CHECK!

This has been such an amazing trip all around. Being with the people who are making a difference especially all my colleagues who are just so awesome to be around. Being around supportive and caring people all day long make the day pass so quickly!
When we show up at the job site and have tasks to do for the day - they get done by time we leave. That is something that is hard sometimes in my world, so being able to have a "To Do List" that is complete and all 'checked off" by the end of the day is so rewarding and uplifting. Not to mention it is for a nice woman who is watching the making of her brand new house after this natural disaster and tragedy.

For me, doing all of this carpentry work is something NEW! I used to do little things back in the day when I was little with my dad - you know, the little bird house-type crafts and the Girl Scout crafts with my mom - this is NOTHING compared to that. I helped put up walls, supporting beams, rat runners, trusses (the roof/attic), used a bunch of saws to cut different pieces of wood, and I also helped move these different pieces of wood all over the place with the big guys! When we were heaving the trusses up three ladders yesterday to place them on the top of the house, I thought I was bench pressing an elephant then carrying it with me up the ladder to heave it on top of the house! I didn't know I would have the muscles for such a task - but with two other guys on the sides assisting - it really helped!

I am glad that I get to be here to listen to the locals talk about their story and their life after the Katrina disaster. You get it first hand and from the horses mouth how they had to deal and now how they have to cope with everything. It is still not over for ANYONE - 3 years later. At least we are giving one tiny little hand in what can make a difference. If we weren't here (any of us through Habitat for Humanity or at Camp Hope), then these efforts would take that much longer!

TTYL. ~C