Crystal - A lot was accomplished
today on the work site. We finished filling in our trenches with the pipes in
them and we started the slimmer, longer trenches along the sides. Dominique and
Tori were good helpers, as usual, and looked for every opportunity they could
to help us. The pit we were digging for the septic tank is getting deep, but
I’m not very good at helping with that because I lack height and upper arm
strength which are both needed for a pit as deep as it needs to be. The
trenches along the sides were definitely more my forte. Frankie gave us a thank
you card expressing her gratitude towards us which was so sweet that it almost
brought us to tears. Later on, we were exhausted and extremely hot from working
in the beating sun, however, Jeanette and Trish surprised us with ice cream
bars which were delicious! For the first time, our van beat the rest of the
vans back to the YWCA which was pretty exciting for us. However, I never found
my clothes that I had left behind the day before.
Solomon
-
Today started out kind of slow. It was
cloudy and dreary and I just felt done.
But the day picked up speed and we got a lot of work done. At lunch, we got a beautiful thank you note
from the homeowners at our site. Today
is also FINALLY laundry day. I was getting
low on clothes so it’s nice to have them all clean again.
JT –
Okay so today has been a fantastic day! We finally finished the main part of
the walls and I am happy. Cause that means we only have a little more work
outside to do. And because I already
have a decently good sun burn I do not wish to make it anymore worse than it
already is! And now we are doing laundry so I don’t have to deal with James’s
sock!!!! Thank the Lord! I guess all my prayers worked lol. Well I am going to get
back to my cloths so I will write tomorrow!
Cecilia - Today was a hard start to the morning. I was extremely tired.
We went to the worksite and started digging more in the pit, shortly we hit
more water in the pit. But that wasn’t a problem because a guy named Bill
offered to use the excavator we were going to rent and also pick it up and drop
it back off. A couple of us also started to make a ramp for the chicken coop so
that a lady that lives there named Wanda could access the coop to retrieve the
eggs in the winter. After Bill was done digging we put the tank in and started
to fill it up with water. While we waited I thought it would be a good idea to
start a mud fight, so I did. It was super messy but also super fun. After that we were
totally ready for our showers. We left early because after dinner we went to
the laundromat. I’ve never been so excited for laundry before!
Nikki
Today
we experienced a 'God sighting'. God is always there and if we are
paying we can see all over all the time. Sometimes He shows up in big,
obvious, in your face ways. That is what happened today. Around 9:45
this morning we hit water again in our tank pit at 3'. The tank whole
needs to be 6' deep. We called our inspector who had said to call right
away if that happened. She was on the way with her supervisor to visit
the site already. We discussed a few options and they were off,
leaving us with some follow-up to do. We had the kids leveling off the
pit but not going any deeper while we were working on a game plan. Our
most plausible option included renting wall supports for the pit and a
pump to pump out the water. Some folks were up by the road working on
the chicken coop. A contractor that we had met a few days ago at the
local building supply store just 'happened by'. Pastor Chris asked him
if he knew of a way to anchor a septic tank. He came over to look at
what we had going, suggested a few things, and stepped away to make a
few calls. When he came back he said that the local construction rental
place would give us a deal on an excavator for a half day, he could go
pick it up with his truck for us, run the excavator, and return it. All
for the special $80 rental fee. After he left, Irene (one of the other
ASE adults) came up to me and said that someone had given her an
anonymous donation to help with the expense of the work they see us
doing for their neighbor. When she pulled it out of her pocket to give
to me she said "Oh my goodness! I thought that was a $10 bill." It
was not, it was a $100 bill. Irene had peeked at it as she slipped it
in her pocket and believed it was a $10, bringing to mind the widow's
mite. All of this happened within an hour of each other. See how good
God is to us!
Just
as we were finishing lunch Bill (the contractor) showed up with the
excavator. Turns out that we were digging our pit in what was an old
filled in creek bed. Not only was there water, but also LOTS of rocks
and shale further down, some very large. We saw the pit walls collapse
at least twice. Bill also helped us place the tank and stuck around
while we got some water in it from the creek to weigh it down and he
pushed the 'muck' at the top of dirt pile back into the pit. We had
some great conversation while he was there. He never did get to his own
job site where his men were working. He said "When God puts something
in your path for you to do and you do it, He takes care of the rest. This is where I was supposed to be today."
There are a lot more little details
to this God sighting. I fear I have not done it justice. Hopefully I
have been able to at least give you a glimpse of what we experienced
today. May you notice when God shows up for you in ways big and small.
Blessings!
Trish
I forgot to mention the game we
played last night which was a lot of fun. This game entails a deck or two
of playing cards, everyone sitting in chairs in a circle, and dealing each
person one card. Only the suit(s) are relevant in this game. So
then the “dealer” now has a deck of leftover cards in which he calls out the
suit. If you have the suit called you move to the next chair, which means
you may end up sitting on someone’s lap. If someone is on your lap and
your suit is called you can’t move. You can’t move until no one is
sitting on your lap. So as this game progresses, you get people sitting
on people up to six laps long (I think we had a couple that may have had seven
on the laps). The idea is to get around the entire circle and end up in
your own chair. It was quite the game with a ton of laughs and lots of
moving. JT actually won this game but he never got to sit on my lap, nor
I his and he was sitting behind me in the circle.
Today we were able to get back a
little early. Actually our group was the first ones back. It felt
good to be one of the first instead one of the last. We are just plugging away
on our job in this heat. Turns out we were working in a heat index of
about 97 today. I know we are getting some pretty hot temps back home in
Michigan and in a very small, tiny way, I’m glad I’m here to at least sleep in
the A/C (we don’t have it at home).
You can tell the heat this week is
taking its toll on our group. We are all feeling the exhaustion by about
lunch time, some a little sooner, some a little later. We have been
keeping a close eye on the kids to make sure they are properly hydrating
themselves. If they aren’t they have to drink enough water to use the
bathroom (Jeanette, our resident nurse, basic instructions. Easy way to
make sure they are keeping hydrated.) I forgot to mention that Crystal
and Solomon are on the site with me, so it’s nice to have the three of us from
Michigan that are new to this event.
The double tank hole is almost
complete. It measures approximately about 18'. PJ’s Pit Jockey’s hit
that pit hard today and I believe they only have a couple feet to go.
Trenches are at least in place but now need to be about 18 inches deep and
maybe a little more straightened out. So the Trench Team hit that hard
today. At lunch today, PJ read a very touching thank you card from the
owner of the property to our group today. This is what it read:
“Pastor Jud and his ‘band of little angels’”
The card itself reads: “If there
were more people like you in the World….there’d be more smiles like ours!”
“What a blessing you all have been for us. We did not
have money to do all we were told we had to do in order to remain in our
home. Then God sent you to us – you have been such an inspiration to us
every day – your bright shiny faces each morning – the hard, back breaking work
you did all day and yet you kept a sweet attitude – you certainly have
fulfilled God’s commands to “love one another”, we were strangers to you, yet
come and filled our needs. And the way you accepted Dominique and Tori it
has made a big influence on their lives. Maybe someday the will be
ministering to those in need also.
You are a wonderful group and we pray God will lead you and
keep you safe so you can continue to bless others the way you have blessed
us.
No words can express the gratitude we have – we pray we will
be a blessing to someone else. Remember - wherever you go our prayers
will follow you. With love and thanks be to God- in His Love – Frankie
and Jeff.”
This is what this event is all
about. What joy in my heart God gives us to know that the work we are
doing are for people that really need it. It also helps you know your
priorities and appreciate what you have.
Later in the day PJ had us make an
ice cream run. What a relief that felt like and the kids just devoured
it. I think they got a second wind after that short burst of sugar and
cold. We were able to get just a little more done.
So it’s an early night tonight for
working. We even get a dinner that’s a little early as well. We go
get to do laundry tonight. Things should start smelling a little better
tonight. LOL
Blessings all, I will report again tomorrow.
