We all seem to have taken to the Puerto Rucan culture. The residents of our work sites are all extremely friendly and have welcomed us into their homes. As our week has progressed, the sense of unity with the Puerto Ricans has become stronger as they have joined us in our work at each site.
The roofing crew was joined in their work by a man named Ivan (front, center):
One resident of our painting crew, Jennifer, helped us paint. AND her mother Sarah made us a delicious Puerto Rican lunch.
This is JenaRosa (sp?), the grandmother in our house, who, I learned today, never went to school and does not read or write, but who has a wonderful laugh:
The families we are serving apply for help from the city and go through an interview process to assess their needs. The ones who receive help have few other people (friends, extended family) to help them and many are elderly or have disabilities. The city supplies the materials; we supply the labor. The mission, though, feels like ONE as city workers, mission trip participants, residents, and even neighbors all work together to get the job done.
Andrew has reflected tonight on this joint effort. Here's what he has to say:
"Throughout the course of this week, our resident, Maria, had helped clean up after us by sweeping and providing us with water and fruit juice, which, while sour, was a nice gesture of gratitude. On Tuesday, she wanted to clean all of our paintbrushes and rollers, and so we gladly let her clean for us. However, today, while we were taking a water break, Maria decided that she wanted to experience the joy that comes from helping achieve your desires and goals, and she picked up a roller and started to paint the outside of her house. It was a little bit of a shock, to be honest, but we appreciated it all the way. While we were painting, she was talking to some of her neighbors across the street from our house, and the ones who could speak English were making jokes with us and it helped take the stress and monotonous work out of painting. After we were done painting the ceilings of the rooms that we were assigned to, Maria walked through each one and inspected our job. She seemed very happy that we had been able to accomplish our task, and as we drove away, Maria was waving and smiling. Mrs. Susan remarked that it seems that all of the street, and neighbors, help take care of Maria, who's in her late 60's to early 70's. I can't wait to see the joy on her face when we pull up to the work site tomorrow, and to finally finish the work we've set out to do this week."
After our work day, we headed into the town of Cayey, which felt a little like a ghost town. We did find an ice cream shop, though, and a pretty church.
We'll finish what we can tomorrow; other groups coming throughout the summer will complete what we don't get done.
Tonight, we all feel thankful--for work, for a sense of unity despite language barriers, for good weather, for each other, and for you.
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