We Can Do Hard Things!
Hola!
Today we woke up early like the previous days but today was tough. I believe the work is catching up to us and we are tired. But, after breakfast, we got on the bus and our tiredness went away because we were excited to head back to Fondo Negro and the community we have grown to love in this short time.
We finished painting the second house and while working took some time out to have a dance party with some of the kids who live in the house. And apparently, kids in the D.R. know how to “twerk” like kids in the U.S.! The other two houses where we were building latrines got their walls built and they started laying the floor of the cistern, which was very interesting. The hole is very deep and at the bottom they threw a large truck tire in and packed 50-pound rocks around the tire to keep it in place. Then they lay 4 logs that are about 5 inches in diameter across the tire and place a PVC pipe in the middle for ventilation tying it together with wire. On top of the logs go 3 pieces of sheet metal and then a ton of concrete gets dumped on top. That’s where we stopped, fortunately for the local workers. I’m sure they were glad we were done slowing them down. But, they were very patient in teaching us and allowing us to do the job even though they were faster and could have finished it in the time it would have taken us to learn how.
After we were done working, we split into two groups and joined two local families for lunch and a few rounds of dominoes. The families each made San Cocho, like a stew, that contained multiple kinds of meats, vegetables, plantains, and a fantastic broth, it is topped off with rice, which was muy delicioso! They also had mango, which is way better here than at home…so much sweeter! It was fun asking about each of the families…how many kids they have, what do they do during a normal day, and so on. The mother of the family that I (Suzie) was having lunch with, Maria, goes to college, works, and has 3 children. She is studying Sociology right now, but has also studied computer science, finance, and plumbing, so that it will make it easier to get a job - it makes her more marketable.
After lunch, we walked to the baseball field. A scrimmage was put together for us (they normally play games on Saturdays) so that we could join in. Their pitchers had to slow down their pitches for us because we couldn’t hit their 92 mile/hour pitches…I kid you not…thrown by an 18 year old named Eddi (sp?). The girls played in the stands with Jacque and Nora (the two blonds) braiding and running their fingers through it. One girl was confused that I had short hair and questioned if I was a girl or a boy.
Tomorrow, we do VBS in the morning and then our final day playing baseball. We’ll miss this the most. This is where we feel like we can communicate best, through play. It doesn’t take the same language to play baseball. Most of our reflections at the end of each night are about the bonds that have been created on the field and in the stands.
Our crew has really grown their confidence in at least trying to communicate with the D.R. children and teens, utilizing the awesome translators, Gremy, Francis & Natan when questions arise. We will miss these three and our driver Rafa and Ruben who helps with our stuff and makes sure our bus doesn’t run over a motorcyclist! And Miguel who has helped Kristin with finding the families that we’ve worked and spent time with. Miguel’s sister has been the one who making our lunches at the community center every day.
Looking forward to tomorrow,
Suzie Buell
The group with translators and some of the family members that we served this week.
Caught sleeping!