I am a proud mother of four and a grandmother to sixteen. I love
my Haiti and am torn apart to see it today. I have lived here all
of my life and have never seen it this way. Yes, we struggled to
have enough money and there was a lot of upheaval when it came to
politics. And yes, we always had to work hard here. But we lived a
simple and happy life in this beautiful place.
Our world was turned upside down one day as I baked bread for my
family. The worst earthquake to hit Haiti since 1770 struck and our
world shattered. My sweet daughter and three of our grandchildren
died that day. Our entire neighborhood turned into piles of rubble.
We still grieve the loss of those we loved so much, but there isn't
much time to stop and remember them because surviving is a daily
struggle now.
I am raising two of my granddaughters, Johanne and Laurette. We
still live in a tent and things around us get more and more dirty
every day. Because our tent touches our neighbors', when they get
sick, so do we, and doctors are hard to come by here. And the trash
just piles up on our muddy roads because nobody comes to clean it
up. My husband was injured in the earthquake so he cannot work and
is in pain a lot. I pray for him every night because I know he
suffers and doesn't want to tell me.
My biggest worry is water. We bathe and wash our clothes in the
same water. I walk far every day to get water for us to drink and
sometimes it is bad and makes us (especially the babies) sick. We
hear about lots and lots of money that is being sent to us for
things like wells, but we never seem to see any progress. I am
getting older and don't have the energy I used to to fight for
clean water every day and care for my family too. Won't you please
come here and help us? We really need you more than your
money.
