Today we woke up to pouring down rain. Thunder and lightning that started about five seconds away and then started moving down wind of us. The local translator said that "It was too bad about all this rain and how it will prevent us from going out to do any work." We looked at him and just shook our heads and told him and others that we were from Seattle and expected to work in the Rain, the sun or the whatever!
People were running around in plastic ponchos and umbrellas and we were standing there in the warm rain with our hats on and our tools ready to go. We all piled into the van and set off for our Batey at Alta Grazia. It is usually a busy road out to our site but not today. There was hardly a person on the road and the people standing in the houses looked at us as if we were nuts.
Today there was no sudden swarm of kids when we arrived simply because they could not believe that we would be there in the rain. They started to show up in droves once the rain let up and the sound of the generator got going.
We Worked on finishing the door to house number one -a story that should be told but not by me now as I am sitting on a very tall stool and might fall of it onto the floor from laughing too much. But there is a door and a lock and Marty and I have stories to tell our grandchildren!
Latrine number two is finished but for the door. Latrine number three is framed but not wrapped in metal or doored and Latrine number four is due to be framed tomorrow. Our goal has been to do five latrines and we are struggling to not be so task oriented and driven that we lose sight of the real goals which is to build relationships with local people who are bettering the lives of children here in the DR and in other places around the world.
Yes, it is Sunday tomorrow but we are going to have to stay in on Monday due to Political Protests over taxes and wages here in the DR. Sound familar world? Ha! We will do some work around the Casa on Monday instead but it does take time from our latrine work. This work does desperately need to be done so instead of the beach on Sunday afternoon, we will hit the hammers on nails and try to get everything done that we possibly can.
We only have till Tuesday to get them all done or we will simply have to come back and do it all over again! After reading this blog, you want to come as well, right? :)
It has been an amazing time of working with the local people and us crazy anglos. We have learned alot about making do with what you have and overcoming problems with various tools that one of the guys "just happened" to bring. We are happy to be in this amazing place, doing the work that God has put before us. We know we are only throwing five "starfish" back into the sea but that is five more than would have been thrown had we not engaged in this work to start with.
Please pray for us that we can complete our tasks and that we might have the wisdom to know how to proceed should that not be possible.
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