Unexpected joy...

On Wednesday of the week we were in Rio Blanco, the team began working on the second house. This one was not as easily accessible as the first home. It actually was located outside the main part of Rio Blanco in a more rural setting. And although those folks on that hill had a million dollar view, I wouldn’t give you two cents for the “walkway” up to their house! The actual distance from where we had to leave the bus and our car was probably only between 1/8th to 1/4th of a mile but with all the rains we had, it seemed much further than that.

The ground had already reached its saturation point long before we made our first appearance. There was not any way to drive up to the house and the only access was a footpath which had become a boggy, shoe-sucking mass of mud. Have I mentioned that it rained a lot that week??? By day three, we knew we would be dealing with mud, we just didn’t know the team would have to haul the building materials through such a mess.

To get to the house from the vehicles, it was necessary to walk down a small incline and back up the other side. The low area had standing water and even though most of us tried to stay on the grassier side of the path to avoid the mud and just to help with traction, there just wasn’t any way to avoid the water. On a drier day, that path way wouldn’t have been an issue. That week, it pretty much insured that not only would shoes get muddy, but feet would get wet.

Once reaching the top of the small incline, the next step was to avoid a large area of really, soupy mud which was super mushy as that was where the neighbor’s horse entered and exited its pasture. The only way to get around that piece of prime real estate for a pig, was to grab hold of a fence post that was at the edge of the pasture entrance, try to keep one foot balanced on a very small, pointed rock and swing the other foot around as far as possible in the hopes of missing the majority of the muck.

Once past that, then it was just a matter of either navigating a muddy path through the pasture or head in to the tall grass and try to avoid the hidden piles of natural fertilizer. That walk was a gentle climb up to what was a small rocky creek. I would imagine it normally didn’t run much and it wasn’t bad at all where we would cross but it was necessary to make sure your muddy feet were securely planted on each rock before stepping to the next one. Or, if you were young and athletic like the team, you could always jump the small stream…I took my chances slowly hop-scotching the slippery rocks.

Once past that little obstacle, the rest was clear sailing on up to the hill…well, it would have been clear sailing if the skies would have been clear. Going through the next small pasture and scrub brush was fine, but the closer we got to the house, the muddier the path became and by the time we reached their sloping front yard, it was often necessary to grab hold of a fence post to keep from slipping and sliding right down on one’s blessed posterior.

Now getting from the bus (where the materials were) up to the house became more and more of a challenge as the rains continued but getting the wood, tin and tools up there was sometimes a feat of combined acrobatics and sheer determination. As you can see in this picture, it was quite a hike for those guys who carried all that stuff up there. Jim couldn’t successfully walk across a room with a book on his head but he quickly learned how to carry the sheets of tin up to the work site while managing to stay upright and not slicing any major arteries in the process.

The support posts had already been set in place upon our arrival…problem was they had set them about three feet down in to the ground which was not going to allow for enough head room with the roof on. I don’t know who made the decision to lower the “floor” by digging it out but that’s what was going to happen. I think the idea sounded much better in the planning stages than in the execution of it. Those kids worked like crazy moving dirt. It would have been hard, back-breaking work anytime, but add about a jillion pounds of water to the dirt floor that was being excavated and the moving of the mud really taxed their muscles and could have taxed their moods…didn’t happen. They never stopped smiling.

Of course, once again, the group of gringos working at that house was probably the next best thing to a circus coming to town. The children in this area were a bit more hesitant to interact with us although every bit as curious. It took some time, but finally they were won over with some candy and a few lessons in tossing a Frisbee. It didn’t take long for other children to start making an appearance. I don’t know how the word seems to spread so rapidly but it sure does. What would happen if the gospel would spread as quickly as the news that there are people who are sharing candy? I think the idea is that it’s supposed to do that.

When I was standing back of the new house, the woman who lived there came out and I saw her reach up in to one of their small trees and realized she had a small chocoyo parrot on her hand. I walked over to her and asked if I could take her picture. She looked at her husband and he nodded yes. As soon as he gave his okay, she was all smiles. As soon as I got ready to click the shutter, she wouldn't look at me. The moment I lowered the camera, she was once again making eye contact. Sometimes taking pictures isn’t what you would hope it would be but there is always a story. I wish I knew what many of those stories were...

While working on the house, when someone would need to quit shoveling for awhile, they would start carrying the buckets of dirt to where they were making a pile. If someone needed to back off the buckets for a bit, they would take a turn at the shovels or swinging the pick ax to break up the packed down mud. I was so impressed with not only their perseverance, but also their determination to keep a positive attitude throughout the miserable weather, the back-breaking work and the expected-but-nevertheless-annoying experiences of Murphy’s Law for Missions.

While there, one of the neighbor ladies came by with her little girl. They were headed down to the creek so she could wash her laundry (by pounding it repeatedly on the rocks) and take their baths…in that cold, mountain water. She had stopped on the way and asked me if we could come and work on her house…she pointed to one of the houses in the next field. It was a thatched roof home and the palm branches looked old and drawn up…I imagined the roof probably leaked and with the rains we were having, it probably leaked a great deal.

I had to tell her she needed to speak with Pastor Sergio and that we wouldn’t be able to help her that day. It was a hard thing to do. Her need was legitimate as are almost all the requests one receives when doing something like that. But sadly, a legitimate need doesn’t equate to a need fulfilled, no matter how badly it is needed nor how desperately one wants to meet it. It’s been one of the most painful things I am learning in this new life God has given us.

It took most of the day to move the dirt and level the area. Fausto, the Nicaraguan carpenter who was heading up the construction, was already building the framework for the roof. Finally enough dirt had been moved that the majority of concentration shifted to getting the roof done. After the frame was completed, it came time for the tin to be put on. This process normally goes fairly quickly but unfortunately, some of the tin turned out to be a lighter gauge than acceptable for the roof. so work had to stop until we could get more tin the next morning.

It didn’t take long for the roof to be completed that Thursday morning and the team gathered with the family in the new structure. There were many people from the community who had also gathered on the outer edges of the area. I’m sure there were those who were just there out of curiosity, there were probably more than a few who hoped that they might be the next “project” and there were probably a few who just wanted to make sure that we knew they were watching us.

The man of the house, who had only one leg, had watched every bit of the construction process. He sat on a barrel at the rear of his house, watching every bucket of dirt that was moved and every nail that was driven. When it came time for the dedication, he became very emotional about what this new house would mean to him. He, his wife, several of his grown children andgrandchildren all lived in a small house. This now meant that not only would there be more space for all of them, but there would also be more privacy. He said he felt like he was being given his life back. It was a very touching moment as he expressed his thanks with a choked up voice and very teary eyes. He wasn’t the only one who had tears in their eyes that morning.

Later that afternoon, the team went up in to the mountains to go hiking up to a waterfall…as if they hadn’t already had their fill of water! Jim and I stayed at the hotel with two of the girls who chose not to go. One was ill and the other just didn’t have any desire to get any wetter than she already was. And although we both would have loved to have seen the waterfall, I don’t think I would have loved getting to it. The pictures of it were beautiful and maybe someday, maybe in the dry season, we’ll try visiting it.

I want to wind up the Rio Blanco week with one of my favorite pictures. I have written much about the rain and the mud and not in a very favorable light. But this sight not only made me smile, it made me see the rain through fresh eyes…the eyes of a child. Jim and I were parked on the street and the rain was coming down at a pretty steady pace – yet again. Most of the people who were walking, stayed as close to the buildings as they could in order to avoid getting drenched. All of a sudden, this little girl came out from one of the shops by the church. She bee-lined it to the stream of water pouring down from the roof. The magnetic principle of childrenand water went into full effect and what, moments earlier, had seemed to be yet another depressing downpour, quickly turned in to an unexpected moment of delight. That little girl found joy in the storm. I am glad I was privy to such a moment and I hope that the next time I feel inundated by my own “downpours” , I would somehow see them through fresh eyes and find the unexpected joy that might be right before me.