Beaches of Kaliko and Lagonav

Our whole family loves the fact that we live near the water.  We have the added blessing of access to the Kaliko Beach Club and their beaches.  We can use the pool and enjoy the beach without having to clean the garbage.  All that is done for us so we can just go down and swim in the warm and clear waters of the Gulf of Gonave.

While I was away in Florida at the meeting of my presbytery and also visiting some churches, Heather and the 4 kids were down at the beach.  This was Esther’s first time dipping her feet in the ocean.  The older kids really enjoy the ocean and exploring the beach.  This particular day they discovered starfish everywhere.

Sometimes it seems like we live back in the 1800’s.  The sailboat in the background of this picture is a wooden boat transporting charcoal down the cost, probably to Archaie.  There is a brisk trade between Lagonav and Archaie, about 10 minutes south from our place at Kaliko.  Good quality charcoal from Lagonav goes over on the boats, and they return full of plantain and banana.  It is definitely the slow boat from the island to the mainland.  But when you are enjoying the beach and variety in God’s creation it is good to slow down.

The same waves that come ashore at Kaliko also come ashore on the island of Lagonav.  Douglas Clawson and I (Douglas is Associate General Secretary for the Committee on Foreign Missions of the OPC) arrived on the island Thursday.  It was another beautiful crossing and we were settled into the guest around 3PM.  It seems everywhere in Haiti they are making some progress on the road.  On Lagonav they have put in curbs and put down paving stones for about 400 metres from the wharf.  The road will eventually be finished into the main town of Ansagale.

For two days we taught the men from the book of Genesis.  It is always enjoyable to gather together and study God’s Word.  The question time is thought provoking and we are praying we leave the men with knowledge they can take back to their congregations.  Our studies on Genesis are part of an Old Testament survey we are beginning and will go on for a while.

Sunday we made our way for services to the churches at Nan Mangot and Lapye.  Both Douglas and I preached and we tried to bring a reminder that October 31st is Reformation Day.  While it is celebrated as Hallowe’en in many parts of the world, for the Protestant church this is an important day.  Martin Luther nailed his 95 theses to the door of Wittenburg church on October 31, 1517 and so began the reformation of the church.