Talca Trip 2013 Update

Good morning from Talca, Chile!

It is a cool, early Wednesday morning. The weather has been a blessing for the outdoor work that we are doing. The daytime temperatures have been in the mid 80’s with a slight breeze. There have been scattered clouds each day. This combined with the dry air has made the days more accommodating for work, and the nights very pleasant for sleeping. As soon as the sun goes down, we are reaching for jackets.

Last year we had temperatures in the mid to high 90’s without a cloud in the sky. It never cooled off until about 3:00 in the morning. This year everyone has commented that we are reaching for the blankets as soon as we get into bed.

The work is progressing. Monday was the beginning of a new phase of the work, applying the stucco finish to the outside walls. Monday took most of the day to get our process and routine in place. Yesterday, Tuesday, away we went. A couple of people are mixing cement. This involves shoveling sand into a portable cement mixer, adding bags of concrete, and water. When the mix is ready, another person uses a wheelbarrow to take it to an area of the wall to be covered. There another person, clothed in rain gear, uses a type of sprayer connected to an air compressor, to spray the mix onto the walls. The person at the wheel barrow shovels small amounts at a time into sprayer for the one doing the spraying. The concrete mix is heavy. The person holding the sprayer can only do it for short periods of time before their muscles are sore. The rain gear is necessary as the concrete spray and ricochet is very messy.

The four people of our team have definitely added efficiency to the process that was not possible with only two or three people. Yesterday afternoon we had another volunteer come to the church. We were able to start a second duo hauling and spraying walls. This will be our routine for the week. Tomas, their project manager is taking full advantage of the size of the work team. We will do this all five days that we are here.

The size of their volunteer workforce has decreased by a few people. Some needed to find work with an income. Some where there for the specialty that they provided, e.g. steel working and welding. Also, it is prime vacation time in Chile, a couple of folks are taking short summer vacations.

As always, we are being well fed. Our host families are very gracious as normal. Tonight, Wednesday, the men’s bible study group will host a barbeque for us at the church. More food!

We brought several study bibles with us and copies of “The Story”, all in Spanish. We have had the opportunity to give some of these to the individuals on our list. Personally, I continue to be moved by the emotional impact these have had on the individuals. Smiles, laughter, and sometimes tears, have come to the faces of the recipients. An example: One of their church members owns a bus company. He provided all of the group transportation last year. This year he has provided his personal SUV since our team size is smaller. We did not have a gift to recognize his efforts last year. So, we brought a Spanish study bible for him. We gave it to him after Sunday’s service. While everyone socializing after service, he sat on the side intently going over all the features of a red letter study bible. You could see the intensity and smiles on his face. Last year we found that while everyone has a bible, very few have study bibles.

It is soon time to start work for the day.

Adios from Chile!