got an e-mail from my good friend and partner in the ministry Charles Amicy.  Last night his rented house in Port-au-Prince burned with all their belongings in it.  The family was not at the house as they are living out in Cabaret right now, but everything is gone.  It looks like it was arson as the batteries and inverter in the house were gone and each room was set fire to separately.  Please pray for Charles as this is just one of a number of adversities they have had to face.  Pray God would encourage them in the ministry.