T-11 Days

First off, I really had no intention of being silent for over a month.  Time just slipped away from me. But I have no time or energy to waste on “blogger’s remorse” (feeling like a bad blogger because I haven’t posted something every day).  I’m eleven days away from leaving on a jet plane.  I seem to have so much to accomplish between now and then.  Who am I kidding? I DO have a lot to accomplish, but I’m trying to keep my priorities straight.  The list is long and I won’t bore you with the details.  Suffice it to say that I have been procrastinating.  But I’ve always been a last-minute kind of girl.  Eventually, I’m gonna have to drag my suitcases out and start packing <shudder>.  Speaking of packing...

I used to have a living room floor.  Now I just have “take to Haiti” piles.  A pile of toys and supplies for the orphanage (more on this in a minute), a pile of toiletries, a pile of clothes, and a pile of miscellaneous items.  I figure I should go through the clothes and cut that mountain (at least) in half.  I’m certain that I’ll have so much more wisdom about what to take to a third world country after I’ve been to one.  C’est la vie!

I will be sharing briefly about what I'll be doing in Haiti at Southwinds Church in SE Calgary this Sunday morning; I’ll hand out some prayer cards (little cards I made up with specific prayer requests), and they’ll commission me and send me out.  It all seems so surreal.  I’m not sure when reality will set in.  Maybe when I show up at YYC (otherwise known as the Calgary International Airport) with an entourage of friends seeing me off.  Maybe when I set foot on Haitian soil.  Maybe when I return home.  Maybe never.  Ok, time to cut the rambling.

In my last post I said I would answer your questions about donating supplies that I can take with me to Haiti.  The short answer is this: It would be more beneficial to the orphanage and to the Haitian economy if people would donate funds directly to GLA’s General Operating Account.  That way, they can purchase as many items as possible right there in Haiti.  Of course, there are items that are not available in Haiti, which could be sent, but not necessarily with me.  While I appreciate the generous offers of many people to load me up with provisions, I am only one person travelling alone, and I cannot physically handle several large pieces of luggage.  There is a list posted on the website of what GLA needs (and doesn’t need) at any given time.  It is updated periodically. You can view the most recent list (updated May 25, 2011) by clicking here.  To make a donation to GLA's general fund, please click here. 

I promise I will update this blog more consistently in the coming days and weeks.  So, until next time...