All 26 members of the New Orleans Mission Trip team are back, safe and sound, eager to sleep in our own beds, reconnect to our telephones and Internet, and walk out into the cool evening fog that blanketed the
Because this was the third trip for eight of us, and second trip for another four, much of our analysis of this trip has been done in comparisons. Our first year, we worked on one house, helping one family return to a normal life. Last year, we worked on two houses, helping two different families enjoy a feeling of home. This year, we worked on a total of 8 houses and a day care center, helping countless families and bringing not just a sense of home, but a sense of community. The first time we visited the Lower Ninth Ward at the place where a barge had crashed through a levee and flood waters had risen at the rate of one foot per minute, the only sound we heard was our own breathing. Last year, the chirps of birds and hums of bugs were audible. This year, a family now living in one of the nearby "Brad Pitt" houses was having a Fathers' Day barbecue, and the sounds of talking, laughter, and music rang in our ears as the veteran visitors shared this comparison with the newest participants. As one young person observed, "I hear happiness." It was so simple, yet something that had been missing from the Lower Ninth for far too long.
Our week was not without its challenges. Some of our work sites were without power, running water, or even bathroom facilities. Illnesses, injury, rain, lack of necessary tools, vague instructions, and one extremely incorrectly hung ceiling may have kept us from finishing our work on schedule, but everywhere we were asked to go, we were determined to complete the job at hand. We measured, sawed, nailed, framed, sanded, scraped, painted, caulked, sledge-hammered, demolished, scaffold-ed, dry-walled and re-dry-walled, patched, mudded, mowed, packed, cleaned, collected, and hauled until our muscles ached and sweat dripped from our brows. We also sat and talked with homeowners of all shapes and sizes and attitudes, upbeat and beaten down, helpful or critical, and heard stories no one told on TV -- about insurance companies, racial tensions, shady contractors, looters, and what the locals thought of the FEMA representatives.
At the end of each day we came home, shared stories, and decompressed. Whose team was pulled over for being white in a black neighborhood? Who had driven through the Vietnamese neighborhood no one knew was there? How many gas stations did you see on the way home that also sell fried chicken? Who made which hilarious comment or had a hidden talent for which job? We built card houses, played Balderdash and Catch Phrase, had "girl talks" and listened to our resident boy band "Tower of Shower" sing our favorite songs. We sprinkled our delicious meals with outrageously-named local seasonings, performed our best impressions, and danced in the kitchen as we made Cajun-inspired meals like crawfish pasta.
On our last day, we shared hugs and prayers for the people we met and helped, the people of the
To learn more about our trip, visit the parish website or see our photos at http://www.flickr.com/groups/stfrancisstraphaelnola2010/
