As we walk into the restaurant and take our seat outside, the white clouds gently roll over and cast a welcomed shadow over our table. The almond tree provides additional shade and our feet welcome the opportunity to rest for a change. We open the menus that are handed to us and begin scanning through the dinner options for the night. Within a few minutes, the clouds above begin to change and a few rain drops dodge the almond tree leaves above and land on our shoulders. The last few months have been the rainy season in haiti and a little rain is nothing new, although for june, the amount of rain that Haiti has experienced is far greater than normal. We pick up our stuff and move inside to escape the drizzle outside and as we move in, the rain lightens and we carry on with our meal. 

Nearly two hours later and we are finished with the food and begin to wash up to head back to my apartment. As we come out of the bathroom and contemplate how dark it is getting outside, a flash of water erupts from the skies and lands just outside the doorway. Within a matter of minutes, the water has taken shelter in the courtyard outside and quickly rises to 3 feet in depth. The rainwater pools around the almond tree and begins to cover the table we were earlier seated at. Through an opening in the gate, we steal a view of the main road and notice the speed at which the water rushes past our small building. The drizzle has suddenly decided to quicken in pace and the decision go head is now more complicated.

M apartment is 3 blocks down the road and with no way to know how long the monsoon will last, we decide to head back to my place as soon as we can. I decide to go alone first to grab rain gear and bags to protect our cameras and electronics and plan to return to the restaurant and get the rest of the group.

As I jump out of the restaurant and into the courtyard, i quickly discover the depth of the pool ahead of me. Water splashes into my face and i find myself standing in water up to my thighs. I venture out more slowly past the gate and turn onto the main road. The scene ahead of me is like something directly out of a hollywood movie. Cars are still driving down the road but the water rushes past them at a speed 10 times faster. People are huddled along the side of the road under any canopy or overhang they can find. Some are wrapped in a plastic sheet and rest precariously on a piece of concrete rubble. 

I begin my walk down the road and grip onto walls and gates as I move forward. The force of the river drives the back of my leg and as I pass by the heaps of trash stored on the side of the road, plastic bottles and styrofoam containers pelt me with surprising force. The potholes and cavities in the road are only distinguishable from the whirlpools that form below and I'm careful to avoid each potential obstacle.

I make it to my road and turn the corner and enter through the gate and into my apartment. I quickly grab anything waterproof and head back outside. As I leave the gate and turn the corner, a 30 foot water trucker attempts to make a turn in the middle of the road and begins to tip. As if a dam has been dropped into the road from the heavens, the water quickly rushes up and over the truck forming a waterfall rising upward in the opposite direction. I dodge around the truck and start walking upstream against the force of the water. 

Aware of the force and danger of the water, i slow my pace and am careful as to where i step. In my caution, the water grabs hold of my flip flop and sends it flying down the road towards the upside down waterfall. I pause and contemplate walking towards the restaraunt barefoot but decide to turn around and grab a pair of shoes. 

A few minutes later and I return to the restaurant and retrieve the rest of the group. We stash our gear in the bags and walk back into the river. The desire to move quickly to get back soon and desire to move slowly to get back safely bounce back and forth in our minds. Holding onto one another, we manage to make it back to the apartment safely and quickly begin the drying off and showering process. After walking through water littered with trash and overfilled sewers, it's important that we wash quickly to clean any possible bacteria or diseases.

After laughing at the craziness of the past hour and reflecting on the seriousness and danger that storms like this pose, we rest in the comfort of our apartment and pray for those enduring the storm in the nonexistent safety of the tent cities. I wish i were able to open my doors and invite people from off the streets into our relatively dry  space, but I feel as if my hands ours tied and don't know how to best help. I didn't sleep well that night as those thoughts lingered in my mind.

The next day i rose and ventured out into portauprince to assess the damage. A few people lined the streets with shovels and began digging out areas full of mud and water, but for the most part, life continued. Vendors watched diligently over their baskets of products and tap-tap and moto drivers continued to weave in and out of traffic with loads of people piled into the back. 

Not until I began reading news articles and talking with local aid workers did I begin to realize that over 20 people died and more were missing. I began to hear of stories of people that were swept out of their cars and taken down the road towards whatever lay below. I heard of roofs and buildings that caved in and were quickly full of mud.

Yet life continues on and the world spins away. Another storm will come, and more buildings and lives will fall. 

The forces that shape and influence a country like Haiti are many and interlinked. The rains of a summer storm create visible valleys and riverbeds along the streets and villages of the country, but equally as destructive are the forces from international trade restrictions, reliance on aid and handouts, and deterioration of trust and collaboration within a culture. The impacts of a storm are easy to photograph and write about. Groups can rally support and donations to relieve the direct impacts. But the often invisible forces are the ones that are harder to show, harder to measure, and harder to express to those outside of haiti.

The rains will continue to beat down upon the land, but hopefully the country and international community can begin to collectively tackle the other forces that are the true shapers of the land. I have not been in Haiti long enough to know and understand all of these, but i am hoping through my time here, i can better understand how they link together and influence the lives of those I hope to live and learn alongside in these coming weeks.