Normal

Today might be the first day that has felt normal since January 12.  While the random days have been interesting and have crossed my path with many people I wouldn’t have otherwise crossed paths with, it was nice to have what felt like a ‘normal’ day. 

There were a few projects at the Guest House that needed to be tended to; a few window screens to fix, a few shelves to add, a few pieces of furniture to rescue from falling apart.  We didn’t have any guests there and didn’t expect any for several days (and the influx of random travelers seemed to be drawing to a close) so today was a good day to get some things done. I met Ti Louie, the carpenter, at 8am (read: 8:45am Haitian time) and needed to stay on site while he and his assistant worked.  While they worked, I cleaned and reorganized.  We have a food pantry that has two refrigerators and shelves for food.   As pieces have been added over the years, the room, which is very small, has become quite crowded and disorganized.  While the guys sawed, and sanded, and hammered and screwed, I emptied and scrubbed and reorganized, all morning long.  As I pulled cans and bottles off shelves, and rearranged the room, the sound of a saw filled the air.  It was a sound that most times would mean little more than a busy Saturday morning taking care of all the projects the week didn’t have time for.  But today, it was the sound of that which is mundane, and trivial, and normal.  And today the significance of normal was understood.  

Jenn was in Cayes this weekend visiting some other friends and so she came over this afternoon and we sat on the couch and ate sandwiches and played with her new phone and caught up on this weeks news.  One night last week, I asked Jenn, if she could have imagined that we’d ever be together laying on mattresses outside, under a tarp, after an earthquake, in Haiti?  While that moment was poignant in one way, today was just as poignant in another way.  It was poignant in the kind of way that reminds you that everything is moving towards being OK.  Its the kind of moment that reminds you that even after everyone has moved back inside, and life returns to a slightly more normal pace there will always be moments like this.  Afternoons on a couch, with a good friend, who just ‘get's’ you. 

And the morning and afternoon were the first normal day.