No, it wasn’t a school exam. You see, the Haitians have a Creole proverb… “The rock in the water does not know the pain of the rock in the sun.”

Moses just turned 16! That’s 16 years after his mother, pregnant with him, decided she did not want another child. So, she went to a filthy, smelly outhouse, and sat down, letting the baby fall to its death. When she left, an older man heard the cry of the baby, tied a rope around his waist, and went to retrieve the baby with a bucket! You can imagine the smell! That baby lived and ended up in our arms at the orphanage. We called him Moses.

For a while, Moses was sweet, thankful, hardworking, and humble. Then, he got to be about 15 years old. He started hanging around some smarty-pants boys, whom Moses thought were “cool.” He began to change. He got lazy and arrogant, until one day, he ran into Mommie Sherry, who thought it was time for a “love” lesson. Moses had forgotten he was the blessed, the “rock in the water.” So, being the mom that I am, I sent Moses to Peyi Pouri, in the mountains with Pastor Souffrance, for two months. He soon began to see how blessed he was!! After working in the heat of the sun each day, toting water from the river all the way to the mountain, and doing other chores, he began to remember where he came from! When he returned home, there were no motorcycles to take, so he had to walk all the way down with Pastor Souffrance!! Now, the “old Moses” is back, ready to go to school, and work hard! Life lessons are tough, but you learn so much! We are glad to have our “old Moses” back!

Sherry