“BROKEN PAGES”
January 12, 2010
Person Experience of Julio&Peggy Rivera
Written by Peggy Rivera-2010
“The melody to which one dances takes on a different tune and a new song is born”.
The same can be said for the paths in our lives. January 12th, 2010 has changed the path in our lives forever!
It is for the hundreds of thousands of people who lost their lives and for those who remain behind with nothing but broken memories that I write my recap of that horrific event. It is therapeutic for me to write and something that may or may not be shared, but I have found, my feelings are common to many of those who lived through that day and who continue to live it beyond anything I can imagine.
VILLA CREOLE
The day started just as any other day, up at 7:30, Julio leaving our room to get a poolside table for breakfast. I as usual took a little longer just to give him his ‘alone’ time (I don’t think he realizes that) with his first cup of coffee. We’ve been staying at the Villa Creole now since November 2009 after coming to Haiti in order to get the National Lottery business started, something Julio had contemplated before, and now we are doing it together to help the people of Haiti! We don’t believe in charity and feel this business can be our way of putting money back into the country. After I felt Julio’s wake-up time was sufficient, I met him at the table he had chosen for us.
It’s wonderful to start the day with their delicious tea and fresh tropical fruit juices!! We finished our breakfast and moved our belongings to our makeshift office for the day.
Villa Creole is a beautiful hotel and a perfect place to have our temporary ‘poolside’ office, a covered corner of the deck with only one table and four chairs. What a setting!
We also had a view of the beautiful dining area across from the pool!
Are we spoiled? I guess you could say …. YES……just a bit!!!
Note: Three days earlier, we thought about moving our office to the Hotel Montana a more modern hotel on the hillside a bit out of Petion-ville. We had just signed an office lease agreement with the Manager of the Hotel Montana and he had promised us a good deal for one of their rooms. We decided against the move after exploring their range of wireless internet. We would have to work basically from the hotel room instead of poolside, which of course would never do!! Thank goodness for our decision based on the outcome of the days events! Three Hundred and fifty people died today at that hotel!
As usual our day was booked with various meetings. The day progressed and by late afternoon we had only one meeting left, “Marketing”. As we’ve discussed our plan many times, Julio decided he could miss the start of this one and he headed for Unibank to take money out for his dream purchase “a Segway”. Apparently the powers that be had other plans!!! He was soon to find out, his purchase would have to wait! It was only fifteen minutes into Julio’s departure, during the on-slaught of the planning session when a repeated ‘OOOOHHHHH’ was all I could utter.
‘The Earth’s Indigestion Had Started!!!
I put it this way because beneath my feet the movement was coordinated with deep rumbling sounds. I looked across at our friend and marketing consultant and simultaneously we both bolted upright out of our chairs! I’m not sure how many seconds passed before it registered what was happening. Neither of us spoke the word “earthquake” however we both stood, searching for the best place to be. I kept uttering “I don’t want anything over my head!”. I searched the grounds closest to the steps and realized debris could fall on me there!
Not enough open space!
There wasn’t much time to think and the shaking intensified so quickly that it was no longer possible to stand. “The Pole” – Our friend said “Peggy just stay here, there is no weight on the roof over our heads and the roof will protect us. I realized he was right ! I sat down and said to myself…..”Whatever will be will be!
Nothing was in our control!
We sat either side of the poolside office ‘POLE’, our arms embracing it and clutching each other’s elbows as if to ground us! As my legs bounced and slammed against the pool deck, my mind was racing “Where is Julio?” The seconds seemed like minutes and the shaking and rumbling continued to intensify. I stared at the pool deck fully expecting it to split wide open and collapse where we sat….just as in the movies. However there was no need to hollywoodize “this horrific nightmare”. Neither of us spoke, lost in our thoughts of what was happening. As the grand finale of 45 seconds came to a close; instead of the curtains closing and a standing ovation: we sat….still bouncing….and watched; metal fixtures pulling from the walls and ceiling; decorations crumbling; and finally the hotel itself giving in; creaking, moaning, and swaying; concrete dust, wood splinters, rocks flying, decorations scattered…..we watched across the pool as the hotel collapsed!
Miraculously we were in one piece!!!!
But where was Julio?
The ground stopped shaking, but I could not! The rumbling subsided but was replaced by a far worse crescendo, people screaming in despair, children crying, dogs barking, sounds of wailing…..oh…..the wailing!!! The sounds filled my ears before I was able to stand. They were quickly merged with the sounds of the emergency helicopter!
Amazingly responsive, and quick to assess the damage! It will be a long time before my nerves settle and not react to the sounds and vibrations of helicopters!
“Aftershocks! There’s going to be aftershocks”, I shouted at our friend! He thought we should stay put, but I said we need to get outside to the parking lot where it’s open. We threw all of our belongings; notebooks, computers and coffee mugs (which come in handy later in the night) into our bags and headed to the front of the hotel, passing by the poolside breakfast restaurant. In passing, I peered down the adjacent hillside where the noises escalating blended with the sights displayed! The entire hillside homes were replaced by collapsed rubble; people scattering like ants whose mound was stirred! I felt sick!!!!! I could only manage a meek whisper “Do you see that?”
We made our way through the destruction, through the front lobby, which was still in tact, to the parking lot outside where the hotel guests were starting to congregate. The manager / owner “Melisa” quickly responded and began working in an organized and effective manner, calming guests and accounting for everyone’s whereabouts.
What an amazing women!!!
My thoughts were still on Julio unsure of whether the bank he was at withstood the 7.2 seismic activities. The only way to remain calm was to keep saying ,“He has to be OK! We have too many thing in our lives yet to do!” I assisted Melisa, trying to calm guests and organizing space for people to gather.
More and more hotel patrons were gathering, most in a mechanical fashion, with little emotion! Shock I guess! Our friend Bijoux, joined others curbside, but I couldn’t sit. I could not relax until I could see for myself that Julio was ok! More minutes passed and still no sign of Julio!!! Then, after 45 minutes, I heard my name!
Oh My God!! What a Relief!
It’s amazing how calm one can be in traumatic times. I spotted Julio making his way through the crowd. I wanted to drop my camera and run to him but I had to show him I was fine, not panicking! I needed to be strong for him! In an outwardly calm appearance, I resisted the panic surge, put down my camera and walked towards him. I’m not sure how long we held each other, not long, but long enough for me to say “Remember how I said you make the earth move under my feet? Well…can you tone it down a notch!!!” My sister Brenda, now calls his feet “Weapons of Mass Destruction!’ Gotta keep a sense of humour!! I also said, “See what happens when you leave me?” I guess that part wasn’t funny ….. and he continued to say “It’s really bad out there!” and he began to explain his encounter.
JULIO’S ENCOUNTER
Unibank is one of Haiti’s largest commercial banking companies. The line-ups are incredible and a huge pet peeve of ours. It’s not uncommon to mark off a couple hours of our schedule for the dreaded banking excursion! It’s not a nice tour!! Julio was in the main branch, trying to get money out but there was a complication with his visa. He was quite miffed!! “Am I ever going to get my Segway?” He was heading to the door dialing visa’s number and just as he pressed ‘Send’……….
A Bomb?
That was what he first thought! The building shook and swayed and Julio quickly ran outside as he was already making his way to the door to make his call.
Outside, our friend and driver, was waiting in the car. He said the parking lot looked like a wave as the pavement swelled and rolled! Julio witnessed this himself as a car beside him bounced higher than his head! At this point Julio saw people running in the street, screaming and full of panic!
“Typical! Dramatic Haitians! Always over reacting”
That is what crossed Julio’s mind because he hadn’t seen the real devastation yet. Then he turned the corner: Buildings pancaked into piles of dust; severely injured victims screaming for help; bodies strewn everywhere and roads now at a stand still. It was then Julio saw one of the workers from the hotel. Julio asked him how everything was and the fellow exclaims “Oh My God!, Everything is gone! The hotel is down!” Julio was not panicked until that point.
He didn’t know what had happened to me!! He was panicked!!
“I have to get back to Peggy!” It took him about 45 minutes to get back to the hotel and all the while his thoughts were wondering how hurt I would be! He was quite relieved when he saw me amidst the hotel guests and other gatherers! He screamed out my name!!!
BACK TO VILLA CREOLE
His recap took only a few minutes (if that) and we quickly set about the task of trying to contact home! That is when I had to work very hard to keep it together! I almost broke down a few times because I just kept repeating….
”I need Jarrett and Braden to know I’m ok!
“I need my family to know we are alive!!”
Julio and an EMT from the states worked diligently to find connections and get word out for people.
Julio was able to reach his parents before the connection died and he continued trying my family to no avail. Melissa saw me and gave me her phone to try texting. I finally was able to send out one text….to Jarrett…..”There has been an earthquake here in Haiti….but we are ok!” Unfortunately Jarrett didn’t have everyone’s number so wasn’t able to pass on the message. That’s all the communication we were able to get out but the other fellow was able to contact the Canadian and US embassy and provided notification that all people in the Villa Creole had survived the quake!! AMAZING!!
Because my family couldn’t be reached, I kept thinking about how they would all be feeling. My son’s recollections (as well as the rest of our families) of the hours after receiving news of the earthquake is a piece of the story that is missing. I felt sick, knowing that they would be so worried about us. I do know there were lots of calls and emails in addition to my mom registering our names with the Canadian Embassy and placing us on the missing list!
At the same time as Julio and the EMT were busy with connections, I was busy with Melisa’s children. They were a bit shaken (no pun intended!) so I just sat and talked with them and let her son play games on Julio’s iPhone. It helped to settle their nerves as well as mine!
After realizing no further communications would be made, we set about on other tasks. Julio had just left to gather food from the collapsed kitchen when a big aftershock started! “JULIO don’t go down there!,” was what I screamed. Once subsiding, Julio and a few of the men went downstairs to gather as many supplies as possible. The ladies began making sandwiches from the provisions from the kitchen. It was during this that the first victim arrived - a lady showed up with her injured son! She had taken him first to the hospital at the corner only to find it completely “pancaked”, an expression that became pretty common when referring to the earthquake! All floors completely leveled with patients and workers accounting for some of the 400,000 plus deceased!
The EMT – who deserves a medal for his work that night, quickly went to the boys side! The boy’s scull had some pieces missing (sorry for the details but that’s the reality) and the EMT set about the task of trying to fix him up. Julio on the other hand went down the hill with a couple others, with their flashlights to assist the lady’s husband who had both legs broken and was still in the neighbor’s house! I stayed with Melissa’s children. The little girl was the same age as my grand niece ‘Akeera’. She reminded me of her and we talked about the earthquake and the aftershocks to come, both re-assuring each other, we would be fine.
It wasn’t long before Julio and the others arrived back – “without the Husband”. They arrived at the neighbor’s house, to find three injured men still inside. Julio said, “You need to get these people out because there is going to be aftershocks and the house will go down! “ The owner said, while holding a bible in his hand above his head
“THIS IS GOD’S HOUSE!
Nothing is going to happen. We’ll be fine”. To which Julio exclaimed,
“Look around you!” God’s not a happy man!
He’s having a bad day! Don’t even talk to him today!! You have to let me help get you and the others out of here!” Nobody would give them a door to transport the husband and he was too heavy to carry so they left everyone there until the next morning. Julio I think also deserves a medal because he worked tirelessly through the night! Minutes after Julio’s return, the steady stream of victims began arriving!
Under the EMT’s orders I became the one to bark orders and collect medical supplies: bedsheets were ripped up in various lengths and sizes for tourniquets and bandages, bamboo Christmas decorations were transformed into splints. People gathered personal effects to add to the growing pile of supplies! It was quite amazing to see how everyone pulled together to help!
Head wounds! Broken limbs! Crushed pelvis’s! The list of injuries goes on and on and we worked the best we could. The lounge chairs by the pool were brought outside for hospital gurneys. By the light of the car head lights, we worked on victim after victim, moving each patient to / from the lounger in front of the lights.
DOCTOR! DOCTOR! Help us!!
There were no doctors in the makeshift hospital that night! TAG! We were it! I became known as the ‘Bag Lady’, the one with the collected medicine. In reference I just said, “I guess my reputation precedes me”. This in regards to my many camping experiences with my sons, Jarrett and Braden….who kept testing my medical expertise!
| Ladies side whom I could not leave |
The women in the background of this picture, is Melissa (the one in beige with the red hair band), one of the owners of the Villa Creole. As she put it, “Peggy we worked in the trenches together!” Not only did she work tirelessly concerned for her hotel guests, she accommodated the victims by providing what she could from the hotel! More on Melissa and her hospitality will be mentioned later in our story
We all have our recollections of that evening.
For Julio: a lady brought in on a metal grate in the back of a ‘Tap Tap’, Haiti’s taxi service. Her leg had bones protruding out through the skin. She wanted it fixed and so with no pain killers, and with the lady’s husband holding her, Julio pulled the leg and reset it, stabilizing it with the bamboo splints made earlier in the night! “CRAZY!!! What a trooper that lady was and thanks to Julio she was in much better shape!
For me: the lady in the photo! I helped clean up her head wounds but wasn’t sure if she would make it through the night. I sat with her once she was moved from the lounge chair (inspection table) onto the ground. This lady had no-one with her and every time I left her side she screamed out hideous noises. I sat with her and hummed until she calmed and slept a bit. I thought she may perish but found she was still with us the next morning. We are not sure what her outcome was past the first night.
Julio and I: Another lady…. had almost every bone in her body broken. In actual fact….her body was crushed and we couldn’t do anything for her. (There’s a reason I mention this)
All through the night we worked along side the EMT hero! Finally in the wee hours of the morning we had a break…..and RUM! Yes RUM….from the hotel stash. Out in the parking lot / makeshift hospital, people sat in a big circle, held hands, chanted, prayed, sang and screamed out in terror on the occurrence of every aftershock. We managed to rest a bit on a spare lounger still by the pool, but every time the aftershocks hit, the same haunting sounds filled the air. Something we will never forget! A doctor we met months later described it perfectly “The sounds of death!”
It was in the midst of the chanting and praying that we heard the most hideous screams and chanting!! There was the lady who we couldn’t help because she was too broken up…walking past the chanters!! ’YES WALKING’. I just stared and shouted to Julio, ”What is she doing? She’s too broken up to walk!!!’ We are still not sure how she did it or where she collapsed after because seriously…..her body was broken!! I wouldn’t have believed it if I hadn’t seen it with my own eyes!
In between victims we worked on finding news of our friends and family in Haiti! Most miraculously survived! Someone was sure looking out for us!
For the next 1 ½ days we continued our doctor regime. Those days were exhausting and draining with the sights and sounds we experienced! There continued to be broken bodies brought in on metal doors, grates, or whatever people could find to transport the victims. A doctor that I spoke to by the pool while taking a break kept repeatedly shaking his head. “There is nothing I can do for them. They are going to die and I don’t have supplies to help! Most I saw are going to die!” I wondered if he really was talking to me or just speaking out loud, revealing his own despair! He did give up and stayed within the compounds of the pool area. Julio didn’t hear these statements! He hadn’t given up and I couldn’t give up either. Perhaps it was the Dr’s expertise and his knowledge that there was little hope for many that kept him away. Both Julio and I held the belief that regardless of their outcome….. people needed the hope if little else!
Others also finished their shifts and were making arrangements to fly out by helicopter! I didn’t fully understand what the plans were all about because we had been busy and not involved in the plan making. Apparently some of the guests were flown via helicopter to the DR. Had we known, we probably would have done that however we still needed to see our family and friends in Haiti. During the night, Julio’s brother made it to the hotel to check on us! What a relief to know he was fine! Max (our very good friend) too! My response, “You’re late!, as he was supposed to be in the marketing meeting with us! He said he hurried through his shower to get to our meeting. Darn good thing, because his house collapsed 10 minutes later! He has his own story on the events following the quake and they are pretty traumatic as well!!
Finally after the 1 ½ days we decided we needed to leave to find a place with internet connection so we could contact family! We found the security guard who escorted us to our room through the destroyed hallway and structurally damaged hotel wing. We gathered our belongings of which remained in tact (except for my perfume!) It was very tough for us to leave and I’m sure we were both in tears! Here we were, wheeling our luggage through the mass of victims; . Walking past the patients some still lying on the metal doors they were brought in on! People tugging on our sleeves ‘DOCTOR, DOCTOR, PLEASE HELP US’ . One little girl sticks in my mind as we passed her while making our exit! It was so emotional but we new that fresh help was on the way! Actual doctors were now arriving with fresh supplies.
We drove out of the parking lot thinking we had seen it all! WE HAD SEEN VERY LITTLE and were not prepared for our next encounters! This is where I find myself blocking things out! It reminds me of a music recital!
“The mind and fingers working together in unison to create a perfectly orchestrated melody. Suddenly the sheet of music is ripped and torn, the notes in disarray! Although in many recitals when the fingers freeze, the mind perseveres and tries to piece together the BROKEN PAGES so the melody can be performed in unison once again.
That is where my mind is now, piecing together the broken pages / events and finding the musical notes that will play through all the devastation!
MELODY REBORN! Something we can all rejoice to!
THE AFTERMATH AROUND PORT-AU-PRINCE
We had noticed people who perished the night before but really, there were so many others to helpWe drove out of the parking lot thinking we had seen it all! WE HAD SEEN VERY LITTLE and were not prepared for our next encounters! This is where I find myself blocking things out! It reminds me of a music recital!
that I didn’t really focus on those who didn’t. I totally was not prepared for the sights we saw when we left Villa Creole. Even though we worked on so many victims, it was only when we left that I began to realize the magnitude and asked Julio ‘ rather a statement than a question, “How many people have died?” Of course we hadn’t had any access to TV or radio so were not aware of any of the news reports.
We began our drive down John Brown, one of the major streets connecting PetionVille to downtown. Debris was covering the road. Stone walls had collapsed from the adjacent hills onto the roadway. Homes had slid down the sides and vehicles were crushed. The first sight I saw and one that still haunts me is of a young lady…. hanging over the back of a pick up truck. Obviously she had fallen from the collapsed house above. Grey and not just from the film of concrete dust covering her, she lay with her left arm and her head drooped over the side while the rest of her was pinned under a metal grate that had fallen on top of her. We continued our drive.
It’s no wonder help couldn’t get to those who needed it because EVERYONE needed help. The UN were busy digging out their own and they suffered significant losses!
Every road we travelled looked the same! Houses in rubble, some people just staring in disbelief and succumbing to their grief!
I was to in shock at first to take pictures and I also didn’t want to be disrespectful, however I realized after a while that I needed to take photo shots to show people what we experienced. Another sight that was incredibly emotional and horrifying was the boys’ detention centre. It was completely flattened and there on the roadway / side walk, on both sides of the street, were dozens and dozens of bodies. At least they were covered with sheets. One girl was picking up the corner of each sheet and peeking beneath, unable to contain her grief. She continued her search while we passed by. I found this picture that illustrates the common site of people trying to locate their loved ones.
People check on the identification of a body that was pulled out of the rubble (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
That is just one example of the horrific sights! Collapsed hospitals: bodies hanging out from the ‘pancaked’ rubble.
We continued to drive through the down town area!
The DenverPost puts it like this:
The associated press was told by leading senator Youri Latortue that 500,000 could be dead but he admitted, they have no way of knowing!
A man surveys hundreds of bodies of earthquake victims at the morgue in Port-au-Prince, Thursday, Jan. 14, 2010. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)
Hard to imagine isn’t it! All government buildings were destroyed including the Presidential Palace. Rubble, rubble and more rubble! Bodies, bodies, and more bodies! It was like a war zone! Victims being brought out and laid on the sidewalk or road way so people can either identify them or pick them up for the mass grave! At least some of the deceased were lucky enough to have a casket while others were heaved from a wheelbarrow onto the pile for pick up later. These images are horrid and what makes it worse is recalling the stench of decaying bodies!
It’s the sights, sounds and senses that resurface in the mind! So many lives lost, so many lives impacted and yet, ….. people seem to persevere!
Finally after making it through the streets and visiting family, ensuring all was ok, we headed to Mirebalais a little town about an hour out of Port-au-Prince to establish contact with our families back home.
DRIVE TO MIREBALAIS
"Need to Contact Family!!"
Rocks were shaken on to the road but not much activity happened here.
A steady stream of trucks loaded with survivors head out of Port-au-Prince back to the Province.
People congregating in prayer on the mountain!
‘NECTAR FOUNDATION’ for NURTURING LIFE!
I shared this idea with my sister Jan, upon returning to Canada and she thought it was a great idea! It would be to honour those who lost their lives and also honour those who have the strength and courage to keep going!!! Only three months later I lost Jan too while we vacationed in Punta Cana but that is another story. Tthe foundation will now be in our Sister’s honour as well, as she so NURTURED LIFE!
After staying for a couple of days we headed back to Port-au-Prince to plan for our departure. The e-mails from home saying, “PLEASE, just come home”, were taken to heart!! We needed to focus on making our departure arrangements. Upon our return to PAP we noticed the increase in activity of the rescue efforts.
Rescue efforts at a collapsed school.
Now our plans for returning to Canada began. The Canadian embassy was flying Canadian citizens out by military plane, however because Julio is only a Permanent Resident he wasn’t allowed to go. There was NO way I was getting on the plane without him, however he tried and tried to convince me! HE CAN’T GET RID OF ME THAT EASY!! Actually, he just wanted to ensure my safety but he finally realized, that I would be a wreck not knowing when or how he would return! After three trips to the embassy, we implemented plan ‘B’:
Going to the DR to buy food and supplies to bring back to our family and friends.
What an experience battling with the line-ups at Caribe Bus Tours! People were pushing and shoving into the line and even those with tickets already, were forcing themselves ahead of others onto the buses. Extra buses were added due to the quantity of people trying to flee the devastation! We were finally able to purchase our tickets for the next day (we found out the ticket lady needed diapers for her grand baby so we ensured to bring her some back). Arrangements were made for our friend Kelso to pick us up and drive us back with the supplies. Fredo, our friend and driver, at the time, took us to a small hotel in PetionVille to stay for one night before our departure.
FOOD DISTRIBUTION
Our journey to the Dominican started with us holding our pre-purchased tickets while crammed in between ‘prospective passengers’. The barred ticket window to the outside was not to be in use, however we were instructed by the lady the previous day to knock on it and we would be issued our boarding pass. Nice to have preferential treatment, eh! This however did not go un-noticed by the disgruntled people. Security however guided us onto the bus with our pass! PHEW!! What a relief! After the 9 hour bus ride, a hotel night and a further 4 hour bus ride, we arrived in Sosua and checked into a hotel (a Spanish place whose name escapes me now) then rechecked in for a couple of nights at the Casa Marina Reef. We rested a bit, then began the process of gathering supplies for our return.
This may sound a little boring, however it is my way of accounting for each day and pulling together my recollections of our journey!
Once our supplies were purchased: rice, beans, pasta, oil, medicine, diapers, to name a few, our friend Kelso was to drive us back with his truck. As usual, these plans had to be altered! His truck was broken down…AGAIN! He had a rental though so we loaded a full truck load of goodies into the back and headed on our way. Our story is pretty uneventful (except for Kelso’s crazy driving) until we get to the border at Diabon.
What do you mean we can’t cross with the rental truck?
That’s right. The rental agency had given Kelso authority to cross, however the Dominican border said “NO WAY, leave your truck here”. Pretty typical that no trip can be hassle free!! With no alternative, we left the truck at the border, reloaded our supplies into another truck (taxi) and headed to a rental agency 15 minutes away. With the new rental truck loaded, we continued on our way, arriving in Port-au-Prince about 6 hours later. We headed to our friend’s house and with extra help, began dividing the food into household portions (about a weeks worth of food), just to get people through the crunch!
Our task completed, the next task was the actual distribution! We allocated packages to Fredo to assist in the distribution so that we could make arrangements for our return to Canada!! Our first stop was our friend Axan! One thing that has to be noted is that whether poor or wealthy, people needed help. No stores of course were open and everyone was on the same playing field, IN NEED! We arrived back at Axan’s ‘WHITE HOUSE’ on the hill the same day as his wife’s funeral!
Unfortunately, Madame Axan was killed when the church she was in collapsed during the Sunday school session she was teaching. It took them a couple of days to get to her and recover her body. All the family was back from the states for the funeral so we visited and shared our things. We spent a couple of nights there, sleeping outside as the intense aftershocks continued. The entire deck outside became our campground and many jokes were shared about that!
We claimed a place by one of the pillars, as it helped before! Not much sleep was had, however there was much camaraderie.
Next stop!!
Back to Villa Creole we went, to see how the staff and Melissa were coping. Quite a transformation took place. The parking lot was now orderly and medical supplies were in abundance and stored in a cabinet in the lobby. The pool deck was transformed into a media centre with tents set up everywhere and reporters busy transcribing their own experiences.
There was no re-claiming our office and the pillar that I clung to during the quake was now supporting a media center on the roof! Melissa continued to provide her hospitality. That incredible women even opened up the tennis court to house a tent camp for her employees who lost their homes and for many, even family members. We gave out our food bundles to those staff members we had come to know. We also presented Melissa with our thanks for her kindness, “a bottle of perfume”. It was quite emotional!
NOW WE WERE READY TO GO HOME!!
Our good friend Max volunteered to drive us to Punta Cana where we would spend a couple of days before catching our flight home. We agreed but on the condition he would stay for a few days and relax! It has been quite a traumatic experience and he needed down time as well. We loaded our things into his Suzuki and enjoyed the drive through the beautiful countryside! Finally some of the tension was subsiding because we wouldn’t be back for a few weeks. We passed sugarcane fields and even stopped to get a fresh cut cane!
We arrived in Punta Cana and checked into our favorite resort ‘Barcello Punta Cana’, one we’ve been to many times prior (and where my sister spent her last days 3 months later! We rested on the beach and played dominoes at the beachside bar.
Here we met people and our story began to be told. It’s crazy the people that you meet! We weren’t exactly in the normal talkative mood, however people overheard us recollecting our experience and started to ask us questions! It turns out the people we met were a couple from Vancouver! Not odd, but the fact that the husband works with one of Julio’s closest friends was quite entertaining (not a coincidence, because we don’t really believe in those!) We spent time getting to know them and spent our last evening hanging out in the hotel lobby bar! What a nice couple and so refreshing from our past week! Apparently they had just arrived about ½ an hour after the earthquake and tsunami warnings had been issued for the area! Thankfully none transpired!
And now the day was finally here!
HOMEWARD BOUND!
Were we happy! Can you see the look on my face? I couldn’t wait to get on that plane and see our children and the rest of the family. The one draw back was that we had no stopover in Toronto so we weren’t able to see my sister Barb! Also we had no stopover in Montreal so couldn’t see Julio’s brother or sister. But…..we were homebound! Is this the end of the story? Not quite! Every time we travel, surprises seem to present themselves! Midnight we arrived in Calgary. We had a 6 hour stopover so I never bothered to call my sister Jan and family. We got through customs quite painlessly and headed through the automatic doors. Upon opening who did we see: Jan and Quinn. It was Julio who first noticed them and exclaimed ‘OOHHH Look who’se here’!
WHAT A WELCOME SURPRISE!!
Both us sisters started to cry and just hugged each other! How did they know? Thanks to my sister Barb , the itinerary had been forwarded to them. Jan would not rest until she saw in person that we were ok and she could relay this back to the others! Thinking back, that was a pretty special moment! We spent the next few hours catching up and recapping our experience and they, explaining the family side of things.
I also told Jan about the hummingbirds and the foundation / organization ‘Nectar’. She loved it. Jan had been saving all the newspapers so we could see what they were reading and thinking from this side of the world! These clippings will be included in our memoir! Quinn recapped how he found our photo on the internet and shared it with family across Canada and even Kaylee in Australia. All confirmed that ‘Yes’ the blonde was definitely me and the man kneeling was Julio.
We got back to Edmonton the following morning my stomach in butterflies because I couldn’t wait to see my boys! Held emotions were starting to rise again! Julio also was waiting in anticipation of seeing his children and family! Braden and Kristen were the first we saw as they picked us up at the airport! I really had to work hard at maintaining myself! I didn’t want to fall apart in front of them! We were so happy to be deposited at home and wait for Jarrett to return home. SLEEP, SLEEP and MORE SLEEP! That was on the agenda for the next couple of days and catching up with family! My boys don’t talk about the earthquake much and they don’t ask questions! I believe it was too stressful and difficult for them.
Where is my mind now? Have the musical notes been pieced together yet?
Julio seems to be handling things better than I as I was further traumatized by my sister’s sudden passing while on our vacation. This is why this recapture is from my perspective. It is my therapeutic writing with his input as to our experience. I still have difficulties however, so writing and putting this down on paper has helped me. We did what we could during that horrific time and our mission to help those in need has been validated! Just as we said in our interview with global TV (set up through my brother Ian) .
“There was a need before and there is even a bigger need now!”
Julio feels it’s his duty!
So we will continue our journey and see where life leads: the focus being on our Bol-lo Lottery and Charity Organization Bol-lo Org and a Camp for Kids in memory of Jan.
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