Another Dark Night ...

I take the last bite of dinner and sigh. That Bami sure was delicious. Thanks Dad for giving us all those packages to bring with us! Although we can’t make it exactly the same way as we did back home we have come up with some good alternatives and it’s what we call a delicious, nutritious meal! Jayden is racing around the room, since somewhere between Port-au-Prince and Pignon his high chair has gone missing. As soon as he’s finished his meal he slides off his seat and runs laps around the room. I watch him and smile. Just then everything goes dark, pitch black. The batteries must have run out. Jayden starts crying in panic and we feel around in the dark for him. Seconds later I find him sitting on the floor and I hug him close. Todd, who happened to being carrying a flashlight with him turns it on and after passing Jayden to Jason I proceed to light some candles. Earlier today we had run completely out of water, so the generator which normally provides electricity at night and charges the batteries that we were using just now, had been brought down the road to pump water from the cistern. It took quite awhile to bring it there because the generator is fairly heavy and we still don’t have a vehicle. The pump house is a good two kilometers down the road as well. At least by dinner time it had pumped the water back to the camp, so even though it was just a trickle we did have water. By candle light we wash dishes and then I heat a little water on our propane stove for Jayden’s nightly bath. Since there isn’t a lot of water here and it’s expensive on gas to pump it, everyone usually only takes a quick shower once or twice a week, but Jayden is still small so it’s easy to bathe him in a Rubbermaid. He really needs it too. It’s incredible how dirty he gets everyday. Even though it’s only 7:30 as soon as Jayden is in bed we get ready for bed too. Normally we play games, read books or study at night, but without light it’s just not very practical. Our candles need to last for the time we are here so we can’t afford to keep them burning for too long. After brushing my teeth I make my way to our bedroom only to be surprised by another creepy visitor. A large black spider is frozen to the wall under the beam of my flashlight. At three different times I whack it with my shoe, but each time it gets away. Finally we can’t find it anymore and we give up. Later as we are falling asleep Jason and I whisper jokes to each other about what that spiders is going to do to us while we’re sleeping. I move as close to the middle of the bed as I can and pull the sheets up to my ears. Keep your mouth closed, keep your mouth closed, repeats itself over and over again in my head as I drift off. I know what I’ll be dreaming about tonight.

Until Next Blog,

~The Krul Family~