In the midst of the devastation caused by the earthquake in Haiti, World Vision staffer, Steve Matthews, experienced a moment of joy.
"I had a moment of joy today. One of my Australian colleagues was being interviewed by Channel 9 in a park that's been turned into a camp. As the reporter talked to Ruth Mlay, I sat on a ledge. Two little girls came up and smiled at me nervously, looking at my camera, and laughing. I smiled and took their picture and showed it to them. They howled in laughter. We then got into giving each other high fives and low fives. And a few more pics. It's the children. They are the reason I do this work. They break my heart over and over when I see them in such dire circumstances. But they are so resilient. They can still laugh and play in the midst of despair, almost oblivious. Adults should stop and learn from their children more often. Life is rough. But it's never too late to smile and have a moment of joy, even in a disaster like this one." Steve Matthews, 18 January 2010, Port-Au-Prince, Haiti.
Steve Matthews is from World Vision's Global Rapid Response Team (GRRT). He has worked in disaster communications for World Vision for over 10 years. He has been deployed to some of the decade's most devastating emergencies, such as Sudan in 2004 and the Gaza crisis in early 2009.
We are currently posting regular updates on what Steve is seeing on the ground at www.twitter.com/worldvisionaus
Read latest updates about World Vision’s response and children sponsored by Australians here.
You can donate to the Haiti earthquake appeal here.