Giving and Receiving in Haiti - A Food Study Tour Reflection
Thursday, December 22, 2011
Giving and Receiving in Haiti
By Roberta Gramlich
It is rare that I am up before dawn. But on a particular Monday in November, I found myself getting out of bed at 4:30 AM.
This was no ordinary day. On that particular Monday, I was a participant of a Canadian Foodgrains Bank Food Study Tour to Haiti. We got up that early because our group—made up of Foodgrains Bank supporters from across Canada—was leaving the capital city of Port-au-Prince to venture out to the small community of Anous, near Petit Goaves.
By 5:30 that morning, the eight of us had strapped sleeping mats onto the roof of the van, packed our bags tightly inside and squeezed ourselves between the luggage. As our van rolled out onto the streets of the city we realized the urgency of leaving so early—the streets were already jammed.
Two hours later, the buzz and heat of the city had given way to the tranquility and shade of banana trees lining the coast. After a steep drive through some spectacular mountain scenery in the western part of the country, we arrived at a long driveway decorated with balloons and streamers. It was evident that today was no ordinary day in this community, either—it was the day that a group of Canadians, or ‘Blanc’ (meaning white person or foreigner in Haiti), descended upon the otherwise secluded community.
Getting out of the van, we joined the small crowd that had gathered to welcome us, Haitians and Canadians standing together, all excited but nervous of what the visit would hold. After several words of welcome, each Canadian was paired with a Haitian family in whose homes we would spend the next three nights.
Our host families are involved in a project funded by the Foodgrains Bank. Through the project, which is operated by Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) Canada, with assistance from Presbyterian World Service and Development (PWS&D), they are receiving vegetable and cereal seeds following the devastating 2010 earthquake. They are also receiving agricultural, environmental and soil quality improvement training, to help them increase their crop yields.
During our three-day stay, we learned that while most of media attention following the earthquake focused on the capital city of Port-au-Prince, rural areas were also affected—albeit in a different way.
In the days and weeks following the earthquake, many urban Haitians traveled to the rural areas where they had family to escape the devastation in the cities. The influx of people caused further strain on areas were agricultural livelihoods were already strained.
On the day of our arrival, teams of farmers were gathered to learn to make natural insecticide from locally available and environmentally sustainable products. The teams were eager to share with us what they had learned that day, as well as some Haitians songs about perseverance through difficult times.
Each workshop was facilitated by a young person from the local community who had been trained by Haitian agronomists who were employed by ADRA. The decision to train locals to facilitate the projects was an important piece in making the project sustainable into the future, we were told.
After our long days in the hot Haitian sun, we retired to the homes of our host families. My family included Monsieur and Madame Jony and their five children. Though we were very limited in our capacity to speak to one another, we somehow managed through body language, their limited French and the five phrases in Creole that I had managed to pick up.
One of my richest experiences was when Madame Jony invited me into her kitchen, where she was lovingly preparing lunch. I sat on small stool with her young daughter on my lap as she showed me how to cook a Haitian chicken stew. She had me repeat the Creole words for each of the ingredients as she placed it in the pot.
A few hours after our farewell party, I found myself once again rising in the wee hours of the morning. This time our group was leaving Anous. We were to meet at 4:45 AM to pack the van. Thirty minutes later, as I was sitting on the back porch of my host’s home, I discovered that Madame Jony had also risen before dawn to make myself and my Canadian roommate hot cocoa fresh from cocoa beans.
Though I knew that we were late, I couldn’t bring myself to leave before she had finished the cocoa.
I knew in my heart that what she was preparing was much more than just a hot drink; without a common vocabulary it was her way of saying thank you for supporting and believing in her community.
As we drove away into the rising sun, the word that came to mind for me was “partnership.” As Christian Canadians, we feel it is our duty to be generous and give, but it is also our duty to be generous and receive; to know that despite our nation’s wealth, there is so much that others can offer us.
Click here to see a slide show of the Haiti Food Study tour.
Roberta Gramlich is the Youth Engagement Coordinator at Canadian Foodgrains Bank.
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