An American Birthday

They say that Time flies when you're having fun. This has been true for Johane this weekend. She has lost track of time.
Tuesday, we had a mini-party with Joyce and Rebecca.
Thursday and Friday she found a stack of cards in the mailbox with HER name on them. "Mail for ME!" Mail for my birfday (She can't do th's so well).
Friday she had cake with Heather and the children, and cake and ice cream with Mama and Papa Dennis. She called home, but only got papa so she couldn't wish Johana a Happy Birthday. Friday night she stayed with Denise for a sleep-over with the children.
She had so much fun that she stayed another night.
Sunday, she had cupcakes and a mini-party at sunday school. She got a wonderful Homemade card with pictures of all the children and staff. The church body sang Happy Birthday to her at the 11:00 o'clock service.
We topped the week off with an awesome party at the Gymnastics center with some of our favorite people. Her cake was a princess castle made by Deb and it was beautiful. Then we called home to talk with her family. She talked to them repeatedly in English..then was frustrated that they didn't understand her.
I reminded her to speak creole to them. She laughed and talked English with a friend on the phone( You speak english?) and then laughed at herself for speaking English by mistake to her family. The friend said she'd tell Johana Happy Birthday from Johane.
She had a wonderful time all weekend. Thank-you to everyone who blessed the daylights out of this little girl.
Please keep her (us) in your prayers as we hope to try to return her to Haiti the end of May. Please pray that God would clear the path for us to return safely. May God bless your week as you have blessed hers. Thank-you so much. Cynthia

Happy Birthday Johane

Friday April 25th was a happy day for Johane. We greated her with "Happy Birthday". She wanted to have her hair done in curls and have a bow in her hair. Then off to Heathers where all the children greeted her with "Happy birthday Johane". She was so pleased.

The day before she had received about 7 cards in the mail! Today she had about ten. "Look at this! Mine! For Johane!" She was so excited and pleased to get mail. "My birf-day"
One card was musical and started singing "Daay---0, me say day---O, day light come and me wanna go home." She loved it! We got to hear that about ten times more, so we sang along. Most of the messages she could read since they were in creole. She again told us that you don't get mail in haiti.
We got her from Heathers and had pizza for dinner. Lit the candles on the cake and sang Happy Bithday in English and in French (Joyeux Anniversar). She enjoyed blowing them out. We ate our cake and ice cream and she opened her gifts. She loved the battery operated shreck toothbrush from Elizabeth.
We gave her a flower arrrangement...(Randi's had fun putting that together), a couple of summer outfits and a Barbie doll.
We called home to haiti...but papa was out and about town. We were able to speak to him, but none of the other family. She particularily wanted to talk with her sister Johanna.

Then she was off to spend the night at Denise O'keefes. They had so much fun together that instead of returning her on saturday..she spent the whole day and opted to stay one more night. I know she misses the craziness of a big family with multiple age children.

I told a friend..."its too bad that she is sooooo dependent on me and can't be separated from me for even a minute". We both laughed at that. What a blessing that she is so adaptable. She misses home so much. She is speaking more english and mimeing things that happen in haiti. Sometimes her mother sells things from a basket on her head and makes change. I almost split a gut watching her mimic that one. She even gave me change back.
Her formal party is sunday, tomorrow. I can hardly wait to see her face. Stay tuned for another exciting adventure.
Thank-you ALL for your cards for her. They were a blessing and one I am very sure that she will NEVER forget. Thank-you...thank-you. Cynthia and Johane Dort.

Another NEW adventure

"Mama, come, come, Look at this!! "
Johane had never seen a sprinkler system. We had to go outside to see it. It squirted water right out of the ground into the air, and onto the grass. Parts of it moved and one section of it just disappeared into the ground and stopped. She was puzzled.

In a culture where one of her jobs is to walk to a water source, fill a bucket and return it to the house for the family to use, this scene was too much to comprehend,
The question came..."Me touch it?" Yes you can touch it...its cold. I cupped my hand over the sprinkler head to wash the silt off the top, thinking that if she saw the plastic head it would be less of a mystery. She loved seeing the splash. She had to repeat my action several times spritzing her hands and lower legs. She was so engrosed in that one sprinkler head, she completely forgot that there were more than one working at a time until another one came along and plastered her right in the tush. Boy, can that girl move when she needs to! (grin) We both laughed at the adventure of it all.

Prayers from God's people

Johane and I have a possible window of opportunity to return to Haiti on May 20th. She would be returned to her family. I would escourt some adoptive parents to visit with their children. I would also serve the medical needs of the orphanage, school and nannies. I may be the only medical provider on this trip.I do not have clarity about this trip yet.

Please put this to earnest prayer for us. I will not go without God's blessing. Please pray for clarity, peace and God's guidance in this matter. Thank-you. Cynthia

Where are God's People???

This has been a hard few days for Johane. She's talking in her sleep more. She thrashes around at night more. I'm not sure what battle she is fighting but she wakes up all sweaty in the morning. She still smiles as sweet as ever when engaged but has many pensive moments. Yesterday was the 19th of April and she was supposed to be united with her family in Haiti.
It has been her habit to tear off the calendar page every morning and show me the count down. She has avoided the calendar--------like the plague in the last 3 days. The last time she tore off a page she lifted a few pages and showed me the 19th, looked sad, said "No Go" and walked away.
I have asked for prayer and mail for her. Our address is known to many of you. For our newest friends Messiah has offered to allow mail to come through them. I hope the prayers are plentiful. The mail has been two....only two people have sent her a note so far. Perhaps others are waiting to send a birthday card. That is wonderful, but this week I was praying and hopeful that she would feel Jesus's love poured out upon her.
She needs to be loved. She needs to feel the Love of God's people. Please take a moment to send a little note, a card, a piece of paper with a heart on it....anything to let this little lady feel God's love poured out upon her. I can't imagine being in her situation...and being eight again. May God bless your week...may YOU bless hers. Cynthia

Having a Heart for Johane and her Journey

The Chaos in Haiti is calming. There has been looting in the city and burning vehicles in the street. The lost missionary has been found safely. The April mission trip to return Johane to Haiti has been cancelled. There has been relative calm since Sunday the 13th. Praise God for that. The stories are fewer now. School is resuming in Haiti.
I will change our ticket this week. Johane understands that we are not going home on the 19th as planned. She says that she is OK but the stress is showing in other ways. This is hard on her. She has been away from her family since February12th. Her countdown was only 10 days away from going home when it came to a grinding halt. Please pray for my little refugee and me.
She had a wonderful highlight on Saturday. She rode a horse for the first time ever. She had been counting down the days until that occured also. She rode a lovely gentle horse named Molly. She also brought her friend with her. After riding the horse we all went to Chucky Cheese. She loved both experiences and the girls had a great time..
She has never received mail of any kind. On Thursday she got the first letter in her entire life from a friend of mine telling her that Jesus loves her. She was so thrilled. I believe that she could use a few more to encorage her right now. Please consider sending her a little note. Please make it very short and simple if in English or use the following phrases in her native language:

In creole:
Jezi amou ou------Jesus loves you
M'amou ou----------I love you
m'priye pou ou-----I pray for you
m'priye pou ou fanmi----------I pray for your family
Bondye amou ou e t'elman f 'e mwen - ----------God loves you and so do I

Her address is
Johane Dort
In c/o Messiah Lutheran Church
1550 South Poseyville Road
Midland, Mi 48640

Her Birthday is April 25th. She will be 9 years old. This is the first time she will not be celebrating with her twin sister. Happy Bithday is ( b'on f'et)

Please pass this along to anyone who might be willing to bless this little one. This is a tough time for her and she needs to feel the love of Jesus through his people. Thanks Cynthia Kreil

Speaking the Truth in Love

How do you tell an 8 year old that all the plans that have been made are no longer true?
How do you tell her that she is NOT going home in nine days, that her country is unsafe right now, that there are people burning cars in the streets.
Very carefully...and with much prayer.
I started with..."something in haiti is not good". Your family is OK. There are angry people doing bad things. Schools are closed. The markets and banks are closed. The Embassy is closed. I HAD her attention now.
I brought up the news story on the computer and did the slide show for her, telling her where the things were happening. Her response was in english..."OH my goodness! Oh my Gosh! Look at that!...Oh My Goodness" (No garde La!) All in English. She knew the places we were seeing. She knew it was her country.
I told her that travel in haiti was NOT safe right now. Schools were closed. People were staying in their houses to be safe. She would be staying with me for a while longer until the embassy said it was safe to travel again.
We prayed for her family, her country and for safety and peace. We prayed for God to help her return to her family soon.
She wanted to know that her family was safe. We phoned her sister, and her Godmother. Her papas phone must be affected, because we couldn't get a ring through to him.

She wanted to make sure that she could still ride the horse on saturday, and that she could have a "fet" (birthday) in America. I assured her that she could.
She held onto to me very tight for a while and buried her little face into my neck and we just rocked for awhile. I told her that I would take her back later, maybe May or June. She said that she was OK.
She slept alright last night, but she's been testing the rules a bit tonight and is a little irritable. I guess I would be irritable too if I was going to spend my birthday away from my twin for the first time in my life. Her birthday is April 25th. She will be 9 years old.
I can't imagine what is going through her little mind. She never cried. I can't say the same about me. I let her see my tears.
We never anticipated this turn in her journey, but we put our trust in the designer of this roller coaster ride a long time ago. I guess we'll just fasten our seat belts again and see where this all leads. Praise the Lord in all things...at all times. Blessed Be the Name of the Lord! Cynthia

The World Turned Upside Down

Thank the Lord that He is in control, not man.
If you have seen the news lately you will know that Haiti is in turmoil at the present time. There is looting and rioting in the streets. The American Embassy has been shut down and people have died. There have been multiple arrests. You do not want to be arrested in Haiti. The orphanage and the clinic is OK so far. PLEASE pray for haiti. In a place where children die every hour from hunger, the rising food prices are driving people to acts of violence to survive.
Johane cannot return home at this time. The road from the airport is unsafe, the streets are barricaded with burning tires and debris and the mission trip for April has been cancelled. I haven't told her yet, but I will need to tell her soon. I will also have to tell her family, but I suspect that they will know and understand. The places in the news stories are places I know and have been to. Port-au-prince, petitionville. That is where Johane's family lives and the orphanage, school and clinic are located.
Pray for safety for the orphans, the staff, the students, the nannys and the families that we serve. May God watch over and protect Johane's family as well.
Lord Jesus, rain down your love and power in this dark time. Restore peace. Provide food. Restore sanity and safety. We ask this In Jesus's Holy Name. Amen
Cynthia

Approaching the Checkered Flag

It's funny how fast this time is moving. We are trying to fit in so many last things.
The weather cooperated today so we went to Plymouth park, a wonderful wooden playground. She loved it and ran and climbed all over. She pretended to drive the truck and I sat in the back and played tap-tap with her. For you non-haitian travelers that is an open backed taxi-truck. When you want to get off you tap on the side and it alerts the driver to stop the vehicle, then you get off and pay him.
We went to the tridge and crossed over it. We climbed the hill and got a picture with the statue of the family. She was amazed at how big the woman was. The children were normal sized compared to her.
We played on the jungle gym climb and slide area. She loved that. She dumped her jacket. Michigan was no longer (fret) Cold. She was sweating.
We saw a man catch a large fish which he then released. That was very exciting. They also showed us their catch for the day which included a couple of catfish. She imitated the whiskers for the rest of the afternoon.
I explained what spring was and showed her my crocuses blooming. She was impressed by that. We got pictures everywhere we could think of. I'm glad that she knows that Michigan is not cold and snowy all the time.
We've started sorting out clothing into piles. Things that are too warm for Haiti, or too big or in too poor condition to go. Things that could fit her little sister or brother. Toys that would travel well. It's hard and exciting too.
She has one more big event coming up that she is absolutely thrilled about. She gets to go and ride a horse on Saturday. She is so excited about this. She points it out on the calendar several times each day and mimics the riding gait. She has never riden before so this is very special to her.
Less than 11 days and she will be back in Haiti. She is very happy about returning home. She is very happy about being there for her birthday which is April 25th. She is not happy with the idea that I am leaving haiti on the 26th to return home (without her). She gives me "that look" when I mention it. She has been very huggy with me lately. I know she is feeling the separation coming. Thank God that she has such a loving family to return home to. What a blessing that is to me knowing that she is being restored to the loving arms of her family. Will I cry? Of couse I will...but I will cherish this adventure for the rest of my life.

Time in the Fast and Slow lane

Tomorrow we will have two weeks until we return to Haiti. Johane is getting very excited about going home. She's also been more posessive of me and my time. I get more kisses and snuggles.
Poor Dennis...she smiles and practices waving at him and says "bye,bye Papa" with a big grin on her face. This amazes me since they are the best of buddies. They still watch TV together and she loves to go with him for rides in the car. I suppose that a little lady who can walk away from her family with a wave and a good-bye can easily do so with a pseudo-papa of less than 3 months. Then again maybe practicing makes it a little easier.
She's excited about packing and has seen me getting some things together. She was very worried that we would miss getting something for her little brother ChristonLee. She is much happier since I did a bit of "boy "shopping.
She's been to a Selah concert and to a Loons baseball game now. She is looking forward to riding a horse on the 12th of April with the two chaplains from covenant. The rumor is that then we might go to Chucky Cheese's for lunch. I'm sure she would enjoy that.
She is very excited about being home for her "fet" (Birthday) on April 25th. I will still be in haiti. I would love to attend, if invited. That would be a lovely goodbye.
I think she knows that she is staying in haiti and that I am not. She makes a pouty face whenever we talk about it so I hope that means that she "gets" it.
The time has passed both too fast and at times too slow. What an exciting adventure it has been. I think I'll just keep on enjoying it until the ride comes to a full and complete stop. Fasten your seat belts, we're on the last few laps! God Bless, Cynthia