Friday eve

Today was my first day "off site". The last couple of days I've been in the kitchen preparing meals for the residents and volunteers --- creativity a must in this kitchen with the various ingredients! Good thing there are lots of spices on the rack and hot sauce on the tables!

Today a small group of us went to Manny's place "just down the road" to help him 'round the house. We hauled bagged insulation onto the trailer and assisted him in completing the wiring in time for the inspector this evening. He's getting the house ready for his Mama who's now living in NO. He was formerly a tugboat captain - the best on the Mississippi from the sounds of his stories. He is such a delightful and gracious man. He had fixed lunch for us this morning before we arrived and was it ever good after our work - pasta noodles with a delicious spicy red sauce and hot dogs! Yes, I said hot dogs. It was soooo good that I just might fix that dish back home :)

This evening in our tribal council, we will reflect on what we're grafeful for in our lives and how we've been changed on this journey. The last few days cooking in the kitchen and using a jizsaw, drill and file to cut a hole in a piece of metal for the breaker box, I realized just how grateful I am for my parents who taught me many of the skills I have utilized on this trip and in my life. I'm grateful for my dad and mom for taking the time to show me how to use tools both in the kitchen and for house repair; for teaching me to be self-sufficient; for teaching me problem solving and for teaching me to love unconditionally. How fortunate I am to have my parents still teaching me - only now it's mostly about politics!! :)

I'm eager to hear from our council of Yellow Ninjas tonight for they are my teachers as well. One person shared about how his caught himself getting into judgement about the residents here and how he chose to put himself in their shoes and imagine how it must be for them a year and a half after this devastating disaster. As he opened his heart to release his judgments, he opened my eyes to my own judgements about others.

We expect to leave about 8:30 central time on Sat and stop in NO for about an hour and a half in the French Quarter for a little shopping! A well-deserved break for a little play before we hit the road home.

Thank you again for all your comments. We'll see you soon back in beautiful east Tennessee.

Be Well, be gratefull.
with a full heart,
Mary