It is with a heavy heart that I departed Diakonos Orphanage around 6am yesterday morning. I spend the last afternoon in the company of the kids. Several of the girls spend some two hours brushing and combing my hair, whilst I hang out with John- Carrie and Wilderson who play in the dirt, and Herve, Holken and Bonasta who flick bottle-tops with great skill and dexterity.
Indeed, despite having no Creole and the most minimal of French, they communicate their love through constant love, and kisses from almost all on their return from the school every day. They have asked when i´ll be back, and I tell them I will try, but it will take a couple of years. They have lost adults in their lives before, and I think they fear the worst about me also.
It´s difficult also to say goodbye to Jean-Luc and Wilkens. They urge me to stay and help out at the orphanage, but this is not a realistic plan of action for me to take. They do need help, but i´m not cut out for relief work full-time. They have both been so warm, appreciative and generous to me during my stay, and we have shared a lot together. Our backgrounds are so different but so many of our personal philosophies are either similar or identical. They both give so much of their time and love to the orphanage, simply through improving the lives and well-beings or others.
It takes me nine hours to travel on the Tera-tours bus from Port au Prince to Santo Domingo where I am installed in 5 star luxury. I feast on chicken salad and escalope and fries, and feel my strength returning fast, and take great pleasure in the life that I lead, and the contrast that it brings.
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