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Jessica's View
My name is Jessica Ackerman, I'm 13 years old, and I live in Haiti as a MK
(missionary kid). I have three other family members: my mom, my dad, and my
sister, Jacquie. I also have a dog named Lexi. I live on a mountain, but every
week day I make the 20 minute drive with my mom to Quisqueya Christian School,
where I am in 8th grade.
So what's so different about growing up in Haiti? Well, let me show you
what a day in my life is like.
On a regular school day, I wake up at about 5:15 am. After breakfast, I
leave for school. The drive there is pretty tough, just because of how bad the
roads are. I spend the time before school watching the pre-k and kindergarten
kids with one or two of my friends. School starts at 8:00, and we have classes
until 9:40, when we get a 20 minute break, and then resume our classes. We have
lunch, lunch break, P.E., and then two more classes, and our day is over at 3
pm. My friend Rebekah and I run laps around the school three days a week, until
we have to go home. There're not really any sports teams at my school
this year, since due to insecurity in the country we cannot have off-campus
activities. But most days there is a group of people playing basketball,
soccer, football, and sometimes even softball. There are only about 150 kids in
my school, from pre-k through 12th grade. There are 14 kids in 8th grade. Due
to the small numbers, I am able to get close to many people.
On Saturdays, I go to tennis with my dad in the mornings, and then to my
youth group for two hours in the afternoon. On Sundays we have church, and then
go out to eat at a restaurant called La Pause.
Living in Haiti is hard for me, because I'm not able to enjoy things that
many take for granted in other countries. For example, there are no malls, no
Wal-Mart-type stores, American fast food places, or bowling alleys, all of which
I like a lot. Also, because of the security, there are times when I can't go
out after it's dark. This puts a limit on time I can spend with my friends. In
the city, I can't walk on the streets, and neither can many of my friends.
Instead of snow days, we have "people are setting up road blocks and burning
tires days.” There are times when we miss up to a week of school, and have to
make up the work.
It's hard living here, because you form many bonds with people, only to see
them broken because they have to leave. Recently one of my close friends had to
move to the States because her dad owns a security guard company, and he was
concerned about his family’s safety. Another good friend of mine moved away
with his family over Christmas break.
 There
are also things about living in Haiti that I wouldn't get to experience if I
were anywhere else. One is the view from my house. Every morning I get to wake
up to see mountains, the city, and the ocean. And at night, I can sit on my
balcony and look at the lights. The food is also very good. In Haiti, we like
our food deep fried and greasy. The traditional Haitian meal consists of rice
and beans, fried pork called griot, fried bananas, and piklis, which
looks like cole slaw, but is very spicy. I am also able to see many miracles
happen. In the spring of 2005, my friend's brother got kidnapped. Her parents
were in the States at the time, so it was only she and her sister at the house.
The kidnappers were asking for an outrageous amount of money, but somehow they
got enough to pay for his release. But instead of returning the brother, the
kidnappers turned him over to another group of kidnappers who asked for more
money. My middle school joined together in a time of prayer, and shortly after
he was returned to his family. In November of 2005, a boy in my middle school
was riding to school with his mom, little sister, and baby brother in the car.
Two men dressed as police forced them out of the car, and drove away with it.
Only after it was gone did they realize that the baby brother was still in the
car. The middle school joined together in my science room, and together we
cried and prayed to God for a miracle to happen. Exactly half an hour later, we
received a phone call. The kidnappers had been driving down the road, when the
horn had started blowing of its own accord. When it didn't stop, they got out
of the car, and ran away, leaving the baby in the car. The baby and the car
were returned to the family soon after. That situation brought everyone closer
to God, as we saw that only He was capable of making something like that happen.
Though there are times of instability in this country, times when everyone
is scared, I realize that those are a part of life. They give me learning
experience, and stories to tell for the rest of my life. There are many people
I know who would much rather be living in the States, but I thank God for giving
me the experience of living in this beautiful country.
--Jessica Ackerman
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