"don't cry if you're ugly"

I'd never heard this Haitian proverb before today, and then today I heard it a hundred times. Basically, "don't cry out about your greatness is you're not so great," or "don't boast unless you can back it up". Today was the first (of many, I believe) soccer match of Sakenville...the Sakenville church youth group vs. the seminary.

You would think that the seminary guys would have whipped the gangly group of young men that came out to play, but our hearty EBS diet and additional years slowed us down, and the game was neck-to-neck fierce competition from start to finish. In the end, the Seminary managed to score one goal in our tiny pegged together sugarcane-rice sack goals after both sides endured the much delivered: "Don't cry if you're ugly!"

Jean-Mark was deemed "announcer" and called out commentary for all to hear from the sidelines the entire hour. His "microphone" was an empty juice bottle, and throughout the game he interviewed various onlookers. Anytime his commentary upset someone, they would take away his juice bottle, which somehow rendered him speechless until the bottle was returned. When we see our brothers and sisters work His Work, we are blessed by the mature and talented and deep men and women they are. When we see them play, we are blessed by the children they allow to surface :)

No one was as happy as Lily though, who joyously went from friend to friend, happy to have all her "zanmis" together in one place.

By the end, there were about 200 people there, from little kids that shimmied through the drainage holes in the wall to much of the Christian and Voodoo community. What an awesome afternoon, to see Emmaus and Sakenville (all HIS children!) together under His GLORIOUS heavens, mountains grand in the background, watching everyone enjoy an equal passion.