November was a month that looked a bit different from the rest of my time on the race. November was Manistry month. That means that all thirteen of the guys on my squad were one team for the month. And if that wasn’t cool enough, we got to spend it working at a home for adults with special needs! In a brand new country! On a brand new continent! (Well, to me anyways.) It was an awesome month, and I thought for a while about the best way to share it with you guys, so I’ve decided to take you through a day in the life at the Siloam House.
Around 7:30 every morning, Payden puts on some worship music to get the day going. I scarf down a peanut butter and honey sandwich and head out the door. Y’all we’re straight in the heart of the jungle. On my right there’s a lake that Isaiah and I explored in kayaks, feeling like we were on Animal Planet the whole time, and to my left is the road to Siloam House. It’s shaded by every kind of jungle tree you can think of, and on some days you can even catch monkeys playing high up in the branches. We walk up to the house around 8:00, and wave a quick good morning to the residents as we gather up our tools.
We meet up with the grandson of our ministry host (His name is Ewan, and he’s basically our foreman for the month) and once we have our wheelbarrows and our saws and our shears, we head back down the road to the lime grove. So, sidebar, not only does this place care for adults with special needs, but they also make and sell some dope lime juice, and this month we get to be a part of the process!
We spend most of the morning walking through and pruning the branches that have grown a bit unruly, and harvesting all the limes from those branches. It’s not hard work, but it is hot work. So we pass the time by taking turns playing music, or discussing guy stuff (y’know sports, Farrah Fawcett, action movies, what kind of Old Spice we use… guy stuff), or playing dodgeball with the limes. Once we have both wheelbarrows full of limes, it’s time to head back. We walk to the front lawn of the house where we plop down and size up that day’s catch.
The ladies in charge are much more resourceful with the fruit than I could ever think to be, and they have different uses for each kind of lime. Some of the residents, like our boy Carlvin, join us in sorting the harvest into ripe limes, unripe limes, and big limes. If Carlvin has decided to help us, he will ask every single last one of you to play music. No matter the genre, every song is a rock song, and Carlvin loves rock songs. His all time favorite is “Stand By Me,” which he has us sing at least twice a day. We turn sorting into a sort of game, trying to make each lime into its size-designated basket. As the shot clock sounds and the sorting is done, we carry each basket over to the kitchen and wait for lunch.
In the style of World Race luxury, Siloam House actually cooks us both lunch and dinner. We’ve had thirty different variations of chicken and rice/noodles (and they’ve all been pretty spectacular). After we finish lunch, we head back to the kitchen, because it’s time to get cutting. We wash each little lime three times, then slice them in half. The sliced limes either get fed to a juicer, or they are salted and set outside in order to dry/ferment. After our sick knife skills, *read in a Napoleon Dynamite voice* we have a bit of downtime. Some of us work out, some of us nap, some of us throw on a movie, some of us get in some Jesus Time. Then around 4, we head back up the road to Siloam House, because it’s Free Time!
Every afternoon we get to go play with the residents, and almost every day it looks a little different. Well, except for one thing. I think there may have been only one or two days that we didn’t work out with them to their aerobic workout video. And I know you’re thinking of Richard Simmons’ Sweattin to the 80’s, but this was its own breed. It was aerobics. Led by this Chinese woman. Set to gospel songs. It was one of the weirdest things I’ve ever seen, but also one of the most hilarious! And every day we’d walk in to see them all intently following the motions of the video in their own way, each one of them doing something different. We dance along till the video ends, then if it’s sunny we go outside. From badminton, to tag, to soccer, we cover the yard, playing anything and everything, and I don’t think there’s a person out there without a smile on their face.
My girl Syn Nee and I usually practice passing the soccer ball back and forth. She refuses to reach for the ball, so if I kick it two feet to her right or left, it’s my fault, and I have to go get it. Every time she sets the ball down, she rears back, and kicks as hard as she can, letting out an almost shout as she does. Let’s just say that I’ve gotten a lot better at soccer this month, she keeps me on my toes.
If it’s raining or too hot, we stay in. There are cards to play and magazines to read. Some days we are especially lucky, and we convince Ian to break out his guitar. We teach some simpler worship songs, and then once they’ve got the hang of the words, we just bring the house down. During those times I love to sit near the back and just watch. Each of the residents and each of our guys are just singing their hearts out, and it’s just so cool to watch, and even cooler to get to be a part of.
So yeah, that’s a pretty normal day at the Siloam House! Lots of fun and lots of limes. I loved getting to know each and every one of the residents, and I’m so going to miss all their strong personalities.
