In preparation for my family’s arrival, the favorite activity of the week was practicing English. This mostly involved saying, “Grayson, what is your name?” or “What is your name, Grayson?” and a lot of, “How do you say bonswa in English?” In addition to their
language skills, there was a significant amount of talk about the new sandals that my family was bringing everyone. When they aren’t in school, they are wearing sandals, so this was a really big deal. They often make fun of me because I tend to wear my Converse all day long, but this week they all (and I mean every single resident under the age of 14) decided to go even further in their teasing by trying my shoes on and marveling at how big my feet are.
The excitement for my family’s arrival was slightly stifled by illness and visits to various Haitian hospitals. Not a problem though since I do NOT have Malaria or Typhoid thanks to the care of every single resident and many of the teachers at St. Vincent’s who gave me numerous Haitian remedies and concoctions to drink. After three visits to doctors near the school, I now feel much better and was even able to enjoy some turkey while I was out with my family celebrating Thanksgiving last night.
Once my family finally arrived at the school Thursday afternoon, it was lovely to see all of the kids (and teachers)
rush out of their classrooms to hug them, stroke their hands and arms, and marvel at how similar my sister and I look. Their excitement had not diminished at all and they were not even remotely shy about their profound interest and admiration. As one resident reminded me, they were excited to meet my “other family.”
