Notes from a flight

I'm sitting on the plane to PAP, feeling the first cool air I've felt since the 16th. The sun is shining on my face, and it feels wonderful.

I cried at the Minneapolis airport as I was leaving my children. Now I am crying because I'm leaving the children of Haiti.

Last night was restless for me. I'd bet I slept all of an hour. At first it was because of the massive spider Mindy felt the need to point out of me (love you Mindy!). I checked my mosquito netting over and over again. But after I settled in I reflected on my time at COTP. It was the single most challenging experience of my lifetime. Take all the AIDS Rides, MS Walks and the birth of both my children - stretch them out end-to-end - and they are a walk in the park compared to my time in Haiti.

I think mostly it's because I didn't know what to expect when I got there. My flight into PAP, being the only white person waiting at the airport in CAP (Nick was late) and seeing poverty unlike anything I could ever have imagined.

This trip was really an experience in trust. God put this crazy idea on my heart - to help the children of Haiti - and I trusted that everything was going to be OK. A 41 year old mother of two from Wisconsin, traveling alone to a third world country. It sounds crazy, doesn't it? And yet as the phrase goes, with God all things are possible.

My purpose - the postcard - is very clear to me now. This was not a one-time event. I'm in this for the long haul now. And I'm bringing all of you with me. God doesn't want us to feel guilty for what we have. He wants us to be thankful for it, take only what we need, and give the rest to others. People - you aren't taking your toys with you when you die. Do they really matter now?

Jason sent me many text messages, but one brought me to tears. He said he knew what we were going to get our kids for Christmas. I thought he had some new, fun idea. When I texted back to ask what he was thinking, he said we would be sending toys for the kids of COTP. He wasn't there with me, yet he gets it.

How about you? After all of my ramblings, do you get it too? I certainly hope so.