"Avèk pasyans, ou ka deplase yon mòn" -“With Patience, you can move a mountain.”
In my office, here, I have a book of Haitian proverbs in Kreyol with English translations (and some explanations.) I’ve oft thought that much can be learned about a culture and a people by familiarizing oneself with their proverbs. One learns what is applicable and important to a people by learning what wisdom has been passed through generations from their ancestors to them. One also learns about the world from the sorts of analogies that are made. This book has several sayings on patience, a virtue which I’ve found indispensable in Haiti. "With patience, you can move a mountain" is one of my favored sayings in my native English. I’m somewhat amused to have not found a translation for this saying, mostly on account an allusion to not only patience, but mountains as well. Without further ado, it has been nearly a month since my last posting, and there is much to share.
Much of June has been invested in evaluating the state of the water system in Cangé and developing a list of what needed to be addressed in preparation for a visit from the World Health Organization (henceforth to be referred to as WHO.) The system is in overall excellent working order. Chief among my responsibilities in Cangé is to work with the water team, who oversees the daily operation of the system, and over the course of which I’ve learned much about what each member does individually as well as together. I’ve had the opportunity to walk the system from end to end, test water quality, and further familiarize myself with the operation of the pumps at Bas Cangé and how we distribute water to the village. Each time Cholera is mentioned in conversation; I’m reminded how vital the water system truly is. For those of you not familiar with Cholera, a brief summation would explain that it’s a bacterial disease that spreads via contaminated food and water sources with symptoms including severe diarrhea and dehydration. It’s treatable, but often fatal if not treated right away. Haiti’s Central Plateau, with wanting infrastructure and without widespread access to clean water, was an ideal breeding ground during the introduction of Cholera in October 2010. An epidemic which is ongoing and has since spread not only to all ten of Haiti’s départements as well as neighboring Cuba and the Dominican Republic. During my first visit to Haiti in March, I learned from speaking with one of the faculty members who came with us from Clemson that the hospital in Cangé run by Zanmi Lasante (Partners in Health, henceforth to be referred to as ZL) does not operate a gastrointestinal disease ward. There is no need to do so as there aren’t occurrences of Cholera or other gastrointestinal disease in Cangé, a direct result of the water system. It was a great pleasure to show the water system to the representatives from WHO, and they were equally delighted to see the system at work. With CEDC’s work in Cangé serving as a résumé, WHO is interested in collaborating in the future. A great honor and privilege, going forward.
It's my hope to be able to update this blog a little more frequently in the future (perhaps bi-weekly to start, big commitments are intimidating.) July will see updates on the water system repairs and traveling to the remote villages where we also have projects. For now, I’m attaching pictures below for your viewing pleasure (they’re prettier anyway and are better than my rambling on,) until next time, or as I've been saying a lot lately: "M' pral wè pita!" (See you later!)
Lastly, we have what David assures me is a totally common (totally weird) way to spell "ketchup." Never seen it this way before, so I just had to share. |
Actual lastly (pinky-swear this time) is a video I took of the pipe at the dam in Bas Cangé. Some of you may recognize (from the video in which I became very wet) this pipe as none other than pipe whose flow rate we measured in March during my first visit to Haiti. I took the video mostly for the stark contrast: when we visited in March the dry season was coming to a close with the rainy season starting up in April, versus now about a third of the way through the roughly six month long rainy season. I thought the normal stream now comparable to what was produced in March after closing the other pathways through which the water could pass. I speak perhaps daringly here, but it is my thought this bodes very well for the potential hydro-electric project we'd like to pursue in Bas Cangé.
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