Dr. Erlange Elisme

The phone rings on a Sunday, and you know the first question before you answer it. Kijan ou ye? How are you? You are standing in your kitchen, maybe stirring something on the stove, maybe holding a cup of coffee that went cold while you sorted the mail. And you say it the way you have said it a thousand times. M byen. I'm fine. The voice on the other end is your mother, or your aunt, or an older cousin who still lives in the house you grew up in. They are far away, across water you have not

Kenskoff, I heard your name and felt nothing. Not because you are nothing....

There is a difference between facing a difficult season and living in uncertainty for so long that it begins to feel normal. Many Haitian families know this feeling well. One day it is concern for loved ones in Port-au-Prince or the provinces. The next day it is worry about work, housing, rising prices, or whether family members are safe. Before one concern settles, another appears. Even joyful moments can carry an undercurrent of waiting for the next phone call or the next piece of difficult...