Vwayaj mwen Haiti, 1989

Diznef fevriye m’ pral Okay, Ayiti, vizitez Ecole Sainte-Famille. Lekol-sa-a lekol se Graham and Parks School nan Kambrij. M’pral ak moun ki soti Graham and Parks School e lot ki gen interes sou Ayiti. Moun-sa-yo, ki travay ak Les Cayes Children’s Fund, vle ede etidyan ayisyen nan Ecole Sainte-Famille. Etidyan-yo nan Okay bezwen plu bagay: liv, kreyon, bagay fe kreyon-yo gen pwent, plim, papye, chifon, kaye, tap, penti, penso, globe, reg. Moun-yo va pote bagay-sa-yo e va travay ak pwofeso-yo la-a.

M’ gen eksitmen sou vwayaj-la. Petet m’ kapab ede etidyan-yo e petet m’ap gen plezi. Men m’ gen pe tou. M’ konnen selman pitit ayisyen. M’ bezwen aprann kisa tout moun nan Okay abitye fe bagay-la. M’ pa vle fe pwoblem pou yo. M’ gen concern tou sou situation politik. M’ vle vwayaj-la ede moun ayisyen e pa fe situation mal. Dangeur-yo la ki le moun vizite peyi lot, espezialimen ki le peyi-la li soti gen riches e peyi-la li vizite pa gen.

Ye swa m domi

Ye swa m domi, le m ap dodo
Le m ap dodo se pa ke m ki kontan
Menaj mwen pati li fe twa mwa deyo
Le m rete sonje dlo kouri nan je m
Li rale monchwa li siye figi m
Li di yayaya cheri juska la fin du monde

Here’s a [mostly] Google translation of the report I wrote originally in Kreyol:

My trip to Haiti

On February 19th, I will go to Okay, Haiti, to visit the Sainte-Famille School. This school is [sister to] Graham and Parks School in Cambridge. I will be with people from Graham and Parks School and others who are interested in Haiti. These people, who work with Les Cayes Children’s Fund, want to help Haitian students at Ecole Sainte-Famille. The students in Okay need more things: books, pencils, things made of pencils – they have points, pens, paper, rags, notebooks, tapes, paints, brushes, globes, reg. People will bring these things and work with the professors there.

I am excited about the trip. Maybe I can help the students and maybe I will have fun. But I have [fears] too. I know only Haitian children. I need to learn what everyone in Okay is used to doing. I don’t want to cause problems for them. I am also concerned about the political situation. I want the trip to help Haitians and not harm the situation. The dangers are there when people visit other countries, especially if the country they come from has wealth and the country they visit does not.

and of the Haitian song I learned:

[Yesterday, I Slept]

[Yesterday], I [slept], [while I was sleeping]
[while I was sleeping], [my heart was not content]
My wife left three months ago
When I remember, tears flow from my eyes
I pull out my handkerchief and wipe my face
I say yayaya darling until the end of the world

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