In this edition:
- NEWS FROM SR. VIVIAN IN HAITI
- VISITATION TO SAN DIEGO
NEWS FROM SR. VIVIAN IN HAITI
Being in Gros-Morne again is like coming back home! Much is still the same, which makes me comfortable being back here; however, I notice how much has changed in fifteen years.
The young teenagers with whom I worked in “recherche vocationnelle” back then, have found a way to respond to God’s call in their lives: priests, sisters, married men and women, fathers and mothers, students in law, school administration, medicine, or providing skills used every day right here in town as iron workers, carpenters, plumbers, artist, etc. Needless to say it isn’t all of those with whom I worked, but a number that offers me deep consolation. Many have managed to leave the country and are establishing themselves elsewhere: Chile, Jamaica, Nassau, Canada, and the U.S.A. Many are still here in Gros-Morne struggling as always to make a living and fill their stomachs. Many roam the streets looking for a job as day-laborers.
For the first two weeks our small group of four RJM’s – Josela [Spain], Soledad [Argentina], Farzana [Pakistan] and myself – have spent at least six or seven hours a day learning the Creole language. While it is phonetic, the grammar is complex and people speak using contractions. To learn the vocabulary as well as the ‘original’ grammar has been the task of each day. We’ll get to the contracted words once they know enough Creole that they have a desire to speak faster.
Worked into the lessons are Haitian culture, traditions, and mentality. I often tell a story connected with the lesson. We have many laughs together! It’s laughter that sometimes turns to tears, probably because we are releasing a lot of pent up energy. I am trying to find the correct approach for each lesson, and the “students” striving to understand something in a language foreign to them, as well as communicating with one another!
