The sound of the rain on the roof of our 15-passenger van was in competition with Renzo’s music as we made our way to the work site. Wyclef Jean’s “Gone ‘til November” was today’s choice, an appropriate welcome to the new month. After the physicality of yesterday’s work, I wouldn’t have held a grudge if the group was a bit sluggish this morning. But no worries there, it turned out.
Rather than fatigue, it was the southwest monsoon which turned out to be today’s foe. Those of us working outside battled the rain all morning and, in my group’s case, it stopped us cold for awhile. Not much use in pouring concrete in the rain. We did, however, have the character-building opportunity to offload and then move approximately one thousand bricks.
But others–particularly Heinrich, Joe, Bradley, Bryan, Himesh and Clarissa—had a grand and filthy time digging a hole into the foundation of a home as they prepare to build a second floor. Our lunch hour was filled with their epic tales of battling the rocks buried in the foundation.
Here’s an observation from Heinrich: The kids are already starting to feel a sense of ownership and commitment towards their work site. I give Habitat For Humanity a lot of credit on this one. Our projects are all both obviously beneficial and realistic for the amount of time that we’re here. And we’re all really getting into them as a result.
This evening before a dinner of fried rice, noodles and chicken we held a team meeting. A reflection. Everyone in the group was given the opportunity to share successes and frustrations. The best responses, though, came when Heinrich asked each of us to tell the group something we heard or saw of someone else that surprised us. The answers were just awesome: “I never knew he could be such a leader”, “She’s so supportive and caring”, “He made us laugh and kept us working happily” were just a few.
Tomorrow is All Soul’s Day for this heavily Catholic area, which means no work. So we’ll take this opportunity to explore the island a bit…elephants, temples, and tea leaves!
By lunch Bryan was thoroughly knackered
Eckhart loves hauling rubble!