On Saturday morning around 8:30 Mari, aka Blan because he has very light skin, was sitting in the front yard talking to Milo, our security guard, and I went over to chat with them and share some food Elizabeth had brought back with her from the North. Jean Mari, who is probably my favorite character in the house, started talking really fast and make huge expressive hand gestures. After he told the story twice all I could get from it was that he went to the bank and something happened and someone almost died or did in fact die. Once he realized I was not understanding he grabbed my wrist and dragged me back into the mission house where he yelled for Elizabeth to help him translate.
What he was really saying was that Friday was payday, so he went to the bank right after work, they got off between 3 or 4 because most of them start work at 7 am, to cash his check. After getting his money he exited the bank and happened to walk out right after this guy, who apparently had a lot of money, as two robbers immediately came up to him and pulled a gun, demanding he hand over his money. The guy who had the money pulled out his own gun and shot both the robbers point blank. All this happened while Jean Mari was just standing there.
Jean Mari is naturally a very good natured person and laughed it off by saying that at least he did not die, but how sad it would have been if he did because he gets paid so little and who wants to die for such a little amount of money.
For me there is one clear moral to this story: we should definitely pay our employees better. With that said I wonder if Jean Mari was not willing to die for two weeks pay, what amount of money would he be willing to die for? I did not ask him that question, but I should have.
Emotional Status: excited about feeling more and more comfortable in my new home, but I know that I will never feel truly at home until Frank is here permanently. Why does that have to be so far away?
Goal: SPEAK MORE KREYOL
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