Haiti

Being on an island is a very different experience. Surrounded by water, it's a very odd feeling when you think, "I am in the middle of nowhere and on an island." It's when you have a situation like that of Haiti, that you realize how truly isolated you really are---and they are near land!

I have been to Port-au-Prince when I was on a cruise ship; the island of Haiti is very pretty, and that's what you see as a tourist when you travel there. You don't see the poverty that makes up the majority of the island. You are exposed to the poverty only when the residents of the island ask you for money; they are usually quickly swept away so they are not bothering you. Tourism is so important to Haiti that they don't want anything to take away from the island experience.

What happened this past week on the island of Haiti was horrific, but not really too much of a surprise when you consider how poor this island really is. Unlike other islands in the Atlantic and Caribbean, it's hard to imagine what it must be like to live there but I say that about some of the states I have visited here in the U.S.

I do hope it recovers, but unlike other areas that have been hit by devastation, the concern comes in the form of corruption and concern of dollars not being funneled into the areas that really need it. I hope I am wrong. The people of Haiti are in a horrible spot right now---and no matter the weather they have, it's not paradise right now. I hope they recover because they deserve to live a better life than they are living right now.

The photo above is paradise. Taken in South Padre Island, TX it was a capture I waited and waited for---this was actually a sunrise and it seemed to take forever to make its appearance. It was well worth the wait as the water was calm, the skies clear, and the sun a bright orange circle. When I took this picture I was not sure how it was going to come out---when I looked at the view finder in back, I knew there was something special about it. I also knew it would be one that could end up on a wall---it did.

Thanks for stopping by.