So what is it like to build a house in El Nido, Philippines? It is hot, hard, and so awesome!
We have learned how to shovel sand from the beach into bags and carry them up to the work site to mix with concrete and water to make cement. We have pulled grass and plants out of the ground near the forrest to dig up dirt to find clay to bag and carry to the work site to make floors. We have tried to make bricks (which is a lot harder than it looks – mine broke…), let them dry in the sun for a couple days then carry them up to the work site to make the walls. I have learned how to make grout and lay bricks with only a string to help measure.
There are chickens, dragonflies, and children EVERYWHERE!! We even had the opportunity to stab and kill a very big and very deadly scorpion! And the ants…. I HATE THE ANTS! Inside the clay live thousands upon thousands of these very small, very angry, very attacking, very painful ants. Then there is the sun… the sun has browned our skin, then burnt our skin, and is now tanning the skin underneath the other layer of skin that has peeled off…
And I wouldn’t change a thing! Working here, with these people, and getting to be a part of what GK is doing is amazing. It is SO EASY to think about how much I love my life and how blessed I am to be here – yes, it is easy. No matter how hot, how itchy, how tired, how thirsty, how dirty, how stinky – no matter what is going on – I LOVE MY LIFE!!!
Thank you so much – all of you – because with out you and your support and prayers I would not be here serving in El Nido. And I am so grateful that I am! Please continue to pray about the last $325.00 I need to be fully funded. God is so good! Oh how he loves us!!!
