on the road to the city.
Serafina! Papa says. Slow down.
I take a deep breath.
I just wanted to ask Antoinette Solaine
what to do for Gregory’s rash
because Gogo’s herbs aren’t working
and it’s my fault
we don’t have enough coins
to take him to the clinic.
But the earthquake came
and I thought you would be waiting
by the President’s Palace
but the palace isn’t there, Papa,
and I lost my shoes but they hurt
my feet. Even in school they hurt
and I can’t always concentrate
on what Monsieur Leblanc says.
Mwen regrèt sa!
I should have gone straight home.
Papa holds me so tight
that the waves stop pushing.
You didn’t go right home
after school?
No, Papa. Mwen regrèt sa.
I am so, so, so sorry.
Manman trusted you.
She needed you.
My heart shrinks in shame.
Mwen regrèt sa.
We need to find her.
Papa, I saw Antoinette Solaine.
She said the earthquake damage
is mainly here in Port-au-Prince
and the homes closest to the city.
She said our house is most likely safe.
Mèsi Bondye, Papa says,
closing his eyes.
When he opens them,
he just looks at me
and doesn’t say anything.
He knows I betrayed Manman’s trust—
and his.
How will he ever forgive me?
Serafina, he says,
his hands gripping
my arms.
Before he can speak,
I tell him
through my tears
over and over again
how sorry I am.
I know I should have gone
straight home.
Serafina, he says softly,
his eyes
searching mine.
If you had,
I never would have
survived.
You looked for me.
You didn’t give up.
You saved my life.
We hold each other
for a long time.
I feel Papa’s shoulders tremble.
You’re safe, Papa,
I whisper. Bondye bon.
Bondye bon,
I think to myself.
God really is good.
God took my mistake
and made a miracle.
Papa, I whisper.
I found Julie Marie too.
She’s in the hospital tent.
I promised I’d go back for her.
Her leg is badly hurt.
I tell him about Julie Marie’s aunt,
who wasn’t really her aunt.
Now Julie Marie is all alone.
Can’t we take her home with us?
I’ll share my rice with her,
and we can work together in the garden,
and help Manman,
and sell more peppermint.
Papa takes my hand and we walk
back to the white tent.
If she can be moved, he says,
we’ll take her with us.
Outside the tent,
people with empty buckets
line up to gather water gushing
from a large white truck.
Eskize mwen, eskize mwen.
Excuse me, Papa says,
as we limp into the tent.
Serafina! Over here!
Julie Marie sits
on a long table,
her leg stretched out
in a clean white bandage.
You found your papa!
she exclaims.
She gives him
a wide smile
and he hugs her.
The woman with
the gray eyes appears
holding two bottles of water
and four packages of biscuits.
This is my papa, I say,
and my heart bursts with joy.
She smiles and hands us
the water and biscuits.
You left before breakfast,
she says to me.
Mèsi! Is Julie Marie
strong enough
to come with us?
Her leg was badly slashed
but not broken.
Others are much worse.
If your papa carries her,
she’ll be fine.
Just as we are leaving,
Antoinette Solaine appears.
Serafina! she calls.
I found my papa! I blurt out
and she smiles at us both.
You have a brave daughter,
she says to Papa.
Papa nods and smiles at me.
Wi. My brave Serafina.
Thank you for keeping her safe.
Antoinette Solaine looks at me
and shakes two small bottles.
These vitamins are for Gregory.
She opens the bottle
and shows me
how to squeeze the dropper
so that the liquid rises inside.
Just up to this line.
And just once a day.
And this is a cream for his rash.
Again, just once a day
will be enough.
Then she asks Papa
exactly where our new house
is located.
He tells her and
she promises to visit
as soon as she is able.
Remember what
we talked about, Serafina.
Think about what I said.
We need you.
I smile and nod.
Mèsi, Papa says.
Mèsi, Julie Marie and I repeat.
Together, the three of us
leave the white tent
to make our way home.
The heavy smell of sweat
and sorrow choke me,
but gratitude and hope
spin a sheltering cocoon.
Twilight begins to burn
the corners of day.
Slowly Papa, Julie Marie, and I
wobble through the ruins.
People stop moving
and begin to make
small shelters
from sheets and shirts
draped over crushed fences
and steel posts.
I want to keep walking,
but Papa shakes his head.
The journey will be too long
and difficult
without daylight to guide us.
We have no sheets
and only the thin, sweaty
shirts on our backs.
Papa offers a family
a package of biscuits
in exchange for a large,
flattened cardboard box.
He sets Julie Marie down.
I snuggle close beside her,
making room for Papa too.
I’ll be right back, Papa says.
He leaves to help a family
drape a torn sheet
over three large sticks.
Sheets and sticks don’t make
a very strong home,
but sometimes neither do
wood and cement.
I watch Papa’s arms stretch
wide and strong
against the darkening sky.
The only unbreakable home
is one made from love.
Julie Marie closes her eyes.
Let’s hurry and sleep.
Tomorrow I’ll see my family.
I remember my promise
to always be tr
uthful.
Julie Marie, I whisper,
I need to tell you something.
She opens her eyes and smiles.
You like to talk when I like to sleep.
I push the words out quickly
so I won’t lose my courage.
Your family moved away.
Julie Marie’s face crumples.
After you left, they left too.
I don’t understand.
After you left, your papa
came to tell us
that your family
was going to Saint-Marc
to look for work.
The weight of our sadness mingles
with the deepening dusk,
and neither of us speaks.
Then, suddenly,
Julie Marie’s face brightens.
That’s good news, Serafina!
Saint-Marc is far from here.
Very far.
Now I’m sure my family
is well and safe!
But, Serafina—my leg—
where will I stay
until I’m strong again?
I squeeze Julie Marie’s hand.
Papa says you can stay with us!
I’ll take care of your wound,
and when you’re well again,
we can both work in the garden
and help Manman.
Can your papa get word
to my family—
to let them know that I’m safe?
Manman must be worried.
Of course, I say.
What about school?
Julie Marie asks.
You haven’t told me
about school.
Remember, you promised
to teach me
everything you learned.
And I will! I say.
Learning French
to become doctors
seems silly,
but for now that’s what
we need to do.
You can practice
while your leg heals.
I tell Julie Marie
what Antoinette Solaine said
about helping in the clinic.
Maybe you can help too.
Someday we really will be doctors,
Julie Marie says.
If we don’t lose hope,
it will happen.
Wi! Wi! I say, feeling
the truth of that in my heart
and remembering my promise
to honor Granpè and his dream.
Maybe someday we’ll find Nadia too,
Julie Marie says.
An old sorrow and shame
burn in my stomach.
When I saw Nadia at the parade,
I confess, I pretended I didn’t.
I used to be jealous of her.
Julie Marie nods.
I know, she whispers.
But you never were.
How come?
Manman says everyone
has their own path.
And everyone’s path
has both flowers and thorns.
Your manman is right, I say.
I wish I could tell Nadia
that I’m sorry.
I wish I could tell her
how pretty she looked in her
yellow uniform.
Maybe one day you will tell her,
Julie Marie says.
Maybe one day we will find her.
Wi! The important thing
is to never give up.
Julie Marie winces and rubs her leg.
You should rest, I say.
If you want to get better,
you need to rest.
Julie Marie laughs.
You already sound like a doctor.
I will rest if you stop talking!
Papa comes back.
Go to sleep, Serafina,
he whispers as he lays down.
It’s been a long day.
I rest my head on his chest.
Through his damp shirt,
I hear his heart beat softly.
Bom-bom
Bom-bom
Bom-bom
In the distance,
someone plays the drums.
Bom-bom
Bom-bom
Bom-bom
People sing quietly.
Bondye bon.
Bondye bon.
God is good.
Already Julie Marie
has fallen asleep.
Before long, Papa snores
in rhythm with the drums.
I close my eyes.
I thank God
for keeping my friend
and my family safe.
Tonight the stars
dangle and dance clearly.
Was it just three days ago
that I kissed Manman good-bye
and Monsieur Leblanc stood
tapping at my table?
Was it just three days ago
that the rumbling earth
shattered our world?
I think about Jean-Pierre
and pray
that he is somewhere safe.
I think about Julie Marie,
happy and hopeful even after
everything she suffered,
and about Nadia and Papa,
Manman and Gregory,
how everyone’s path
has both flowers
and thorns.
I think about Antoinette Solaine
and her black bag,
about Gogo and her herbs.
I wonder about all the people
wandering in the ruins—
the bony woman who kept watch
while I slept—did I thank her?
The woman and her
dust-covered baby—
are they safe?
There are so many lost
and broken people.
How can we help them all?
Softer than the rustle
of spider’s silk,
Manman’s voice
echoes in my mind.
Ou dwe brav, Serafina.
Life is hard,
but no matter what happens,
we beat the drum
and we dance again.
I reach into my pocket
and wrap my fingers
around my heart-shaped rock.
Dust and debris are everywhere,
but in my hand,
my heart-shaped rock is still
smooth and firm,
unchanged by the earthquake.
Nothing is stronger than love,
Manman said.
In my mind, I see her
stirring rice and plucking bugs.
I think about her
growing up without a papa—
how scared she must have been
when the Tonton Macoutes
took him away!
How scared I was
when I thought
I’d lost my papa.
I think of all Manman’s worries
hovering like mosquitoes,
making her brittle and jumpy.
I think of her carrying me
in the flood,
lifting me high
above the water,
even though
I was mad at her.
Sometimes buzzing bees
stay too long
in our brains,
but only because
we let them.
Tomorrow
when I see Manman,
I’ll hug her tight.
I’ll help her sift
through the rice,
and tell her
how much I love her.
I’ll help her understand,
I am happy
with what I have,
but so many people
have nothing.
I only want
to help them.
In the growing darkness,
voices lower,
but the drums beat
soft and steady.
Above me,
stars still shine.
HAITIAN CREOLE
ALPHABET AND PRONUNCIATION GUIDE
The Haitian Creole alphabet has twenty-nine letters. Each letter in a word is pronounced, and the last syllable of a word is usually the one that is stressed.
LETTER PRONUNCIATION
a short a sound as in apple
an short a with nasal tone
b same as English
ch sh sound as in share
d same as English
e long a sound as in play
en short e sound with nasal tone
è short e sound as in fed
f same as English
g same as English
h ch as in chop
i ee as in feed
j s sound as in treasure
k same as English
l same as English
m same as English
n same as English
o long o sound as in hope
on long o with nasal tone
ou oo sound as in school
ò aw sound as in paw
p same as English
r same as English
s same as English
t same as English
ui oo-ee sound as in Louie
v same as English
w same as English
y same as y in yellow
z same as English
GLOSSARY OF FOREIGN PHRASES
Words and phrases are Haitian Creole. Those noted with an asterisk (*) are French.
Ale lwen (AL-e lWEN) — Go away
Babay (bye-BYE) — Good-bye
Bondye bon (bon-DJAY bon) — God is good
Bonjou (BON-zure) — Hello
*Bonjour (bohn-ZURE) — Hello
Bwa sèch (BWA sesh) — Literally, dry wood. But when used as the response to tim tim, it signals the storyteller to begin
Dèyè mòn gen mòn (deh-yeh moan gay-EN moan) — Behind the mountains, there are mountains
Dousman (DOOS-man) — Be gentle
Ede mwen (eh-DEH mwen) — Help me
Eskize mwen (es-KEEZE mwen) — Excuse me
Granmè/Granpè (gran-MEH/gran-PEH) — Grandma/Grandpa
*Je m’appelle (jhuh ma-PEL) — My name is
Jou Lèmò (joo le-MO) — Day of the Dead
Jwaye Nwèl (jwa-yay nWELL) — Merry Christmas
Kenbo fò (KAN-be foe) — Hold on
*Le soleil brille (lulh so-LAY breel) — The sun shines
*Les nuages noirs apportent la pluie (lay noo-ahjh nwahr ah-PORT la ploo-ee) — Black clouds bring rain
Lespwa fè viv (lespwa FEH veev) — Hope makes us live
Leve (lay-VYAY) — Get up
Li rele (lee ray-LAY) — His/her/its name is
Manman (MON-mon) — Mom, mama
Mèsi anpil (mehsee an-PEEL) — Thank you so much
Mwen dwe travay (mwen dway trav-EYE) — I have work to do
Mwen pè (mwen peh) — I’m scared
Mwen regret sa (mwen ray-GRET sa) — I’m so sorry
Mwen renmen ou (mwen rain-MAIN oo) — I love you