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Haiti 2012: June 5

Today, the team painted bunk beds and the inside of the dining room. I was told there was a lot of tension yesterday while a few of us were at the hospital, but we were mostly peaceful today. Tim and Mike, the two older men on the team, impressed me with their work. Tim, a mechanic, agreed to work on the engine of a tractor at a fellow orphanage nearby, led by a group of fellow Christians from Alabama. He said he was was nervous the night before, because he wasn't sure he could get the tractor to work. He did repair it, though, which was an immense help to them because the Alabama orphanage could use the tractor to carry dirt. It helped our orphanage director, too, because he traded Tim's skill for free dirt, which is being used for a new project in the main yard of the compound.

Mike impressed me for his work building bunk beds. He cut his own wood to size, then built one today. He was the only member of the team not to go to the beach with us in the evening because he wanted to get the wood cut and ready for use the next day. He was on a schedule: he had to have six beds built by Friday, when a large team will arrive and need them to sleep. I started the day painting a bunk bed blue when it was supposed to be white. When the director told me to get the large buckets of "vloo" paint (a brand name, I think), I heard "blue" paint. With the help of Julie, I painted over half the bunk before learning I was using the wrong color. What could I do, though, but laugh and start painting the bed white?

Nonetheless, we had the chance to get to know Angelo, one of the security guards protecting the compound, while we painted. This use of security is something new this year. One guard protects the orphanage by day and two others through the night, all wielding shotguns. This happened because the orphanage was robbed at gunpoint late last year. So far, I think I'm learning different facets of God through the members of the team. I'm accustomed to learning about God through reading, but this week, I have seen more of what God is like though others' personalities and relationships with him. It has been refreshing to see the unity of our team despite the conflict that took place yesterday.
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