We Left Tired But Satisfied by Tamara Ochoa
YWAM San Diego/Baja | Tuesday, July 26, 2011 at 10:32PM Meet the family:
Mary Cruz is a single mom who works for the city pulling weeds out of the gutters alongside the road. She left her husband years earlier because it was an unhealthy relationship. Mary has 4 children, the oldest is married with a child. The second lives in a little dirt-floored shack in the corner of the lot.
Jose, 17, and Reina, 15, live with Mary and attend school. Jose has osteoporosis so his bones are really fragile. Reina has epilepsy; even tho she doesn’t want to talk about it, she wants to be a nurse to help people.
The family’s lot wasn’t located in a poor neighborhood as we are accustomed to working in, rather on a corner of a busy intersection with taxis and buses driving by nonstop. Everyone seemed to know Mary and the kids, and there were continually people stopping to ask what was going on or to congratulate her. She never stopped smiling, and sharing about what a blessing this was.
After the team left each day, she would give little tours. They were amazed at how much was accomplished in such a short time; Mary would explain that was because the young people didn’t waste time standing around talking or taking smoke breaks like paid employees would. The team hadn’t even finished building and a neighbor was measuring the windows for curtains; another appreciative neighbor cooked a hot lunch for us.
A couple team ladies were going shopping the last day, and when asked if there were any specific items Mary needed, she said she was too embarrassed to ask for anything more. When I asked the kids what they would like the team to buy, they said they would be happy with food. This family was so humble, needy and appreciative, it made building for them even more worthwhile.
July is the beginning of Costa Rica’s winter, or rainy season. We arrived 2 days before the team to make preparations, and it was pouring rain morning, afternoon and night. I thought about the house we would be building and how it would work out under these weather conditions.
Salisbury 1st Pres Church from North Carolina arrived ready to work. We headed out early to get as much done. We finished painting the exterior boards, the interior and exterior trim and the roof trusses. No rain. We raised the 4 outside and 2 interior walls. No rain. The trusses went up. No rain. We stopped for lunch. Still no rain. We were able to accomplish much more than we hoped.
On the second day we put in the windows, doors and trim. We hung sheet rock, the aluminum roofing went up, electrical wiring was installed and did some more painting. Only a slight shower had us crowded inside the house for a few minutes. We finished the day tired but satisfied.
The final build day was spent cleaning up the lot; Mary had accumulated piles of useless items and trash. Their previous bathroom had to be torn down because it was in the way of the house’s new roof. We installed a new toilet and built a larger bathroom. Furniture arrived: a new kitchen table and chairs, fridge, kitchen sink and base, a bunk bed, matching sofa and chairs.
A local pastor came to participate in the dedication; they had already met the family and will be following up and discipling them afterwards. Each one shared what building the house meant to him/her, and Mary tearfully shared with the team. We prayed a blessing over the house, and for their finances and health. After a lot of hugs and photos, we left tired but satisfied.
The fourth ministry day was helping out at the Salvation Army. 18 people at a time would sit down at the tables, say a prayer and eat. Once they were thru, the next 18 in the waiting area would have their turn. The team washed dishes, served the food (rice and beans) and coffee, and tried to engage those waiting in conversation.
Straight from there we headed to the Salvation Army’s daycare/preschool located in a gang/drug infested neighborhood. The facilities were clean and spacious, the kids in uniforms and well taken care of. There were about 50 little kids in their program that the parents pay a minimal amount so their kids would be fed and kept safe while they work. We played soccer, pushed swings, painted faces, tattooed (is that a word?) and made salvation bracelets with the eager kids. A great surprise was watching them rehearse some cultural dances for an upcoming holiday program. We helped serve them lunch, washed dishes and headed for home.
On the last day we headed to Jaco Beach, swam, shopped and had the chance to see some crocs and macaws in the wild. It was a great way to celebrate the end of a great week, one in which we were able to be a blessing to so many lives while being blessed even more in return.
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