Mwen kontan

This week ended well. I felt, for the first time in a long time, happy (kontan) to be in Haiti. Happy is very good place to be. I've missed it.

We started the first eight beautiful 6-month old babies on the manba. I was a bit concerned about how Day 1 of the intervention would go - especially because I had just gotten back to Haiti the day before it was scheduled to begin. (I spent 9 great days in and around Ithaca at the end of June). We tried to do way too much preparation in that one day. The leader of our study team came down with a migraine. I didn't finish all the interview guides I had planned to use.

Fortunately one thing I've learned over the last 8 months is how to adjust expectations. We had already decided to use the first 8 kids as a "soft start" and to get through the first month with them before scaling up enrollment to reach our goal of 82 babies.

So far so good. It's good to be holding babies rather than spending all day behind a computer screen. It's good to watch the members of our little team do what they do best - counsel and encourage moms. It's been good to welcome a wonderful new med student intern to work with our team. It's been good to spend more social time over the last few days with some good people.

This morning, as we drove to brunch with some friends (yes there are lovely restaurants serving brunch in P-au-P) I listened to the Konpa music on the radio and looked out at the colorful Kreyol signs painted on the cement compound walls and found myself saying aloud "Maybe I could stay in Haiti for awhile." It was not a prediction or a promise, but for now, it's definitely progress.