Before kids came home from Haiti, people would remark, "when Wilton and Meremen come home, it's going to be like being in Disney World."
Just think of it . . . from a small village in Haiti, a one room "house" for a home, no running water, no electricity, no family doctor, a blanket for a bed, from the poorest country in the Western hemisphere . . . to all of this.
To say that Wilton and Meremen's world has changed is an understatement. Even when I was in Haiti visiting the kids, a ride in the truck and a trip to the supermarket was primo entertainment, ice cream (crem') was a first experience when Jenny visited, candy was a treat and all the kids at the orphanage would lineup at the refrigerator at the chance of getting a piece of ice to eat.
Imagine this . . . it wasn't until my second trip to visit the children in Haiti that Meremen started to understand that we didn't live at the bottom of the hill. She asked me why we didn't come and visit her more often and my explanation of an ocean, of the island of Haiti, of the United States, of the state of Georgia, was at best, partially understood.
Even the Miami airport was a shock to the kids. A staircase that moves by itself (an escalator) was our first obstacle at the airport. About 50 yards off the plane, I practically had to drag both kids on to it – their eyes huge with caution and fear. The first few weeks at home the "new-ness" of everything was overwhelming: water from the fridge, ice on demand, their very own beds, sleeping with a pillow, playing on grass, sprinklers, bathtubs, eating at a restaurant, a bike, new toys, and on and on and on.
So, if an escalator at Miami airport created wide-eyed little amazement, you can only imagine what Disney's Main Street view of Cinderella's castle was like for Wilton and Meremen. Thanks to the generosity of my mom and my step-father, twenty one of us got to spend a week at the magical world of Disney. All four kids loved the parks, the characters, the rides, the parades and the great time with family.
It was interesting to see how each child handled and processed all of the sensory-overload that IS Disney at each park and around every corner. Wilton loved the rollercoasters. Space Mountain, loved it, Splash Mountain, loved it, Big Thunder Mountain, loved it, Rock-n-Roll roller coaster (which by the way takes off like a bullet out of a gun — from 0 to 60 in a few seconds, three upside-down loops all with blaring Aeorsmith music), loved it. A Bug's Life 3-D Adventure . . . tears. Harrison was almost exactly the opposite. He braved each ride (including the Rock-n-Roll rollercoaster), each time excited to go . . . and then by the end of the ride, not so excited and a little white in the face. Abbey and Meremen loved their princess breakfast, loved the tea-cups and with the help of Jenny, they had their picture taken with a ton of characters.
I can't imagine two other places more different than the poverty-stricken hills of Haiti and the imagination-bricked roads of the Magical Kingdom. I pray that they never forget . . . either.
