WV Trip Day 3- Snags and Challenges

WV Trip-Wednesday morning-7/23/08 6am

Team mate Lauren and Mustard Seed's Intern Ryan make many trips up and down the ladder. Steady progress is key at finishing Bev's roof.

We ran into some major snags (no pun intended-Team Blowout!) yesterday with the roof. Many of the boards underneath are rotted through and it makes it tricky to know where to step now that most of the layers have been pulled away. The rotted boards set our team back and replacing them becomes a challenge. My level of expertise surrounding roofs is becoming evident and how I can help my team is limited. At times, the burden of the roof falls solely to Gregg and Eric due to the complexity of the task and I feel badly about that.

Our connection with Bev is solidifying some. She is feeling more comfortable around us. My desire to meet her needs is also changing as I begin to develop a love for her soul. She is becoming more than just a random person to me...more than an "assignment." With every shingle I pull off, I think of how wonderful it will be for her to have the peace of mind of a new roof. My only question is does she have the peace of mind of her Savior?

Spending time with Bev

In terms of energy, I am still very tired and feel much anxiety when I don't sleep well. I know the amount of energy that will be required of me the next day... and in the middle of the night, I am concerned about not having it....letting my team down...appearing lazy. I also hope my interactions with people don't become short because of my need for sleep. I don't want to offend anybody with a crabby spirit.

Eyes are starting to look like my husband's. They say the longer you are married, the more you look alike.

I have had the blessed opportunity to visit with some neighbors near the "Big House" we are all staying in. The allure of the cats pulls me to Judy's porch. She is a full of personality 60 yr. old who has lived much of her life here in Northfork. She could be labeled as the resident historian as she revealed fact after fact about the decline of the area. I appreciated her transparency with the information she shared. As we volleyed back and forth between question and answer, I imagined myself as a "60Minutes" reporter doing a much needed story on the "ifs and the whys" of this rundown town. Judy is quick-witted and many times I marvelled at the amount of history and reason she had within her. With cats running in between and through her gait, she ran inside her home for a moment and brought out a black binder full of historical pictures of the area. As I turned page after page, I saw proof that this town used to "be something" and my heart ached for what it had become. With the current median age in Northfork being 50 yrs. old, Judy shared that their population of children was extremely small. She feared what would happen to Northfork in the future, with the strong potential of it dying with its people. As she talks on, I look out at the beautiful mountain ranges that can be seen so ideally from her porch. I grieve for this town that has placed its building blocks on one form of income....the coal mines, and I wonder how many other American towns could be wiped out if they only survived on one industry.

Storm rolls in as I talk with Judy. The rain unfortunately ends our conversation.