11 Months and 27 Days

Suddenly, “My Name is Earl” makes a lot more sense.

I made it and am in my RV. And it is an RV. I have a kitchen and a bathroom, but no running water. Go figure.

The port-a-potties are in one place, and the flush toilets/showers/washer dryer are in another.

The RV is smaller than my apartment in Indonesia, and I'll ultimately be sharing this little abode with another roomate. Oh, my.

They do have everything here, though. (And if they don't, Walmart is half a mile up the road.)

The actual grounds aren’t as big as I thought, although I don’t know what I was expecting. We’re also right in town, which, for whatever reason, I wasn’t expecting, either.

I honestly don’t have much of a clue what I was expecting. A bunch of trailers in a circle around a campfire, I guess. Like modern stagecoaches on the western trails.

And I thought everyone here would be here for months at a stretch. But now I think when I heard “long-term volunteers,” it meant “long-term for volunteers.”

There are many people here, but for the most part, the people are in for days or weeks at a time, not months. Right now, I think there are some exceptions but I’m not sure who all they are. I know that most people were quite surprised when I said I’d be here a year.

And right now, I’m kind of shocked at the thought, too. This place is kind of a mix of the kind of places I’ve lived lately, including the ranch.

The showers are a hike away. They are all in trailers – everything is, and that makes sense. I am not sure what the flooring is, but it’s lined with those rubber things you stand on to ease your back at places like the Y camp or the ranch. The hot water was dicey – the washer and dryer are separated by a barrier but in the same trailer. I had a little trouble washing my hair without freezing, but when the hot water works it’s fabulous.

The “sidewalk” leading to the trailers (there are four trailers and two RVs, plus other volunteers park their own RVs on the property) are made out of old pallets with particle board.

We eat in a circus tent, and on the inside the walls are lined with quilts. I’m pretty it’s for looks and not for insulation – they are very pretty.

There’s also a big rec trailer that doubles as a chapel. The circus tent has a bunch of games in it, too. Another tent will be up across from me soon, too. Right now it’s there but there’s nothing but a big mud puddle in front of it.

My RV is in the very back, so that’s nice even if the walk is a little longer. I only have one neighbor who can likely hear my TV instead of two.

The long-term volunteers aren't. I think I must have misunderstood that. It’s really a place long-term FOR volunteers, I now think it meant. People come, stay and do the actual rebuilding of homes for three days, a week or so and then leave and more come.

Everyone is nice, of course. I’ve already met a bunch but it’s hard to keep track of who’s coming and going. The managers (a married couple) will be leaving in a week; their replacements are due soon. The cooks, who are in the RV next to me, aren’t here long-term, either. They are from Nebraska.

It seems what happens is all the groups are their own crews and they go work on different houses during the day and return in the evenings. I noticed after the meal tonight (scalloped potatoes and ham, with peas and carrots and pineapple as side dishes; cookies for dessert – and they do have tea) more people started coming back from their sites and having different group meetings.

I’ll get more of a clue as the time goes on. I talked today with one of my new counterparts, who is the pastor (or one of them) of the church where my little trailerhood is located (Hope Village). We did a little rundown of what’s coming up, but it was pretty brief. It’s his silver anniversary as a pastor and he has family in this week so he’s got a lot going on.

Really, I have no idea what’s in store for me. And I’m OK with that.

My swear-in was a couple days ago and service is 12 months. I’m three days into it. Eleven months plus left. Machi muchkil.