End of the work week

It{s another Guatemalan experience--waiting for a food order that somehow got lost. We{re hanging out in the common area of the dormitory, playing cards, doing crossword puzzles, washing and drying clothes, telling stories, etc. and waiting for a pizza delivery.

The construction crew thought they were in for a light morning laying out the forms for the foundation of the house to be built in San Rafael. This house will have a poured concrete floor rather than tiles. BUT. . .Joanie, Claire, Deb and Charlotte put in a day that equaled any other day this week. The problem was that the site for the house wasn{t quite large enough, nor was the site as level as it appeared. We had to build up one side of the site by several inches and we watched as the experienced crew from Common Hope solved the problems posed by the size of the house. The site is elevated a good 36 inches (at least) from the ground immediately in front of it. There wasn{t enought loose soil available to build up to the height of the site. But there were some old concrete pilings on the property and the construction crew decided they could be used to fill in the area. More scraping and excavating to make the space fit the concrete pilings. We never would have gotten the job done without Joanie. She and a long term volunteer moved the wheelbarrow, sometimes need to lift it over the already-positioned forms. The rest of us scraped, shoveled, pick axed and tamped dirt until our arms wouldn{t move any longer.

Nan, Bridget, Stacey and Sarah each oberserved classes in a pilot school run by Common Hope. The children who go to school here have emotional or behavioral problems or have some other learning challenges. Classes tend to be noisy with a lot of disruptions. No IEPs and learning goals that educators in the US are used to.

Alex, Morgan and Katie spent the morning at the warehouse sorting school supplies and doing inventory.

After a lunch of chicken pepin (almost a national dish in Guatemala) we had the opportunity to buy goods produced by vendors who are part of a group called As Green as it Gets. The founders of the group spoke to us and helped us appreciate the creativity and initiative that are prerequesites to belonging to this particular group. As Green As it Gets has a website and some of their products can be ordered stateside.

Sometime after 2:00 our team and a few others gathered at the home completed this week to have a house blessing and celebration. Luis, the young man of the family who worked with us all week, was there along with a brother. We exchanged thanks, wished his family well, prayed for their wellbeing in their new home, said the Lord{s prayer together in Spanish, and ate chocolate Tres Leches cake provided by Common Hope.

Then there were goodbyes with the staff with whom we{d worked all week--members of the various departments helped bid us goodbye. Again, there were many expressions of thanks, tears, hugs, laughs, and each of us were presented with a banner from Familias de Esperanza, as Common Hope is known here.

The pizzas just arrived, and there{s not too much more to report. Take care. We{ll be home in another two days.