Building a home

Today Kelly, Preston, Reese, Trent and I along with three others here on mission work helped build a home for a family of five. Kelly, Preston, Trent and Reese helped purchase the materials needed for the home on Saturday. The materials we used to build the home included bamboo poles for the support, woven bamboo sheets for the walls, and lots of wire to hold everything together. To begin the home we had to dig holes in certain spots to place the bamboo poles. It took a moment to get the handle of the tool used to dig the holes but very quickly they were ready. Once the bamboo poles were in place we attached the woven bamboo sheets to the poles with wire. Some of the bamboo sheets overlapped so getting the wire through all the sheets required patience and the aid of another person. Communication with any construction project can be difficult especially when half the crew speaks a different language. But knowing a few words allowed things to move smoothly. We worked as quickly as we could to get three outside walls up and a wall in the middle if the home to separate the house into two rooms. While the walls were being attached with wire the metal ceiling was being placed as well. Many pieces of metal were overlapped to create the roof. There were also a door for the front and back. The front of the house was made of plywood nailed together. We were able to complete almost the entire home in three hours of work. When we left the front wall was being placed and less than an hour of work was needed to finish the entire home. The family was very appreciative of their new home. Although they won't have plumbing, electricity, or running water in their home. It was such an amazing experience to help build a home in such a short amount of time. Makes me appreciate the things I have a lot more in my own home. I'll have pictures to follow when I can get them uploaded from my phone. After building the home we hurried back to the church, quickly showered and headed to a picnic with the families that have been adopted by the people here doing mission work. We enjoyed a nice outdoor lunch and then returned to Piura and had ice cream with the families. We will attend Mass again tonight and watch the National Championship game after. Padre Jose is a huge Notre Dame fan and many of the individuals who work here are sporting Notre Dame apparel. I can't believe it's already the evening on Monday and we have only two more days here.

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