dancing in the mud

gravel, sand & molasses

we pretend we're at a spa,

mixing with our feet

exfoliating, cooling our bodies down in an otherwise almost unbearable arid climate

   thanks for dancing with me sweet Caiti

we've planned
we've traveled
we've arrived in a beautiful country
           beautiful people who need a hand up

tiptoeing barefoot over rocks, scooting past a chicken

making room for a duck and her brother,

     I walk around a bush to find the water hose

the mud is stubborn, paints the heel, gets in between the toes

a friend bends down to help me wash … one foot at a time

  thanks Dina for not even hesitating

bricks soaked in water

laid out with purpose, but simply placed, quickly completed

it's like chocolate frosting, filling in the cracks with homemade concrete

adding a little bit more on one side when we realize the cement slab,

             or is it the dirt floor?

                                                isn't quite level

spreading the "gravel, sand & molasses" with work gloves on

deciding to abandon the work gloves because

     it's like a spa for the hands, the mud gets under the fingernails, cool to the touch

   thanks for frosting the "chocolate cake" with me Michael

sweat drips down my back, down my face

I'm enclosed in a small "kitchen" 

floor and walls covered in soot

smoke lingering from the morning fire where tortillas were cooked for breakfast

someone reaches over and wipes the sweat away

   thank you beautiful Rachel

we stop, there's a breeze

we stop and laugh because the simple breeze feels so good for just a moment
     in the heat that, to us, is unbearable
no fan - no air conditioning - no ice-filled glass of water
   a simple breeze that makes us smile

when we leave this place we leave behind a stove
     not a beautiful six-burner stove with an extra-large capacity oven
a simple stove
for a family with simple, but very profound needs

the "pilot light" is lit
    twigs, scrap paper, branches have been stuffed inside the small cavern that we have made so diligently, literally with the sweat of our brow
we have been given an opportunity
     build a stove that will alleviate a bit of the pain
     build a stove that will supply a safer way to cook
        a little bit of wisdom shared that can maybe give them
                   give their children
            a better quality of life
less coughing, less wheezing, maybe less need for medical care

hauling, shoveling, lifting, soaking

sweating, laughing, crying, dancing

   thanks John for leading










*Click on the Link below if you're interested in dancing in the mud
EcoStoves by Enlace El Salvador

no coincidence

I don't pretend to understand why some have so much, while others have so little. Why I can go to a doctor when I'm sick, why my child has access to a dentist, or immunizations, or a full pantry, while some have never seen a dentist, couldn't afford a doctor if they could even travel the distance to a hospital. They don't have a pantry or even know what it is,  just food for that meal, if they're lucky.

I don't understand why some are lonely, surrounded by throngs of people in a city center somewhere in the world, but feel profoundly alone! And others are irritated because they wish their family wouldn't call so much, or drop by unannounced (sounds pitiful doesn't it?).

Our countries may not be the same.
Our cultures may be vastly different.
You may have activated the translate button because we don't speak or write the same language.
Our circumstances might be polar opposite
     As opposite as Finland is to Malaysia
     Or Russia is to California

But, here we are
No coincidence
The same Creator
The same hollowness of heart that can only be filled with the One, Jesus
Whether that Name is as familiar to you as a warm hug
Or as foreign to you as a full pantry
Or you are not even sure how to pronounce it …

One thing I know, His name is above every other name, greater than any thing you have ever heard before or could imagine.

He is the God of the Philippines, Germany, New Zealand, Honduras.
He is right there for you in Spain, Uganda, Poland, France, Thailand

It is no coincidence that you are reading my blog.
We have all been given an opportunity of eternal life, with our Father in Heaven.

Because my God, so loved the entire world,
that He gave Himself, His Son
So that whoever believes in the Son
Will not die forever, but have eternal life.
God didn't send His Son to the world to condemn us
No
But so that we could be saved, restored, loved, forgiven!!!