Mi Semana En Mexico

Over spring break, I had the wonderful opportunity of spending a week in La Gloria, Mexico, building houses for those in need. It was with the Utah chapter of a national organization called Builders Without Borders. It all started when my friend, Danielle (the French teacher at my school), and I were wondering what we should do over the break, since both our husbands would be busy with work and school. One of her students mentioned Builders Without Borders to her, and after looking into it, we found out they were planning a trip during spring break. Perfect timing!

In preparation for our trip, we got the whole school involved in a clothes and school supply drive. We got so many donations from the students and faculty! Danielle and I were so happy to actually see them being distributed among the people in Mexico.

This was the first time I was really going to spend time outside the U.S. I've been to Canada for a couple of hours when my family visited Niagara Falls, and I've been to Tijuana for a couple of hours on another family trip, but it was the "touristy" part- not a real, authentic experience. This has made it hard for me to share cultural experiences in my classroom. I usually have to tell about other people's experiences in Spanish-speaking countries, instead of my own. So I was super excited to apply for my first passport and go!

We left on the Saturday before the break and returned last Saturday. The drive down was long, but it gave us an opportunity to create new friendships with those in our car.

Crossing the border into Mexico was fine, and we were so happy to see our new "home" for the next week. It was a very nice LDS Stake Center, and I met so many wonderful Mexican members. I admire them so much for all they did to serve us during our stay, despite the many challenges that faced them in their own daily lives.

As far as the work went, I was on the "stucco crew." We went around to 3 different job sites and stapled black paper and chicken wire to the walls, then applied the stucco. The first house was already built, but the walls were simply plywood, so we reinforced the walls. This house was located right by the Pacific Ocean, and the view was beautiful! That is, until the clouds and rains came! But that didn't stop us! We were able to talk to the dad later that week, and he thanked us so much for the new walls. "Before this week, my family would always feel the wind through the walls. Now we can't!"

The second and third houses we built from the ground up. The second family consisted of a young couple with a baby, who lived in a small camper. All these families owned the land, but had no means to actually build a house. The Stake Presidency decided who in the stake needed these houses the most.

I'm grateful for my knowledge of Spanish (though not perfect), because I was one of the few in our group of about 40 able to communicate with these wonderful people and hear their stories. As I conversed with this new mother at the second job site, I found out that she and her husband were married only a month after Travis and me, and they had always lived in this camper. Not once did she complain of her circumstances. She was outside every day with her baby, just watching the walls of her new home come together. Her huge smile said more than words. I would look at her smile, look back at her new house, and think, "Wow...and it's still not even as big as our 2 bedroom condo back home..." It was truly a tender, eye-opening experience.

The third site was smaller than the first two, but we finished sooner than anticipated. So we moved down the street and asked another family if we could finish the walls on their house. These people were not members of the church, so it was a wonderful opportunity to explain to the mother why we were there, and what we believed about serving others. We ended up leaving a Spanish Book of Mormon with her.

Work commenced in the early mornings and ended at sunset. When we returned to the stake center each night, the Relief Society made a delicious dinner for us. Sometimes we went to a local taqueria, which was lots of fun. Carne asada is the best- es para chuparse los dedos!

We left for Las Vegas on Friday afternoon, and I got home to Travis's arms on Saturday. I missed him so much! I was also able to bring back some strawberry Fanta, which Travis has missed since his years in South America. He was so excited that he didn't want to wait for the carbonated pop to settle after the bumpy ride home...needless to say, after opening it, our kitchen, clothes, and window blinds looked like a science experiment gone terribly wrong!

I'm so grateful for the things I was able to see and witness last week, and for the people I met and grew to love. It was an unforgettable experience!