Sweat Equity

Greetings from Jamaica, mon.

Today has gone very well. I took the best cold shower in my life this afternoon, after spending the morning on a construction site. Another team member and I back-filled the foundation of a house, while the rest of the team moved gravel by bucket and wheelbarrow to fill the foundation. We all did a lot of digging and lifting...and sweating! My shirt wasn't quite wringing wet with sweat, but it was close. It may seem odd that the medical team was working on a construction site, but in the grand scheme it makes good sense. A local landowner who believes in the work that ACE is doing is renting them land at a very low price to be used as both a children's village and as a medical clinic. Both are very exciting. The children's village will be a place for fostered children to be raised in a stable home, with foster parents raising then with christian values, education, and a trade. And then there's the clinic. So exciting! The clinic is so very needed. All of the state of the art equipment that the people in this area would have to travel to Montego Bay to have access to, 2 hours away, has been donated and is ready to be placed once construction is completed. In the future, medical teams that visit, like the one that I'm with now, will spend a lot of time in this clinic and will be able to give more consistent care. As Dr. Guy put it today, it's really wonderful to put some sweat equity into a project that will last longer than us and benefit so many.


Needless to say, the chiropractor has been busy treating the team today, and loving it! We held a clinic this afternoon for staff members here at the mission and their families. It was really great, and they were very appreciative of the service. And, the setting wasn't bad! I was on a veranda with a full view of the ocean. In fact, when I asked people to sit up or roll over on the table, I would ask then to 'face the ocean'. Wouldn't it be lovely to be able to do this everyday!

Tomorrow were back to holding a regular clinic day, which will be our last. I think that I have one day of hard work left in this body...but I'm sure that I'll have nice memories of shoveling tomorrow via achy shoulders! All for the Glory of God!

My view as I worked.  Not bad, mon!