Faces in the Crowd

I find myself on another plane this afternoon. I am on my way to Ottawa Canada for work, but find my mind wandering to Hiaiti. This isn't entirely unexpected as I was given a video from a friend over thanksgiving holiday called "Eyes to See". The video is a short story about a cameraman who is part of a news team covering Haiti soon after the earthquake in January 2010 and how he is transformed when he comes out from behind his protective lens and gets involved.

While the movie was entertaining along with the movie was a documentary segment about some doctors who went to help shortly after the quake. I recognized some of the areas the doctors visited and could relate to some of the emotions they described. What I found strange is that along with not being able to distance myself from the situation is that I found myself searching the background of the documentary for faces I recognized; children I have met in the orphanages and villages I have visited, translators and others with which I have worked, and friends I have made. 

I was not able to find anyone I recognized, but I will run through the video again tonight from the hotel  just to look for faces in the background. It is clear to me that Haiti is no longer just a place in which I attempt to be useful. It is a place where people I truly care about live. This is not a real revelation for me I suppose, but it does surprise me as it is not something I would have expected of myself even 5 years ago. 

I will be heading down to Haiti in March of 2014 to participate in construction and medical work. I humbly ask again, that if you are able I would appreciate your financial support in this effort. Any contributions ca be sent to:

Union Church
c/o Jonathan Wright-Gray
PO Box 7028
Ocean Park, Maine 04063

And if you are at all interested in hearing more about Haiti or just talking about anything I general please don't hesitate to contact me.

(note, this was written about month ago on 12/2/2013, but I finally just got around to posting it on 1/3/2014)