Dominican Journeys

Tuesday, February 07, 2012

After a better sleep than last night (several of us phoned security when the party started again at 2 a.m., which is when the Disco at the beach closes), we were away once again to Esperanza where we spent the day. We divided into several groups: painters, block layers, carpenters, tilers, etc. (I use the terms very loosely since our skills are moderate at best). The morning was spent at these various tasks as the sun rose steadily to its zenith. Lunch gave us a pleasant respite from the building heat (and it’s not even Spring yet).

The afternoon was more of the same from morning plus a sewing class for the village women. They each made a ‘hot pad’ for placing a pot from the stove onto a table. Over 50 women of all ages took part and were eager learners and proudly showed off the finished items. Bea made herself useful looking after babies for the mothers taking part in the lesson.

The afternoon also brought our first heat casualty. One of the block layers (whose name shall be omitted to spare him further embarrassment) (not me) had the heavens break open and a rain of stars flood his vision. He was taken by truck up the hill to the clinic, where he rested and drank electrolyte until his strength returned. In fairness, he is a steady worker in his seventies, and had been careful to take rest breaks and drink lots of water. It was a lesson to all of us – we are not used to working in the heat, especially coming directly from our winter cold.

Charlie and Marilyn are becoming skilled tillers and look forward to renovating a bathroom when they return home. Gerry has acquired the expertise of applying urethane and spent the morning finishing two bed frames which were constructed in Paradise woodshop from money left by the folks in Week One.

Story Within the Story

Gerry says, "Bring me another bed to paint".

Team member Gerry survived polio as a child and spent time in the dreaded ‘iron lung’ and several years of wearing leg braces. To add injury to insult, he was run over by a truck later in his life and received further damage to an arm and leg. While moving around has sometimes proved to be a challenge, especially in the villages, Gerry has strived to make himself a productive team member. He has developed an enviable skill of painting while seated - and gets less paint on him than the standing folks. He is truly an inspiration to us all. Way to go Gerry!!

And a Lesser Story

On the very rough gravel road to and from the village, our bus must cross through a creek bed, which can flood and prevent passage. While never having this happen (it nearly did in 2008) today we experience something different. When we got out to the main road, it became apparent that the twin tires at the back had picked up a rock which caused a jumpy ride. Manuel stopped the bus and a very large rock was pried out allowing us to continue back to the resort.