LIVEALITTLE

Imagine having a good job and still not feeling a sense of financial security. Most jobs available are not contractual (even those employed by the NGO sector). Organizations can lay someone off seemingly at their whim since there is no need to provide evidence for the dismissal. You are among the elite 8% employed if you have a job at all. Usually an employed person supports his extended family as well.
Although I am not harrassed on the streets, I am stopped occassionally to talk about job prospects with my NGO. Most people are looking to be translators. I have been ashamed to know that I speak only one language fluently while many Haitians speak at least 3 (French, Creole, English and sometimes Spanish). Being a native English speaker is a huge advantage. People here starve to practice English with others. I love being involved in their efforts of bettering themselves. In addition, at times their choice of words gives me a new perspective on the english language. For example, doesn't 'making photos' make so much more sense than 'taking photos'?
(Top picture is a panoramic view from the Bellaire clinic window. Rubble on the left are the remains of a school. Rubble on the right are the remains of an 8 family residential building. No one from the building survived.)
(Bottom picture is a panoramic view of the Bellaire clinic. To the right is the patient waiting area. To the left is the post-triage queue for a physician consult. In the top/back of the room, is the pharmacy area.)