Kaleb's Turn

30 Jan 2013

It was COLD last night!  Ice in the desert really put Kaleb’s nose out of joint.  For some reason he believes that good weather must follow us all the days of our lives and after the wet summer we had last year he was expecting nothing but sunshine and warm tropical breezes.  Our pipes were even protesting as they nearly froze solid.  Weather happens.

Kaleb took a few hours this morning to decide if he was sick or not.  He has been coughing and his cheeks looked flush, but by 10:30 he decided he’d go help Kory on the jobsite until lunchtime.  They were setting a second beam for the roof, which he helped place, and he was able to haul concrete in buckets to the workers.  He came back feeling pretty good about his contribution, so that’s why we are here and that’s what we are looking for – a boy who knows how to work!  But after lunch his energy level plummeted.  He curled up in the fetal position for a while.  One of the workers needed help unloading his tool trailer so Kaleb offered to help, but only made it about an hour before he was burning up with fever and just couldn’t carry on.  The two of us spent the afternoon moaning about our various aches and pains.

I was so hoping to be able to do something as simple as sort stacks of sheets into twin sizes or double sized, but I just couldn’t get up the energy to tackle that job.  I laid in the sun for a while, breathing deeply trying to get more oxygen to my lungs, then went in the RV and fell asleep on the couch.  Kaleb was lying on the floor next to me, curled up in the fetal position again, letting out little sighs of pain every few minutes.  We were pathetic and of no use to anyone.

At least Kory remains strong.  He took a break from the dorm building to start building forms for a set of stairs that Yvonne really wants in the back of the cafeteria.  He feels he can only do that job when there’s nothing else pressing, however, and he ended up making a concrete vault for some water shut off deal this afternoon.  I hope he’s able to get those stairs built before we leave, as that would be at least some evidence that we were here. 

Bob is improving but his heart rate has increased so they are still holding him in the hospital.  Even if he gets out today, he’ll probably stay in Nogales as tomorrow one big group flies in to Tucson and he will need to escort them across the border.  I sure hope I get a little time with Yvonne before we leave on Monday!  This week hasn’t turned out as planned, but we just gotta roll with the punches.

I didn’t even take any photos today as my energy level just wasn’t up to walking anywhere.  Also, my glasses got sat on by someone (not me!) and I can’t wear them until I get to Costco to have the frames straightened out.  I brought a spare pair but they are an old prescription so I hate to wear them unless I have to. 

This has been one interesting week, so far, but probably the best place to be if we are going to be sick.  Having to travel would be the worst and I’m thankful Kaleb’s got time to get better before he goes to Space Camp on the 10^th.   The best part is seeing Kory get so charged up about contributing to a construction project.  I guess a lot of his self worth is wrapped about what he can do with his body, since that’s what he’s done all his life, and he’s really perked up since he’s been here so Hallelujah for that.  He’s just downright giddy every day.  Go figure.  He shouts Hallelujah on the jobsite, and that’s just not something that Free Methodists are used to doing, but they told him at dinner last night they enjoyed his praising the Lord like that.  (Everyone went out for tacos last night but Kaleb and I had no appetite and were too sick to join them.)

I’m currently praying for a “loaves and fishes” kind of experience with the last Kleenex box we have in the RV as Kaleb and I are battling the drippy nose.  Kaleb’s not complaining much about being sick because it gets him out of schoolwork and working, but he did complain he’s already read every single book on his Nook and he doesn’t know what he will do without a book to read.  I know what he’ll do, he’ll just read them all again.  When I’m sick I can’t concentrate enough to read, but I have been able to get nearly all my photos and documents on my laptop organized, which has been a huge undertaking, and normally I wouldn’t be able to sit still long enough to do it, so there’s some good that’s come out of this sickness.

Answered Prayer

29 January 2013

I called upon my prayer warriors back home when I got sick yesterday and boy did they get to work!  I was much improved today, even if not 100%.  I have a very deep bronchial sounding cough and my energy level is far from normal, but the fact I’m vertical is a real miracle.  I’ve never gotten over anything this quickly.  I still stayed home and laid on the couch and watched movies all day on my laptop while Kory and Kaleb went to work, however.  The life of luxury. 

It was cold today – in the forties.  It snowed in Nogales so we were lucky to be spared that.  I so wanted to be out in the sunshine but I just had to enjoy it through the window as every time I got up, my body told me to sit down. 

Kaleb was outside most of the day but felt it was too cold, even with him working as hard as he was.  He went around and shook every tree he could find before he raked up the needles and leaves under them, so as not to be duped like he was yesterday with raking up things then having the wind bring more stuff down.  He hauled everything in a wheelbarrow to where they wanted it dumped and that kept him busy for several hours.  I was proud of him working on his own with no one watching over him as everyone in charge was gone from the camp today.  He just did what he saw needed to be done.  Two points for him.  Now he’s complaining about being chilled and no appetite, so I’m sure praying he doesn’t get sick, too.

Kory came home from a long hard day at “work” feeling rather frisky.  He was so impressed with his body – that he was able to do such hard manual labor all day and survive it.  I reminded him to wear his wrist braces so he doesn’t get another arthritic attack like he did in Norway last year, but he forgot.  Another matter for prayer.  He was also thrilled that so much Spanish is still in his head.  When he was in his 20s he lived in Paraguay for a year building a medical clinic for a Norwegian mission station down there.  He was the job boss so he learned a lot of construction words.  He had no trouble today on the jobsite speaking and understanding Spanish.  As opposed to me, who took three years of it in school and every time I want to speak it, just Norwegian comes out. 

I guessed right about the job he’s doing.  There is a big group coming next week just to put the roof on this dorm they are building.  They have to have everything done before the roofers arrive and according to Kory, there is no way they’d get it done by Friday if he wasn’t helping.  He feels pretty good about that.  I guess having him on the jobsite also picks up the pace a bit, too, because he’s a fast worker and some of the others aren’t.  He was nearly giddy after work, just excited to be so useful and strong at his age, so Hallelujah for that.

Bob is still in the hospital.  One of the women here that went up to meet with them said he has the flu and now Yvonne has it too, but it’s a kind they don’t have an antidote for.  It must be what got me as well as the symptoms sound the same.  Bob’s doctor is also a personal friend, though, so he’s not releasing him because he knows he will just go right to work when he gets back here and he wants him to rest.  They may not be back before Friday, which would be so ironic that I came here to work with Yvonne, and now she’s been gone all week!  Best laid plans…

Fortunately there were leftovers in the fridge for Kory as I don’t think I could have made dinner tonight, but tomorrow is a new day and hopefully if I get a good night’s sleep, it will feel like one.

Sick Day

29 Jan 2013

Yesterday was a sick day for me.  I was awake most of the night before coughing, and by morning my body was aching.  I didn’t want it to keep me from working, as that’s what we are here for, and it was our first full day of work, so I plodded on.  I got my work orders to clean one of the cabins that was used this past weekend.  Change the sheets, scrub the bathroom, wipe down the kitchen, sweep and mop the floor and wash the windows.

I think some of the older ladies here take all day to do something like that but I was mostly done by coffee break.  I felt so horrible by then though, that I went back to the RV and laid down.  It took all I could muster to get up and go finish the job.  I didn’t say anything to anyone, but my body was speaking loudly to me and once I finished I just collapsed on the couch and couldn’t get up the rest of the day as my symptoms worsened.  My head was pounding, my muscles were incredibly sore, my skin hurt.  Every move was painful.  Every sound only increased my headache.  Every smell was irritating.  I slept on and off but stayed horizontal the rest of the day.  Even speaking took more energy than I had.

Kaleb spent the day “grooming the desert” as they say - raking up leaves and needles around some of the buildings.  It was a windy day with a bit of rain here and there so he was frustrated that as soon as he was done around one tree, a wind came along and created an even bigger mess than he started with.   He finally gave up and went to help Kory who worked all day on the new dorm they are building.

At least Kory put in a full day’s work – and then some – as they were pouring concrete and trying to get to a certain level before day’s end.  He was working with two other guys from Hard Hats for Christ (an organization he volunteers for) and four local guys who are getting paid.  There’s a big work group coming in next week so I think they are trying to get it ready for the roof or something.  I’m kinda clueless though but I know they are pushing for some reason.  Kory felt pleased with what he was able to contribute, so that’s good.

Bob is still in the hospital but the good news is they have ruled out pneumonia and said he has bronchitis.  He was supposed to get out yesterday, but they didn’t release him, so it’s day by day now I guess.  He’s stressed out because of all the work he needs to be doing to prepare for two teams coming in next week – one of them is a medical missions team doing free eye exams in town and another is a construction work group.  One of the couples here had to drive up to Nogales yesterday to bring him some of his paperwork so he could do work from the hospital.  Bob is a total Type A personality.  He had an aortic valve replaced a few years ago in November and by January was down here working.  He’s 83 and going strong. He is the kingpin around here though as the atmosphere completely changes if he’s not here.  It’s like sheep without a shepherd.

Initially there was such a different feeling working here, versus working at the orphanage we’ve gone to or even at Gleanings because the work here doesn’t feel as intrinsically meaningful.  The other type of work is directed at the destitute and meeting the poor’s basic needs.  Here though, the work supports a retreat center and for this area, it’s similar to a five star resort – everything is very nice.  I was thinking about that when I was working yesterday “scrubbing toilets for Jesus” and I thought back to some of the times when I’ve had profound words from God – and some of them were at retreats.  So while this place doesn’t meet the physical needs of the poor, it certainly does meet spiritual needs.  In the summertime they have lots of kid’s camps here and many accept Christ, so in that way, the work here has more eternal consequences. We’re either feeding the body or feeding the soul.

Domingo

27 Jan 2013

It was a most unusual Sunday around these parts.  Bob McDowell always hold a church service for all the volunteers here as most of them cannot understand Spanish well enough to attend a church service in town, but first thing this morning Yvonne was loading Bob up in the car and driving him north to the border.  He’s been feeling kinda low the past few days but I guess his coughing got worse in the night and Yvonne was worried he had something bronchial.  She was certainly stressed out when she left before the sun came up.  So we were told we were on our own for holding our own devotions, which we did.

Afterwards, we wanted to show Kory the nature trail surrounding this place so we all went for a walk in the glorious sunshine and looked for wildlife or traces of it.  We just saw bunnies and birds but evidence of coyotes and the wild pigs that live around here.  It rained hard last night so it was strange to see drops of water hanging off cactus needles.  Talk about an oxy-moron.

After we got back, Kory decided to go into town with another guy and attend a service at the small Free Methodist congregation of about 15, so he spent a few hours there this morning while Kaleb and I did a few loads of laundry and hung everything out to dry. 

While Kory was gone, one of the other retired guys here offered to take me to town to an ATM machine to get some pesos and to go buy some produce.  We were nearly out of fresh things to eat so it was a real treat to load up on local fruits and veggies.  It was hard to believe I got four huge bags of produce for less than $20.  I got oranges and tangerines, pineapple, avocados, papaya, mango, potatoes, cucumber, cilantro and bananas.  I also bought some instant ice tea that’s lime flavored that is my new favorite beverage.  Yum.  I’ll be stocking up on that before we leave town, for sure.

The town we are near, Santa Ana, is not as poverty stricken as other places I’ve seen.  There are some really nice houses and no one seems to live in cardboard shacks like near the orphanage we go to on the Baja.  Even still, Tom stood guard over me while I took cash out of the ATM and escorted me very closely in the store.  Nice guy.

This afternoon the sky was mostly cloudy with a cool breeze blowing so it wasn’t conducive to working on my tan when I got back, so I sat in the RV and organized files on my laptop.  That’s a job I’ve been meaning to do for over two years, so it’s kind of nice to have no other to-dos that must be attended to so this one rises on my priority list.

A tradition here is that all the volunteers go out for a late lunch on Sundays so we were invited to join the others at a Sushi restaurant in town.  It was just too funny to be in Mexico eating Japanese food.  I kept waiting for the bowl of chips and salsa to show up.  Even though my Spanish is limited, I was able to tell the waiter Kory had dietary restrictions.  He looked at me funny when I said, “Vegatariano sin gordo…” but I knew it was wrong when I said it… because I literally said “vegetarian without fat” but the word “gordo” is used only for “fat” when describing something large.  Fortunately Kory knew the word for “oil” so he was able to get stir fried veggies and rice with no oil - standard fare when we go out, but at least he got to eat something.  The restaurant was super swanky too, which was also a pleasant surprise, and all three of our meals, plus lemonade all around was less than $25, which is expensive for here but I’m not complaining.

Not long after we returned back to the camp, another couple here offered to take us to a Sunday night church service at a larger church in town.  Kaleb and I opted out, but Kory went and really enjoyed it.  It’s amazing he understands Spanish as well as he does.  Kaleb and I just sat in the RV, he was reading and I was still organizing files on my laptop.  It could take weeks to get that job done.

The quail and the jack rabbits are providing lots of entertainment around here as the quail beep all the time and the rabbits crack me up when they run as they look like they have rear end hydraulics. Their back legs rise up high and rather than hop, they just run like a deer.  It’s so funny to watch.

I spent a good deal of the day in prayer today, not just for Bob, who we found out was admitted to the hospital with fears of pneumonia, but also for friends back home that aren’t doing well. Makes me so thankful we are all healthy and blessed beyond reason.

Kory didn’t get home from church until 9pm.  It started at six, so he was gone far longer than anticipated and dinner wasn’t too warm by the time he made it back.  At least he got food, for which he was most thankful.

Sabado

26 Jan 2013

Saturday is not normally a workday around here, but for those who want to, there are always jobs to do.  Kory got busy right away as he can’t stand sitting still when he is somewhere with the intention of working. 

There is a small camping trailer sitting next to our RV that was donated by someone.  A guy is coming next week to stay in it but last week they had a terrible freeze here and it broke several of the water pipes in the trailer.  Bob asked Kory if he knew how to repair plumbing, so it was Kory’s lucky day.  He just loves solving problems and then improving on the system.  Kaleb helped Kory a bit but we are struggling a little with his attitude today about working, on a Saturday and helping his father is not something he enjoys.

Yvonne gave Kaleb and I walking tour of the property this morning – about 80 acres of the 800 they own is developed.  It’s all very impressive and nice as Mexican standards go – even nice for American standards.  They have two huge conference buildings and a cafeteria that seats 300 people.  Currently they can sleep 300 people, too, so they are set up for the masses.  In the summer they have youth camp so there is a nice swimming pool, basketball court, fenced in soccer field, and a whole baseball field including bleachers.  There are dorms, cabins and duplexes scattered throughout the place and public toilets and showers just where they are needed.  Just like Warm Beach camp, this is sponsored by the Free Methodist denomination but it open for any Christian organization to use.

Bob has single handedly raised the money for almost every building in this place so he’s like the grand master around here.  One of the biggest buildings has his name on it.  What a legacy.

During coffee break this morning all the workers and volunteers sat around and chatted a bit, prayed a bit and talked about the day.  One guy went into the restroom and came out with a baby tarantula he’d just killed.  These are not the kinds of experiences we were thinking of having on this trip, but I’m just glad it wasn’t Kaleb or I that encountered it.  The other creatures in nature are far more entertaining, however, as Yvonne has a bird feeder and the variety of birds is phenomenal.  There is a huge flock of quail that are outside all the time chirping away and this morning just after we got up there were three desert rabbits with the biggest ears I’ve ever seen sitting outside our RV.  I’m waiting to see Road Runners and to hear the coyotes.  The desert certainly has it’s unique qualities.

I think we will all go through internet withdrawls while we are here as the guy who supplies the internet said he saw the usage was WAY up yesterday after we arrived!  We were being so careful and just going on one person at a time, but he told us not to look at any photos online because they use up so much of the resources, but Kory forgot and looked at my photos on Facebook, of all things.  So, I’m having to be the bad guy and just tell the two of them they only have five minutes a day to look at something quickly and get off.  I will only be posting one photo a day on this blog because it also is a usage hog, as we sure don’t want to use up the allotted bits and bytes this guy has paid for and generously allowed other people to use.  He said when his monthly allotment is up, he shuts it off, so we don’t want to contribute to that, either.

I have been able to understand some of the Spanish being spoken around here but I can’t for the life of me conjure up any Spanish words to speak myself.  Everything I want to say just comes out in Norwegian.  It’s so frustrating!  Kory’s doing much better than I.

Kory was able to get all the broken pipes repaired in the trailer by dinnertime – just by using stuff he found in the work shed here.  He’s a McGyver type of guy so he’s good on the mission field for those kinds of things.  They now have him prepping to build two sets of stairs going up to their new conference center building.  I saw several doors with broken hinges and locks that he could work on, too.  I guess he could just move on in here as his handy man skills are invaluable.

Kaleb and I weren’t nearly as productive today as Kory.  There’s a lot of work to do in the conference center but because it’s being used for a retreat this weekend, it’s not accessible.  Yvonne suggested we walk the two-mile nature trail and see about realigning some of the stones that mark the path’s edges, since the rain often washes the stones away.  So Kaleb, Yvonne and I spent a lovely afternoon walking and talking and bending over picking up rocks or scraping our feet along the trail, getting the rocks back in line.  We didn’t see much wildlife as it was the heat of the day, but we sure saw beautiful views of the desert. 

Bob wasn’t feeling well today so I loaned Yvonne my Oil of Oregano drops and some fresh lemon juice and vitamin C that hopefully, combined with prayer, will get him over the hump.  He started coughing last night and didn’t sleep well so he’s pretty punky today.  It rained hard last night so none of us slept all that well.  I had the vent open above our bed and woke up with a wet hip as the rain was just pelting inside the RV.  Too funny.  I had to get up and close all the windows as the strong winds were blowing the rain inside.  I’m sure the desert appreciated all that water, however, so I won’t complain a bit and if we are lucky, before we leave, the desert plants might start to bloom because they got some rain.

The sunset and moonrise were spectacular today.  I’ll have to wait to post photos of them, however, but they touched my soul.  So far, so good.