This post was submitted by Ivy Tech student and ASB participant Tabitha L.

Friday; our last day in Calnali. This was the most overwhelming day for me. We built a bathroom and cleaned a house for a family of 7 today. This was the same house and family that we had seen earlier in the week that had tarps and sticks as walls, no ventilation, and a “bathroom” that was a concrete slab with a ceramic toilet surrounded by a tarp. A few of us worked on laying the bricks for the bathroom while a few of us started cleaning the house. I helped clear the piles of dirty, smelly clothes that were heaped in the corner of the house and on the broken, flea-ridden couch. Mark went searching for soap, new tarps, and wire brushes while we continued clearing clothes and moved on to transferring the dirty dishes outside. I was appalled when I was moving those dishes because there were all sorts of leftovers crusted over, littered with insect carcasses, and smelling rotten. The most awful part was that Elisa was translating for one of the daughters who said that they save what they don`t eat then mix it together for a meal at the end of the week. (Mind that there is no refrigeration of any sort…) They also apparently don`t believe in dish soap because Mark visited a few stores and none was found. There is a cook top about 3 feet wide, 2 feet deep, and 4 feet tall made of cinder blocks and old tin with a spot in the middle of the top that had an open fire with which to cook. The cook top was layered with 3 inches of ash. Above the fire was a makeshift chimney/exhaust system made up of an overturned wash tub with a 3 inch wide pipe stuck in the top of the wash bucket that was suspended by wire and pointed outside. The ceiling was covered with about a quarter inch of soot that was caked on and hung like stalagmites in a few places. Smoke was extremely thick inside the house which causes all the children to have asthma. I began to sweep the ceiling, walls, and floor after Judy and I removed the “chimney” which was also layered with soot. I cleared the ash off the cook top and started to sweep the rest of the floor. I began to think about what it would be like to live here day in and day out. I had previously connected with the eldest son, Victor, earlier in the week and he had been outside all morning working non-stop with the rest of the group. As I was sweeping he walked in and we started a makeshift conversation with his broken English and my very limited Spanish. He told me that he was a student and was very excited about learning English then he pulled out a worn notebook with Spanish-to-English translations and repeated words to me with an ecstatic smile on his face. I was elated with the fact that he was trying to learn English because seeing where and how he was living, becoming bilingual and staying vigilant in school will give him a great chance at getting to a better place. At the end of our conversation he smiled at me, pointed, and told me I was beautiful in perfect English…as soon as he walked out to resume his work, I broke down completely. Everything I had seen and experienced this entire week hit me like a Mack truck! I walked outside to calm down and was able to return to working after a few minutes but Victor and his living situation have been on my mind constantly. Judy and I made our way down to the river with the dirty dishes and saw that Elisa, Virginia, and Jenna were already there washing clothes on the rocks by hand. We each found our respective rocks and began washing the dishes with a piece of soap in a sock. Some of the children came to help us and showed us how leaves made a better wash cloth than our socks and that rocks were a very good substitute for a brillo pad. The day was hot with a slight breeze and sitting on a rock with the river flowing over my feet while the mountains looked down on me was very refreshing for my soul. Jamie joined us in washing dishes and within about 20 minutes we had all the dishes washed except for two very dirty pans. Although it was probably a meaningless task, I felt I had to completely clean the pot that I was holding, it was caked with soot and ash but underneath, after some scrapes with the rocks and soap, there was a beautiful silver metal showing. All in all it took a bit under 2 hours and some help from Elisa and 2 of the children but at the end the horrendously dirty pot looked brand new. The woman who owned the house didn`t offer thanks for our work and had to be told by Chimo, our project manager, to give thanks but I felt so much better after cleaning that pot…I know I can`t fix everything but I can certainly work on one thing at a time. Later, with the help of Elisa, Gisselle, and Brianna, I spoke to Victor and told him that I would love to have him come to the States where I would happily pay for his education. He is extremely bright, hard working, and never has he ever begged to us even though he knows we bring items and food to give away! He was working with Chimo to mix mortar before we got there, didn`t stop until we left, and practically had to be bribed to take a PB&J at lunch when we knew that he had no food himself. In no way am I trying to say that other children don`t deserve a chance for a better life by leaving Calnali but I see so much potential in Victor that it really breaks my heart to leave him here. He is 13 and now the man of the house….I asked if he would like me to write to him and tell him of the opportunities the outside world has to offer and he said yes so I am hoping that with time and encouragement he will one day leave Calnali. I made it clear to him that I would find a way to buy a ticket for him and take care of him if he decided to leave but I am not sure yet if he will. After we talked about writing and leaving I asked what his interests were so that I have a good idea about what to send him. I felt very frustrated and deflated after our conversation so Pat helped me out by saying sometimes all these children need is an ounce of hope to fight for a better life like the one I was offering Victor. She said she believed I gave him that hope which made me feel a bit better but I am still going to write and send care packages to him, maybe in a few years he will accept my offer and begin to explore the world he is not even allowed to dream of.