CHAPTER 1
THE STORY OF MARK O'KEYNEY
Welcome to Haiti
The winter in New Hampshire this year was bitter cold, renderinglife miserable once you stepped outside. Mark was enjoying thewarmth and comfort of his parents' house. A few months ago, he hadfinished his master's degree in communication. This was a naturaloccurrence, since his family had substantial wealth. Mark did notreally know what he would do with the rest of his life. He woke upthis day and held his blond head in his hands; he thought about hisrelationship with his father, which had been difficult lately.
Father was an investment banker with a degree in finance, and hethought Mark had taken the easy way out by attending graduateschool. He had hoped that his son would follow his footsteps andget a more practical degree. He did not think much about a degreein communications. Mark's mother was more understanding; shethought that their son had the right to choose his own way. Whatmade matters worse was that after graduating from the university,Mark could not find a job. He was still living in his parents' house.If it were not for his mother, he would be penniless, in spite of hissocial standing. He felt his father carried a grudge against him andthought that things would not get better.
For obvious reasons, he did not want to address his father or seeka job in his social circle. He had to keep a little self-esteem in frontof this rigid man, especially when he always accused his motherof pampering him as if he never grew up. Mark only felt at easewhen his father went out, either to the bank or to play golf withhis friends. He practically avoided his father unless it was reallyinevitable. This situation affected his mother dearly; he had to finda way to get out of this house.
Mark even avoided the friends that he grew up with. He neverdid like their air of superiority, from their accent to the way theydressed and carried themselves. No wonder that they were definedasWASPs. He used to go out with a girl but she dropped him to trybetter pastures. She wanted to be seen as the wife of a successfulbusinessman who wore three piece suits (even to bed).
His sole companion was his Bedlington terrier called Sammo.Even Sammo at times acted as if it was also the creature that Godcreated after his father at least they have a mutual understandingand Sammo could not evidently talk. In any case he caught thedog looking at him with wondering eyes as if it too wanted to askhim a few questions regarding his future. He waited patiently tohear his father drive off in his Jaguar before he ventured down thestairs to bid his mother a good morning (his father used to drivea Bentley but once he realized that this brand of car was favoredby rich Americans in the entertainment business, he immediatelytraded for a less expensive but prestigious car nonetheless.
His mother was a well-bred, educated woman; she was simple anddid not care much about her roots and the privileges that camewith them. She was a religious woman and participated greatly inchurch activities. His father dutifully went to church with her everySunday, but sometimes Mark wondered if they were praying tothe same God. Sometimes he too went to church, always sittingbeside his mother.
That day when he came downstairs, he saw his mother givingsome type of instructions to their Mexican housekeeper; she barelyspoke English but his mother was determined to turn her into aShakespearian. She made her attend their church but didn't askher to convert from Catholicism. They also had a cook, and Markwas always amazed at the job that woman did, since his motherwas always helping her do part of her job. Needless to say, that hisfather was a peculiar fork.
After breakfast, Mark went up to his bedroom to look on theInternet and see what he could find. He started to feel terriblyannoyed after spending several hours searching for an openingrelated to his line of studies. He decided to confront the harsh coldand drive downtown to try his luck. Nothing really came out exceptfor a position in a fast-food restaurant. Like a beaten dog, Markdrove back to his house, resolute to move out very soon even if hehad to live in a dirt poor neighborhood. He could no longer bearthe criticisms from his father. He thought of his lovely mother,whose blonde hair was turning lighter and becoming almosttransparent. She was such a wonderful woman; his father shouldconsider himself lucky to have such a wife. In spite of everything,Mark loved his parents dearly, but he was afraid of his father'sunwarranted discontent with him. Fortunately, when he got backto the house, his father was in a meeting in the living room; hewas holding a bunch of papers and exchanging ideas with severalpeople. His mother was busy being the talented hostess she hasalways been.
Mark normally stepped in to greet people he saw meeting withhis father. His father was in a lighter than usual mood; it couldhave been the effects of a couple of drinks he had, or maybe hejust made a few millions more for his bank? He introduced Markwith a certain pride in his voice, telling the people that he had thepleasure of presenting his son to them. He even added that he hada master's degree in communication; that really took Mark aback.When his mother came into the room, she gave him a complicitsmile; he knew very well that something was cooking, and he wasno stranger to what it was.
He did not have to wait long before his father explained to himthat most of these people were donors for charitable causes, andhe and one of his colleagues were helping them raise funds fora non-governmental organization called Empower ConfidenceOrganization for Haiti. ECO was providing help to the poor Haitiansaffected by the earthquake of January 12, 2010. One of them saidto Mark that his father told them that he might be interested inhelping them manage this organization.
Mark felt trapped; it was typical of his father to make decisionswithout even consulting him. However, this was a good opportunityfor him to have a change of scene; it could not have come at abetter time. He told them that he was available at the presenttime, and the ECO spokesperson offered him a salary beyond hisown expectations. He would be the second in charge, and theywould provide all his basic expenses from here to down in Haiti.
The only thing, he added, was the work was hard, and if heaccepted, before going down there, he would have to have acomplete medical and take all the necessary shots. The countrywas a melting pot for all kinds of infectious diseases.
Mark immediately agreed, and they asked his father to draw thenecessary papers to make it official. Afterward, they congratulatedhim for being so gracious and willing to serve such a good cause,adding that his parents already spoke highly of him. Mark took alook at his parents and could see that both of them were genuinelysincere. Mark said to himself that he was leaving the nest withflying colors; at last, he would be his own man. He could not behappier. His only request was that he had to take Sammo with him;that did not present a problem as long as he also had a full medicalreview and had the necessary vaccines.
As expected, the usual good-byes with his mother were a mixof sadness and joy, whereas his father was stoic as ever, wishingMark good luck and success in his mission to Haiti. The flight toJFK Airport in NewYork was quick. As he got into the line to boardhis next flight for Haiti, Mark noticed a lot of commotion andtalking among the other people...
