Our Last Day of Physical Labour
Happy 19th Birthday Felix!!!!!!! Today was a bittersweet day. As we arrived to the work site we knew that it would be our last day working together as a team and seeing the neighbourhood children and Mrs. Sutham, but we also had a great feeling about the job we had accomplished. Today we also had two special guests accompany us to the job site, Charlie, Ron’s son and Veronica, Fred’s girlfriend.
The morning consisted of finishing up the last of the walls (another 2 tubs of cement), cleaning the inside of the new house with our new brooms and a lesson on plastering. Plastering cement on the front wall of the house was much harder than thought. We needed another 4 tubs of cement, Mark’s height for the top of the house and Michelle P height was needed as she was right at home in the dirt where the house met the ground. The neighbourhood kids were all around and even sang happy birthday to Felix.
The tent was dismantled and all our tables and chairs were moved inside for our festive lunch. We had an amazing buffet lunch of chicken, noodles, rice and fruit. Upon completion we had our closing ceremonies. Jennifer presented the home owner with her new “house key” and a picture of the team that we had all signed. Mrs. Sutham said a heart felt thank you for our help on her new home and invited us to stay with her the next time we are in Phuket. She presented us each with a towel to show her appreciation. David donated the money the team had collected so that she could paint the outside of the house when it was completed. Many hugs and tears were exchanged and then it was time to leave. As the bus drove away we could see Mrs. Sutham standing in the middle of the road waving good bye with tears in her eyes. The bus was very quiet as everyone reflected on the amazing job they had done, lives they had changed and relationships they had made. But I think people were also thinking about the changes that had occurred within themselves during the past seven days. No one but the 18 of us will ever know that feeling.
After a swim and a few beverages the closing celebration continued. We went to the next beach over and had a great dinner on the beach and watched a beautiful sunset.
After wishing Felix a happy 19th birthday and singing it to him again for the 19th time, Anne presented each of us with a certificate for a job well done. As with previous teams Jennifer and David passed around blank card for each team member. We were to write on it one word or sentence that represented that team member to you. After passing the cards around, they were laminated and we were to keep them as a memento from this amazing week. The idea is that if you were ever feeling down or missed the team you could pull out your card and it would lift your spirits. What a great idea. What a great night to end our time together!!!
WOW we built a house!!!!!! We changed the future for a family!!!!! But the 18 of us know the real truth, we got more out the experience that we ever thought possible. I know Mrs Sutham thinks she is the lucky one but I think we are even luckier from the time we spent together.
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