First full week... Done!

Eventful and successful. Had two move ins, completed ceiling boards on the bunkhouse porch, watched two piles of dirt get properly landscaped (didn't touch that one), insulated a house (nor that one), and other odds and ends.

Larry Paulson and Maurice Greene are two elderly gentlemen who have been displaced since the storm. Both at least in their 70s, it's now been almost four years since they've had a permanent place they could call home. They've both lived in FEMA and/or MEMA trailers (mississippi emergency management agency), but those were just temporary fixes. I think in this whole relief effort, there's little that is more satisfying than watching these elderly couples step into their own homes for the first time! The joy that fills their eyes and smile stretched across their faces; their expressions are one of a kind. The following picture is Larry Paulson with a the team from South Carolina that helped put the finishing touches on his house. He's in the middle at the top of the first flight of steps, he's holding his certificate of occupancy!


The bunkhouse, pictured in prior posts, needed ceiling boards (Hardie board) put up on its wrap-around porch. This constitued a major project for the week. A team of men from South Carolina, brought in some skill to get the job started. Unfortunately they had to leave early in the week, leaving a couple volunteers from Kentucky, myself and the college team to finish the job. The end result was acceptable, but I must confess quite a challenge. I should thank my junior high math teachers for the geometry skills it took to work through all the conundrums encountered. Here are a few pictures of the work.


The team of college students from South Carolina graciously took care of moving two huge piles of dirt. They were used to landscape the ground around the bunkhouse. My estimate of the amount of dirt... prob 15-20 yards. I felt a little bad, but I got over it. I think they did too, although they thoroughly resented the fact that I never picked up the shovel, not once. Another pic...



Another family has been slowly rebuilding their house since katrina took it. They've been doing it by pieces, paying for what they can as they go. They were in the process of putting in insulation, and so some of our college students went over there to help install what insulation they had. Upon meeting the family, the team decided to contribute towards finishing all the insulation in the house. They went out and purchased whatever insulation was needed to finish the house, and installed it before the week was out. It was a meaningful experience for those students to meet the family, hear their story, and serve them with their time and resources. It's extremely hard to visualize and understand the need here until it is experience first hand that way. I'm glad they could contribute in that way.

Throughout my experience thus far, I never cease to be amazed by people's attitude, whether it be the volunteers or the families being helped. The college students were here with their church's college ministry. They worked without complaint despite the heat and bugs. They were thrilled to be doing what they could to alleviate needs in the community. I was even more impressed with the elderly we moved in. I spent a good bit of time visiting with both elderly gentlemen whose houses were recently finished. Again, they've been waiting for years now to finally be in their home. Never was any sort of impatience or frustration expressed. They were always overly courteous and grateful. They seemed quite at peace with the circumstances providence had brought their way. They felt no need to rush our work, or complain of their past woes. They were merely thankful regardless of how quickly or slowly progress was being made towards finishing their houses. Some have been watching work drag on for over nine months, maybe more. They were always joyful and happy to do whatever they could to help us help them.

I'm truely beginning to settle into life down here. I'm learning to cope with the heat and bugs. I think I'm becoming sincerely grateful for this opportunity to hit the pause button in the rat race that has become my life so as to donate my time and abilities to a needy community. I don't think it alters what I feel God has called me to pursue with the gifts he's given me, nor does it invalidate the rat race, but I believe it helps give it a better narative. I believe it's a reminder of the greater cause behind the ends we pursue. If we all dig deep down, we find a yearning for altruism. We find much meaning in this altruism. I would go further and argue this altruism is part of what makes us godlike. As we long to see this altrusim restored globally, I believe we're longing for the very same thing Christ proclaimed and promises to one day restore in fullness. If we look back in the bible, it's part of God's original promise to Abraham, that "through him all nations would be blessed".