Haiti sits on my mind most of the time. I can feel the pain from the thousands of miles that separate them and Me.
Them in their desolation.
Me in my warm, safe, cosy home. Surrounded by the family I am bringing up, and the husband I love. The friends who come for supper. The school across the road where the teachers love my children and tell me of their little triumphs Every Day.
Surrounded by normality.
Haiti must crave for Normal.
Instead they have unimaginable sadness and loss. Sandwiched between the joy of finding a child, a mother, a friend.
It's so big, this sadness, that I don't know quite where to put it. How to wear it. What to do. I can send money. I can pray. I can sit here amongst all my belongings and think of all those millions who have Nothing. Absolutely Nothing.
Or I can get on and keep thanking God for all the blessings he showers on me.
Doesn't feel enough, I have to say.
I am looking out of my window now. A cat is sitting on the drive. My cat. Sitting neatly and watching the garden. Birds are visiting the bird feeder, wary of the cat. The post man has just been. Washing is in the washing machine and is churning away comfortingly next door. The chickens are fed. Children are at school, except Middle Son, who is on the sofa in the sitting room, nursing a poorly tummy and headache. Husband is at work. He will ring at lunchtime as he always does.
Normal.
How blessed is Normal.
There is no neat and tidy concluding thought in this post. Because I can't think what could Conclude such a tragedy.
All I can say is I will carry on thinking about Haiti. Praying. And thanking all of those people who are There and Helping. How wonderful they are. Truly good.
I owe them. I really, truly do.
18 comments:
Yup, I have been feeling the same, carrying the hugeness of such a loss, and I too don't really know how to come to terms with it, as there is really no coming to terms, only hoping. We (the company I work for) are doing fundraisers - we should end up with nearly $6000 and I've asked them to donate it to a group which can deliver ready-to-eat meals (they are able to get into the country so far, so that helps) and the kids' school is also raising money. Otherwise, what to do from here? As Martin Luther King Jr said... if you can't fly, then run... If you can't run then walk... if you can't walk then crawl... as long as you keep moving forward. So we hold this large sadness on our chests, and watch, and help them move forward I guess. Hugs to you.
I also can't quite fathom what to do with my feelings for the people of Haiti. Their lives are just unimaginable...those, of course, who are lucky enough to still have them. It is heartbreaking and I hold my little boy closer to me and for longer each day now and thank my lucky stars.
Just keep doing what you're doing - think about them, pray, hope.
And in the back of your mind, remember how lucky the rest of us are, and how everything can change in the blink of an eye.
I gave money to Doctors Without Borders hoping that it might help some poor person who otherwise might not make it. But it just doesn't do enough to help my heartache as I see the images and hear the stories.
I've been sponsoring a child in Haiti for the past 9 years. And have no idea what has happened to him or his family. Makes it feel all too real and all too far away.
The terror that they must endure with every little (or large) tremor in the ground is unfathomable to me! Port Au Prince must be similar to that of a warzone right now.
Makes me realize just how much we take for granted shelter, food, water, medical care and other basic necessities.
Wonderful post and I feel exactly the same. Certainly puts my own situation into perspective. I wish I could do more than just send money and prayers.
I too feel exactly as you do LWM. It is a huge sadness. It is unimaginable that there are so many people - human beings - suffering so much. I weep over every news bulletin, at times from sheer sorrow at what I am witnessing from my sitting room and sometimes over the elation of the rescue workers as they pull another survivor from the wreckage. Yesterday it was a boy of 7 and his sister and later a young woman. God Bless everyone of those rescue workers, the medics and, of course, the Haitian people.
That's a lovely heartfelt post. Echoes my own thoughts. Those poor people - they're in my thoughts and prayers every day.
Thanks for stopping by my blog today. I am praying for Haiti too and wondering what all we can do to help. It is so hard to watch.
Yes...our normal is good. We have been blessed for sure.
i think its so huge i find it hard to get my mind round it - such devastating loss. the people who are helping are just amazing but somehow it makes me feel that just giving money is not enough, but its all i can do at the moment.
I'm feeling that survivor's guilt too. though middle-class here, we are rich compared to most Haitians.
...and now this.
Isn't it weird to feel guilty over having a normal and intact life?
I'm struggling with this...and realizing that I should replce the guilt with gratitude. But still...
Kathryn (Canada).
Me too
I think prayers are good.
you can also find a charity or cause in your own backyard to support. I firmly believe that the good karma you generate won't go to waste!
I feel exactly the same as you. Last week I spent several hours transfixed, crying on and off. It reminded me of Katrina or the Tsumani event.
I was very impressed with the ease at which i could give money ($10 here), just by texting "Haiti" on my mobile. I think that was a great way to let people give money quickly. I hope that the help they get is long-term.
Thanks hugely for all these comments... comforting to think we are all feeling the same the world over. But my feelings are as nothing compared to those in Haiti... lets just hope that all our communal thoughts are felt by them. xxxxx
Hello, Thank you for visiting my blog! I see you live in West Sussex too, not far from me.
Yes, the tea does taste good. The water boils properly and pours inself into a china pot. I usually leave it about 5 minutes to brew and then get perfect cup of tea!
friends of mine are heading out to Haiti on Monday to offer humanitarian aid and support the other aid workers, one is French, so she will be able to help with translation
Yours is the most compelling and succint post I have read on this subject. Better than any news outlets you have summed up my feelings exactly and those, I would venture to guess, of so so many of us. How impotent I feel in the face of all they are facing. How do we take that in, and more importantly, what do we do with it that is in any way helpful to them in a hands-on kind of way?
Thank you for this. It helped me just reading it.
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