Chofe and Foutbòl

Day 6, Night 6 – Sunday, July 1, 2012

We had a slow Sunday morning here in Corail.  Woke up around 6:30 am and Lara made the coffee.  I am currently reading A Widow for a Year by John Irving.  At breakfast, we had fresh mango, watermelon, and pineapple.  They were so fresh and delicious, so juicy, sweet, and natural.  The pineapple was almost white, instead of the yellow that we get in the USA.  We had pumpkin soup, which is a staple here.  It has carrots, onions, pasta, potato, and sweet potato in it.  After breakfast, Lara and I relaxed on the porch of the house with Florence and Asmathe, Pierre’s sisters.  With language help from Lara, I explained to them how much I love to cook and that I would like to learn to cook Haitian food with Viola, the woman that cooks all of our meals.  They encouraged me to cook with her and told me that if I want to cook anything American, that I could go with Florence to the market in Nan Bouk to help buy food. 

Around 3 pm, Lara and I went to Hope on a String to get ready for the big chofe (pronounced sho-fay) and foutbòl match.  We blew up yellow balloons, which the kids held during the parade to the field.  The staff of HoaS had already made great signs for the kids to hold as well.  The kids arrived to practice; the staff, Lara, Matt (the HoaS intern from Amherst College), and I practiced the chofe (cheering) routine, the chants, the dance moves repeatedly.  I was soaked in sweat.  More people started arriving – men and women from the kombit, the soccer players, and more HoaS staff members.  They began playing the drums, tambourines, and cowbells to accompany the kids’ chofe.  It was so much fun.  It was that kind of pure fun that I don’t often have anymore – where you are just happy, in the moment, and proud.  

Practicing chofe

 Before we marched onto the street, the staff of HoaS had a ceremony to recognize the participants who stuck with the this interim summer session, came to the activities, practiced, and took responsibility for being a part of the HoaS community.  To recognize them, HoaS prepared bracelets (similar to the yellow LiveStrong bracelets).  Before distributing them, Mumay (staff member) thanked everyone for their participation and reminded them about the importance of being a responsible member of the community.  Then, one-by-one, she called their names up to the front so they could receive their bracelets.  This ceremony, while a small measure of recognition, was very important.  The boys, girls, men, and women, were being recognized among their peers for their attitude and responsibility.  Too frequently, young people in their communities don't follow-through or take responsibility for their actions.  Because life in Haiti is even harder for people, not following-through, not attending, not taking responsibility becomes easier.  However, these participants did not let excuses get in their way - they worked hard, showed up, and HoaS wanted to show their appreciation by recognizing them in a very special way.

Receiving Bracelets

Marching to the field

 After practicing was done, the two teams were ready, and the DJ was hooked up and plugged in on the field, we lined up to parade down the main road to the field.  The kids, adult members of the community, and staff marched down the road – chanting, shouting, carrying yellow balloons, and wearing yellow pinnies.  People came out of their houses beyond the main road to see what all the noise was about.  We marched right onto the field for everyone to see and continued rooting for the Hope on a String foutbòl team.  The team from Mitan was wearing orange jerseys that said Plainview Old Beth Page Soccer and the HoaS team wore neon yellow shirts.

Chofe pou ekip Hope on a String

It was a great game!  The clouds covered the sun so it wasn’t too hot.  The men were extremely talented and played a great game.  The field was surrounded with spectators and the HoaS staff and kids kept up a ridiculously high amount of cheering energy.  

I walked around the field, away from the chofe to get some quiet while watching the game.  I wanted to drink in the experience.  It made me so happy for Bennett and the community.  It truly was a great “coming together” of community.  Hopefully, people who did not know about Hope on a String, or who do not participate in it, or don’t see it yet as a community building force were able to recognize and appreciate it. 

Anpil moun te vini!  (So many people came!)

At the end of the game, Team Hope on a String beat Mitan 2-1.  The last time Bennett came down to Haiti, he brought trophies for this event, so Lara and the staff were able to give a trophy to the Mitan team, who loved it and asked for dozens of pictures to be taken with it.  They also gave team Hope on a String the championship trophy, which they also wanted to have tons of pictures taken.  Right after the game ended, and as the trophies were being handed out, the clouds rushed in and darkened, ominous of an impending storm. 

Ekip Hope on a String

People quickly dispersed.  We were all exhausted after the match.  After we brought the instruments and other materials back to Hope on a String, we had a quick dinner, and got ready for bed.  I slept on a cot on the porch, which I was a little nervous for, but I really enjoyed it.  The porch is separated from the main road by the house gate and wall, which most people have.  It was quite loud when I laid down, reading with my headlamp on.  Soon, people’s conversations quieted down and dogs stopped barking.  I was awoken around 5:45 am, as I am most mornings, by the crowing of roosters, the neighing of goats.  However, I was pleasantly surprised to also hear the most beautiful singing of voices from the church next-door to the house.  They sang until about 7 am, at which point I got up!