Category: Habitat for Humanity
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The Big Dig
It’s the second day, and the enthusiasm with which we greet the day is tempered only slightly with some aches and pains. The heat of the day is hard at our heels as we arrive at the job site but it doesn’t deter us from getting right at it. The men resume digging the latrine…
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Haz algo concreto
Day 1 The title of this post is the slogan for Habitat for Humanity in El Salvador. It means “Do something concrete”. It’s Monday and we volunteers arrive at the work site ready to do just that. Unlike other builds I’ve been on, the entire team’s efforts will be devoted to working on one house…
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Welcome to the land of the Saviour
As the plane makes its descent the high cumulus clouds give way to a lush green landscape below. Farmland, interspersed with hilly forest and several large rather menacing volcanoes, stops abruptly as the plane circles over the shimmering Pacific coastline to make the final approach into San Salvador, the capital and largest city. I read…
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Team Oweataa says goodbye
Never knowing the build schedule until one arrives in country, it’s impossible to predict whether a house will reach completion while we volunteers are present. It usually takes about 5 weeks to complete a single house from start to finish (carpentry work around the roof and plastering of the walls takes awhile), so it’s luck…
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More fun in Humjibre
Our fearless team leader, Jim, suggested we do a talent show for the locals. “Um, Jim, we have no talent,” was the collective, reluctant and, unfortunately, mostly silent reaction of the team. “Trust me!” he exclaimed with boundless enthusiasm. “You’ll be surprised what we’ll be able to throw together. The locals will love it,” he…
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More worksite news
I’m horrendously behind in my blog, so I thought I’d take a moment to try and catch up on the rest of my stay in Ghana. As I mentioned, I’ve been on the move quite a bit and will report on that as soon as possible. For now, suffice it to say that I’ve covered…
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PTL
We did a little PTL while in Humjibre (PTL, as in praise the Lord). While I’m not a religious person, I think it is important to partake in the local religious services to understand the culture as they are one of the best moments to see the community in action. It would also be taken…
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How the other half lives
As Habitat vounteers, we are always given the chance to meet and perhaps get to know the families who will occupy the houses we are building. As I’ve probably mentioned to all of you at some point or another, Habitat requires that the families put a certain amount of hours into building the house they…
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To be of use
This little poem was shared as a morning reflection during our build. I think it sums up what I hope and strive for when I go on these trips. We in western society are lucky to be able to choose to define ourselves by what we do in our work or leisure. But for most…
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Things that go WAAAAAAAAHHHH in the night
I already let you in on one of the minor disruptions to our sleep while in Humjibre – our loudspeaker friend Brother Love, dubbed for his persuasive, evangelical and above all self-appreciating cadence in his voice. Then there are the roosters which begin howling at 4:00 am and dont really stop through the day until…
sedativegunk 