Two weeks ago, for a couple of days we had heavy rains. Some of the people who live near the river woke up to their beds floating in water and others were knees and waist deep in the water. The next morning, our ministry host took us around the village where we got to see the damage the rain did. These people live in houses made out of clay bricks and dirt floor. When it rains the houses get flooded and the water destroys the foundation and it’s only a matter of time before the walls collapse around them
I have to say even though I am from Haiti, I have not experienced this before. Let me clarify, I know it happens in Haiti, but I have somewhat been unaware. I am sure with the hurricane that just went through Haiti, the people are dealing with much more serious situation and it saddens me. Until Honduras, I wasn’t aware of that, I never thought of people’s home being flooded and people getting sick off of the bacteria that came with that.
I watched the people clean their dirt floor, put their valuables – what little they have – up on makeshift shelves and prepare themselves for another day/night of rain. They wanted to stay with their stuff and do it all over again. We went all around the neighborhood seeing all the damage. It was not an ideal situation for any of those people. It was unsanitary but that is all they know and all they have. Our ministry host, decided to put up pictures and ask for donation to pour concrete floors for a couple of families who had it really bad.
On Monday we poured concrete floors for them. We started at 6 am and alongside the families and 2 construction workers, we gave them new floors. It didn’t fix the flooding issues by any means but it gave them a much more sanitary option. It was such a great deal to watch them come alongside of us and work. Women in Honduras don’t usually mix concrete and carry heavy buckets and do manual labor. However, children and adult worked that day, and it was beautiful.
I loved watching their faces when it was all done. I loved knowing that now when they sleep their home will most likely not flood and if it does, they can simply sweep the water off. We didn’t fix the real issue, but I’m happy that God used us to show them a little bit of hope.
