"Bel bonjou, se paspo w."

"A beautiful hello, is your passport" is just one of more than 3,000 Haitian proverbs that many Haitians use to EXpertly EXplain EXperiences that occur in their everyday life. However, the lively and charismatic group called "N a sonje" (We remember) in Gros Jean managed to nicely and naturally narrow it down to their three favorite proverbs, including the title-sake, to share with us. In order to demonstrate how real these proverbs were, Roosevelt, a member of the group, decided to tell us a true story. Sharing is important in Haitian culture. Children who don't realize this early on will risk having to face unfortunate consequences. Whenever Roosevelt's aunt wanted to test a child's character, she would offer them a cookie. If they didn't offer to share a piece with her, she would take the cookie back and eat it infront of them. Cruel? Maybe, but this lesson stresses the importance of sharing no matter how much you have.

Before we continue though, let's explain who "N a sonje" is and what they do. Founded by former American MCC employees Carla and Ron, the organization hopes to preserve and spread the lesser-known truth about Haitian history and the indigenous people (the Taino people in case you were wondering). Thanks to the hard work and tireless efforts of the young members and Carla's direction, they've been conveying this message through a play (we watched it on video) for over 10 years.

Do you like peanut butter? Well, thanks to their dedication to preserving Haitian culture, "N a sonje" members Sarah and Ann were able to teach us how to make our own sweet AND spicy peanut butter from scratch. (Contact us if you need any). But, what fun is cooking without music? We were serenaded and graced with a musical performance (featuring our lovely MCC guide Patrick passionately playing the pot) that got us on our feet and helped us see some of our team members hidden talents. (Aiyana, we're talking about you).

Did you notice the alliteration?

After a few wrong twists and turns, we were able to find our way back down the mountain, benefiting from our new recognition of the importance of a genuine hello. No hello, bad directions.

It was a good day, what more can we say?

Suddenly snazzily signing out [snap],
BYE! HRo and Saboom