Gringos Get Emotional

(The Boy's Perspective) After an eventful night of nearly getting locked into the opposite hotel rooms of ours, walking around in the rain looking for a gate guard, and finally getting help, we found ourselves falling into a heavy sleep in our beds.  Waking up the next morning was as lovely as ever, being about an hour earlier than both of us would have woken up during a regular summer day.  The regular routine followed that of getting dressed, heading to a great breakfast, walking back to our rooms to grab bags, and then hopping on a bus to the work site.

(Andy's Perspective) We jumped on the bus and listened to some more Phil Collins/Tarzan Soundtrack, which Kian sadly wasn't present for.  The 45 minute drive was not sped up by talk of prom dresses with the other girls.  We eventually arrived and started the ritualistic work.  Roughly an hour in, Jacqueline and I started a hammering contest, with only hammers and nails for Andy.  It was quite entertaining giving guff back and forth with Jacqueline and certainly made the day a little more fun.  I was having so much fun I kept on nailing through snack break.  Of course there were more funny moments with Juan.
One standout is when he was in front of me and wanted to take a photo of Claire with another kid but couldn't get her to smile.  He then resorted to shaking his behind to try to make her laugh.  When he couldn't get her to giggle I told him that it looked an awful lot funnier from the back.  We both broke out laughing.
Another amazing part of our day was seeing how happy the kids were and how attached they had become to members of our group, especially the girls.  Shocker.
After he had finished our work, it felt so incredibly rewarding to see how touched the family was with their new stoves and bathrooms.  Some of the family members shed tears.  Even more of ours cried with their little kid friends.

Breakfast: 4 stars
Lunch: 3 stars
Dinner: 5 stars

(Suzie Jacqueline's Perspective) Mrs. Miley, as well as Suzie, had a wonderful exchange with Doña Maria giving flowers.  Both Suzie and Mrs. Miley received flowers from Juan (what a killer) and after Suzie placed a flower on Doña's new oven, she returned the flowers trice fold with three beautiful roses from her yard.

(Kian's Perspective) Right before we left to the build site, we learned our groups.  Today would be the first day that I would work on the stove, having only previously done latrines and some random other stuff.  While latrines were super fun, as well as being competitive about who had the better curb appeal, the stoves were so much more complex and seemed like a more laborious team effort.  This teamwork was muy importante porque a little competition was brewing up between Team Juan and Team Two (The Greater of the Teams).
The concrete, mud, and dirt all seemed to befall on me and my dad, but there was never a moment without someone else pitching a hand in to the mix.  The most fun part was getting to chop up cinderblocks with a machete.  After getting into the groove and being able to cut a block up in less than 30 seconds, I had finished my work in no time and was sent of to do a different job.
At this point, our group was well ahead of the other team and there would be no way to catch up without some cheating and spying.  Let it be known that our team never spied, only checked in with the other team.  On several occasions.
Another epiphany I found on the trip was how much progress we, the group, had made in our Spanish speaking abilities.  I could never had anticipated how much practice we could get in this trip, as well as how many other gifts we've receive along with it.  This brought up a whole lot of laughs and smiles later in the night during our reflection.  The value I've found on this trip is innumerable.
Eventually, the other group caught up to us in the work day.  We all grouped up for cleaning out our tools.
The girls had so much fun with the little kids too.  I was happy to see some of my friends and helpers as well from the first day come up and give hugs all around.  There were many tears in parting and I can't guess how much more there will be tomorrow.

I'll also add that dinner tonight was amazing.  We had a tomato-soup that I'd compare to a minestrone (also with some nice creole chicken) with avocado, onions, cilantro, tortilla chips, and tamales.  Thanks Andy for the extra one.

(Andy's Perspective) I did not eat the cilantro with the soup.

(Conclusion) We are so thankful for this night and the new friends we have made on this trip.  The food, the culture, the land, and most of all the people have shone a new light on the world for all of us.  God bless, the boys.














































































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