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 | | The mapou is Haiti's most sacred tree.
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Our fourth day in Haiti brought a busy itinerary. After taking a cold bucket bath and drinking a warm cup of coffee I hopped into the truck and headed out to visit a health clinic in the small town of Hautmoustique. Along the road, we passed several large mapou trees. Mapou is the most sacred tree in Haiti -- locals believe that its roots contain Voudou (Voodoo) spirits.
The sound of babies crying echoed around the last bend in the road before we reached the clinic. Outside the small concrete building, there were two lines formed, where women holding their babies waited to be seen by health care workers. The line to the left of the clinic was for baby vaccinations. The line to the right was for weighing babies.
 | | Castin Wislaine, a nurse with CARE, gives polio and tetanus vaccinations.
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I spoke with Castin Wislaine, a nurse employed by CARE who has worked at the clinic for two years. She told me that since 1976 CARE has worked in partnership with the local government to manage the clinic. "Today, I've given 50 to 60 vaccinations for polio and tetanus," she said. Pointing to the other end of the building where more than 100 mothers waited to have their babies weighed, she explained: "Weighing babies gives us the chance to monitor if the child is growing adequately. If the baby isn't, depending on whether it's sick or has not been fed properly, we'll sit down with the mother and recommend a better diet or provide medical assistance."
Next, we headed north toward Port-de-Paix, passing through the shallow Trois River where many people were washing their clothes and cars. Acting as waitresses, women walked around selling corn. After buying five ears of corn, for five gourdes ($.30), we drove on until we reached the northern coastline and the town of St. Louis du Nord. A couple of huge barges resting on their sides greeted us -- reminders of Hurricane Georges in 1998.
Giving farmers a second chance
It used to be taboo to cut down a cottonwood tree in Haiti. That's where the father would bury the umbilical cord of a new family member, believing it held the baby's soul. Now, it isn't only cottonwoods that fall. "I've seen farmers cut down mango trees and papaya trees," said Renand Pierre, CARE agriculture manager for the northern region. "We want to stop the deforestation process and give farmers alternatives to sell other products like cabbage instead of charcoal, which is made from tree roots. Also, when a farmer grafts a tree, they don't cut it because it holds value."
 | | CARE helps farmers to increase crop production and plant trees.
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Walking around St. Louis du Nord, Pierre provided insight on agriculture programs in 11 local villages. "CARE started the agriculture program here because we believed farmers would be able to generate income," he said. "Deforestation, erosion, poor soil and lack of water are serious problems. We offer farmers training and suggest different soil conservation, soil improvement and tree grafting techniques for them to experiment with. If farmers have good results, we've found that they will adopt the techniques and transfer their learning to others. The farmers become the teachers. There are instant results with small gardens. Locals used to buy all their vegetables from Port-au-Prince, but now they grow the vegetables themselves."
 | | Elivern St. Fleur grows peanuts and vegetables to sell at the local market.
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Pierre introduced me to several farmers, one of whom was Dieuseul Prudent. Prudent lives on a hillside overlooking the former pirate hangout of La Tortue Island. On less than an acre of land, he plants bananas, a few vegetables and has a small nursery of papaya and citrus trees. "With help from CARE, I built three barriers into the ravine to stop the soil from washing down the hillside when it rained," Prudent said. "I'm also mixing leaves and other organic material into the soil."
Prudent now produces enough to feed his family and sells a little extra at the local market.
Continue to Day 5.
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