Thanksgiving in community

Pleasure is spread through the earth
In stray gifts to be claimed by whoever shall find.

~William Wordsworth, 1806

the feast!

My experience of the holiday season in Honduras was a bit different than in the US… to say the least. It is the strangest thing to be looking at a Christmas tree in the office while I’m wearing a tank top and sandals… But even though this holiday season is nothing like I’m used to, the people I live and work with have made it a truly memorable experience. We had a huge Thanksgiving feast at our apartment and it got pretty cramped with over 40 people in our tiny living room but it was great to be surrounded by such wonderful people. The preparation process was astronomical! We ended up using 4 ovens between three houses to make all of the food… and there was certainly a ton of it! We made a huge batch of sangria using one of our water jugs… and it was such a hit that it was gone before dinner was on the table! Before we ate, we took the time to go around to every person to share what we were thankful for.  This was the most diverse Thanksgiving dinner I’ve ever had- with all of the different nationalities we have in the house, the table was filled with Spanish rice, Tandoori fish, and my personal favorite, Mom’s stuffing. (This was my first time truly cooking it all on my own and it was a true success!) Though I would have liked to be with my family on Thanksgiving Day, I definitely have a second family here in Honduras… and I think we are going to have leftovers for the next month.

the ride to Zurzular

Eddie, Maria Cristina and their five children

The next morning after the big feast, a bunch of head packed up and headed out to community at 6am. This community visit turned my Thanksgiving weekend into the most inspiring Thanksgiving weekend I’ve ever had.

I was out in one of our communities called Zurzular for three days participating in public health projects. We worked in a family’s home and in three days, we constructed two concrete floors, a stove, a water pila, and a full latrine with its own septic.  This was the first Public Health project that Global Brigades has brought to the family so it was pretty exciting to the community members. All of the neighbors were crowded around all day, greeting us with smiles and offering us their homemade coffee. The mayor, Don Antonio, was very present throughout the three day process and it was great to see him so involved with his people.

the family's home

I am going to have a hard time trying to explain this weekend- it just simply cannot be put into words how wonderful it was to work with this family and help to change their lives for the better. This family has five children and both parents, Maria Cristina and Eddie, are 30 years old and all seven of them sleep in the same small room, with walls built out of adobe and a ceiling of metal paneling and large rocks to hold it down. Before these projects, their bedroom and kitchen had dirt floors. They used an inefficient adobe stove and would collect their water in a large plastic bin. This bin didn’t have any way to drain so it would get quite dirty and attract mosquitoes, which leads to infection. They also didn’t have their own latrine and would have to use to the bathroom at the neighbor’s house across the dirt road. 

before we started the latrine...

almost there...

...ready for use!

I personally was helping to build the concrete floors and the stove. We build concrete floors for these families because it cuts back on bugs in the home as well as minimize the dust that gets kicked up from walking on the dirt, which can lead to respiratory infections and asthma. Similarly, their stove often leaked smoke into the home and burned wood at an inefficient rate.

their home before we started working

To start, we used a plastic hose filled with water to find a level measurement around on the walls, from which we measured down to create a uniform level height for the floor. Then we used a level and string to form our two maistras or guidelines of concrete. I can’t even count how many buckets of concrete we ended up making but I have about 15 bruises on each thigh from hoisting up buckets of dirt above my shoulders! And this family lives on the side of a cliff and making your way up and down a dirt cliff with a ton of dirt in your arms is no easy task!

mixing and laying the concrete

getting the level for the floor

The two concrete floors took a day each and the third day we spend constructing the stove. We mixed more concrete as the two rows of concrete dried and then used a long piece of 2x4 to level the rest of the room. We scraped side to side to lay the rest of the floor, as someone else went back over the already-laid sections to create the pure cement finish. It was an intense back workout but I’ve never felt better to be doing manual labor. The emotional reward was indescribable. Maria Cristina would peer into her kitchen as we worked and just quietly watch and smile. Eddie, a skinny but undeniably strong man, was running around all day with us, working at a speed that tripled each of us. To have him so involved in the projects and always asking what to do next really expressed how thankful he was and how badly he wants to learn how to maintain his home in a healthier way. Even the children—who followed us around all day, so interested in what were doing—were so excited to be the first the ones of their friends to be getting these projects in their home.

the old water basin

constructing the new brick and concrete pila

The pila was another very exciting project for the family. Prior to our brick and concrete pila, the family stored their water in a plastic bin and cleaned their clothing by scrubbing it on a rock. Now, they have a washboard and an efficient draining system for their water storage so they can clean their collection tank often and easily. Hollie got a good shot of Maria Cristina looking at her pila in almost disbelief, as she repeated “¡Mi pila! ¡Es la mia!” (MY pila. It’s mine!).

the new pila

It took a team of about twelve of us to complete these projects in the three days and though they were filled with long demanding hours, I couldn’t help but think about how hard Eddie works everyday just to maintain the little bit he has for his family. As we worked hand-in-hand with the family and played around with the curious kids in between, I just kept thinking about how proud Dad would have been to see this. He may not have understood why I wanted to move here but I think if he could see these projects he would be able to relate and really see how our efforts directly affect the family. I could see him thinking that this stuff is pretty cool!

the team

Thanksgiving weekend was probably the most appropriate time for such a project, being the weekend to recognize what you’re thankful for. The family was so thankful to now have their own complete facilities and I am thankful that they showed me such a wonderful Thanksgiving weekend.

Maria Cristina