2011 Global Seva Challenge: Remaking Haiti’s Land
Haiti’s countryside is stark and beautiful. Steep hills are cut with rows of crops against a perfect landscaped sky. This magical setting conceals the long struggle that Haitian farmers and rural communities have endured throughout history. At times, they’ve been enslaved, tortured, forgotten, and exploited. But as I dig my hands in this soil, among the weeds and fire ants, I can feel the opportunity for rebirth in every single moment. Before I arrived in Haiti, I was inspired by the courage of thousands of Haitian farmers who marched through the streets and burned 400 tons of hybrid, genetically modified, and [...]
2011 Global Seva Challenge: Together in Service
Today is Day 4 of the 2011 Global Seva Challenge immersion trip, and it feels like we are home. Not home as we know it, but we’ve arrived into the space, culture, and beauty of Haiti. What we continue to witness in each moment are powerful and true feelings about what it means to take your yoga off your mat. Each day, we are watching a country put itself back together, which is not easy. For them to do. Or for us to witness. But the love that this Global Seva group has embodied to support each other moving through [...]
2011 Global Seva Challenge: Meet Vladimir
Meet Vladamir: a successful Haitian news anchor, whose life and physical appearance changed in the course of a few seconds 10 years ago. Vladamir, not a trained fireman or a medical professional, ran into a burning house to save the three children who were trapped inside. Without hesitation, he put the lives of others in front of his and was left with third degree burns covering 40% of his body. We have been in Haiti for more than a week now and we’ve visited several orphanages. When we ask the person who heads up the organization why they do what [...]
2011 Global Seva Challenge: Haiti school connects mind, body, and spirit of its students
It’s Day 3 of the 2011 Global Seva Challenge “bare witness” tour of Haiti, and we are not only beginning to see the incredible things our donations are funding, but are seeing firsthand the strength of spirit within the Haitian people. We started our day with a meditation to check in on how we have been showing up since we arrived. What entered my mind was how the Haitians show up each day, full of pride for their country, love for their community, and a genuine warmth and gratitude for foreigners such as ourselves. Today we saw a seed that [...]
2011 Global Seva Challenge: Speaking Universal Languages
Language can sometimes be a barrier in Haiti, as in many countries, but there are some languages that we can all understand. The language of love, of course, as well as the universal languages of music and art. They connect space, time, and culture. The city of Jacmel sings loudly about the concepts of music and art. Jacmel, known as the New Orleans of Haiti, is also rebuilding itself after a devastating natural disaster. I have been to New Orleans many, many times. As I walked through the historic area of Jacmel today, it seemed vaguely familiar: the brightly painted buildings with iron [...]
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