Part 5 - Getting into a Groove
After 2 days of hole-digging, the team split up to perform a variety of tasks. I spent the better part of a day with Gisele and Gabe scrubbing red dirt off of the concrete walls of one of the houses. This was to ensure that the sealant would apply correctly to the concrete. We were fortunate in that we were able to work inside, away from the heat, with a hose to spray off the walls (and sometimes each other). Gisele was on water duty and Gabe, being fearless, volunteered to clamber up a crooked wooden ladder to reach the top of the walls. I scrubbed the lower panels, standing in a slowly growing lake of hose runoff.
It was tedious work, but also kind of meditative. The three of us didn’t talk much, and it was quiet inside the house as we focused on the task. As the afternoon wore on, the concrete dried more quickly and we had to hose it down more often. I think I got some pretty wicked athlete’s foot that day from standing in the “lake.” Note to self: next time, pack rubber boots.
Toward the end of the day, several other contract workers and volunteers stormed inside, and the house began buzzing with a mix of Spanish and English conversation and a flurry of ladders, paint rollers, buckets and measuring tape. Such a burst of chaotic energy simultaneously invigorated me and made me extremely nervous. I suppose that comes from straddling the introvert/extrovert category on the Myers-Briggs test. But all the pandemonium threw off the organized scrubbing plan Gabe had worked out. He remarked sarcastically that teamwork was a pretty useless endeavor.
I will say, though, that I was glad to switch it up and try painting sealant for the rest of the afternoon. My muscles were on fire from years of neglect, and my frustration was becoming apparent to my partners in crime.
Over the rest of the week I continued rolling the blue sealant on the walls with Amelise and Dina. Later I teamed up with Sheldon and Gabe applying mortar into the grooves, and scraping off the excess when it dried. This time I felt a little bolder and found a second ladder so Gabe didn’t have to do the entire upper house by himself. Carlos spotted for me so I didn’t lose my balance, and I asked him in my fractured high school Spanish if the mortar looked alright. He grinned and reassured me that it was “okay.”
Carlos’ smile is incredible. I don’t think I ever saw him stop smiling the entire time we were there. Travis took time to speak with Carlos about his situation, and how he felt about the Habitat project. Carlos said there isn’t a day that goes by when he and his wife Maria don’t talk about their new house, at least two or three times. They are so grateful for this opportunity to raise their family in a safe environment. It was a wonderful privilege to get to work with him.
My roommate was still keeping me awake at night though. Finally caught a glimpse of the little guy:
