Wednesday, December 12, 2012

It's Snowing in Haiti


Something I never thought I'd be doing in Haiti... I was in the city and so I stopped at the cell phone company to see what kind of phones they had.  My wife's isn't working.  When I walk in, they are in the throws of decorating for Christmas.  Some workers are making a tree.  Some are stringing lights.  
Am I in Haiti?? 
Then a Haitian woman walks up to the front door, which is plate glass, and begins shaking a can of fake snow.   She sprays it about a centimeter away from the window, and it looks like white spray paint as it melts instantly and runs down the hot glass.   
This is met with alot of 
"Ewwwws!" from the staff, and frowns.  
"That's ugly."  Someone says.   I can see they are wondering who could possibly think this is festive...
I start laughing,  "That's because of the way you did it.  You can't stop, and you have to spray fast, like this."   I said, making a sweeping hand gesture.... (hey, I COME from the land of snow.   I KNOW what fake snow needs to look like, especially in a country where they've never seen the fluffy white stuff before. )
"Can you show us?" The manager says.
And there I am, in the middle of the city in Haiti, 95 degrees, 'artistically' frosting the storefront for Natcom Haiti, while the whole store watches, with the security guard and his pump-action shotgun right behind me.   
When I finished, I turned and said, "What do you think?"
"Belle!"  (Beautiful!) they said.  Big smiles.  Happy faces. Even the security guard had a big grin, although his shotgun was still cold and steely.
Even the Haitians outside the store were standing still. They were all imagining a Winter Wonderland.    It was like time stood still for just a moment, and we were all figures inside one of those little shake-em-up snow globes with the wind-up Jingle Bells playing in the background.  I began to wonder if we might see Santa Clause streak across the open sea.   Poor fella.  Hope he has some shorts and a nice palm tree printed t-shirt.  It's too hot here for white beards and stocking caps. As I left with a bounce in my step,  I could hardly help but whisper Tiny Tim's line under my breath, "God Bless Us, Everyone.  :)"


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