Day 4 Recap - Construction Group (Nikki)

     Steve and I along with Gwen, Nick, and Jessica headed to the site of Rosita's home. When we arrived, close to 9 a.m., the Haitian workers were already hard at work. We wondered how long they had been there working because we have observed that Haitians are early risers. (We have speculated that the reason for getting a jump on the day is because it is better to work before the intense heat of the afternoon sun. We will have to talk with our interpreter about this more.)

     The home is being built with cinderblock walls with rebar running vertically through the wall as well as cemented rebar pillars running horizontally and vertically. This design is a modification of previous designs in order to give the structure more stability in the event of an earthquake. Skilled masons were laying the wall, so we our team formed a chain to pass the cinder blocks to the area where they were making the wall. After about 5 minutes they would tell us to stop and we would have a long break. This continued for a while until the need for more rebar halted progress. First we had to wait for someone to come with the money for the rebar, then we had to wait for the workers to go to the neighborhood source for rebar. They returned with the news that their source was out of rebar and they would have to go to another place much farther away to get the materials. This was a very real lesson to us in the challenges of any building projects in Haiti and a very real lesson in patience. 

     The blessing in all of this waiting was that I met a boy named Marco. I had brought some bubbles to play with the children in the neighborhood and he took notice and asked for some. I discovered he spoke English so we talked quite a bit. He is the 14 year old grandson of Rosita. He is a very bright boy with hopes of becoming a doctor. We talked of soccer, family, travels, and school. Later he showed me his school work and a really amazing painting that he did depicting a bright future for Haiti with lush vegetation, clean streets, schools, and government services. I was truly blown away by the talent and depth of his artwork.

     In the afternoon our team had the opportunity to work again hauling buckets of rubble through the narrow passageways of the neighborhood to the gully. Much of the material was intercepted by another construction team working next to the gully which repurposed it to fill an area before pouring a cement floor. After working hard during this time we can understand the wisdom of starting work early in the morning and breaking by 2 p.m. which is when things tend to settle down for the day.  

     If you are wondering, the rebar did arrive just before we left, so the work will continue tomorrow and block by block Haiti will be rebuilt.  As the proverb says, "Little by little a bird builds its nest."  With bright young people like Marco, the dream of a bright future for Haiti becomes a little more real.