Tuesday was an interesting day! We got started way late because there were a lot of people sick in the groups… We had a mini LDM workday - cleaning and bleaching and wiping everything down with Clorox wipes… We couldn’t really tell if one of the groups here was really getting overwhelmed with the sickness, or if they were just tired and run down… The people who were throwing up definitely had the sickness, but there were also people laying on the concrete patio wrapped in blankets… It was weird… Anyway, there was no one sick in our group that was headed to Rayitos de Luz so we were helping with the cleaning… The plan was to leave for Rayitos de Luz at 10:00AM, but that got pushed back to 11:30 or so… Flexico!
On our way to Rayitos de Luz (Little Rays of Light), we stopped at Sam’s to get a bunch of food… Sam’s is really cool here in Monterrey, they sell all kinds of stuff there… They have a motorcycle aisle! They sell delivery motorcycles, scooters, and even big cruiser bikes… so cool…
So we finally left Sam’s and headed on… When we got there Antonio (B2B staff) walked us around the house and explained the situation… When Jen and I came to Rayitos de Luz a month ago there was 1 bunk bed, 1 queen bed, and 1 twin bed… Now they have 5 bunk beds and 1 queen bed… They’ve gone from 4 mattresses to 11! That’s still not quite enough for 17 people, but it’s much, much better than before! Here is a picture of the bunk bed I helped the last time we worked here… It’s still the most sturdy bunk bed in Mexico, but now the wood is stained and sealed beautifully!
We fed lunch to the kids and ate the leftovers… There are 2 new people in the house from the Rio and they wouldn’t eat our sandwiches because they didn’t know what peanut butter and jelly was… Can you imagine! These kids had never even had a PB&J sandwich before! They’ll grow to love this delicacy, it’s just a matter of time…
So we walked around, assessed the situation and quickly got to work… We decided to take all of the kids to a nearby park just so we could have some breathing room to get some work done in the house…
Antonio put Tripp and I to work on fixing a bad water situation… They have a covered patio that doubles as their laundry room, but the drain is about 3 meters from the washing machine… So every time they do a load of laundry, all the water spills out onto the floor, eventually making it to the drain but causing a flood in the process… Can you imagine all of your laundry water just spilling out onto the floor each time you washed your clothes?
So we brought some PVC pipe and routed the water over to a different drain that was nearer to the washing machine… Needless to say, they were very grateful! Some of the other guys built a desk and a shelf in the front room so the family had some functional workspace… They have a table outside where the kids can do homework or projects, but there’s not really a place inside that the family could set up a computer or anything…
Antonio sent Rob up on the roof to seal around a glass block window that was leaking… Rob put several coats of Thermotek sealant on one area of the roof while Antonio looked up from below… Rob said each coat of sealant took 3 minutes to apply and 15 minutes to dry, so it was the job for him!
When Rob was not on the roof he was “schooling” Charlie at the celebrity game… The celebrity game is where one person says the name of someone famous and the other person has to think of a celebrity whose name starts with the first letter of the previous celebrity’s last name… Charlie is clearly just making up names in this picture…
You may recall that the last time we were at Rayitos de Luz we were with the Northstar team… A lot of the guys worked on securing a fence to make it harder to break into the house… The fence is now finished (with the exception of a spot over the door)… So a big thanks to all the NSV team members who put a lot of work into something that was impossible to finish… We are now standing on your shoulders!
So while we were working at the house, a group of folks took the kids to a park a few blocks away… Jen went with them because she couldn’t wait to spend the afternoon playing with Jose! This little kid is amazing… His smile is like a diamond in a coal mine!
So Jen and Jose played on the swings for a long time… It’s just always amazing to me that these kids are so happy with so little… A swingset in a dirty park, some sidewalk chalk, a soccer ball…
For the kids who didn’t want to be active (it was really hot) some of the ladies set up a craft area… The kids drew pictures, colored with crayons and markers, and made cards for their house parents… What a wonderful way to brighten the little wall space they have!
After we were done working and playing in the park, we took the kids to McDonald’s to get sundaes and play in the playland area… The kids were filled with such joy and excitement (sugar)… They ran around and climbed and wore out the plastic yellow slide… It was so fun to watch them have so much fun!
On the busride back from McDonald’s the kids were worn out… Shortly after this picture Jose was asleep in my arms... It’s such an interesting experience to hold someone in your arms that you believe in so strongly, but who’s experiences you will never be able to guide… I wonder who Jose will become… I wonder if the world will succeed in beating this joy out of him… I take great comfort, though, in seeing how God has already provided for Jose… And I know that His arms will always be able to reach farther than mine…
On our way to Rayitos de Luz (Little Rays of Light), we stopped at Sam’s to get a bunch of food… Sam’s is really cool here in Monterrey, they sell all kinds of stuff there… They have a motorcycle aisle! They sell delivery motorcycles, scooters, and even big cruiser bikes… so cool…
So we finally left Sam’s and headed on… When we got there Antonio (B2B staff) walked us around the house and explained the situation… When Jen and I came to Rayitos de Luz a month ago there was 1 bunk bed, 1 queen bed, and 1 twin bed… Now they have 5 bunk beds and 1 queen bed… They’ve gone from 4 mattresses to 11! That’s still not quite enough for 17 people, but it’s much, much better than before! Here is a picture of the bunk bed I helped the last time we worked here… It’s still the most sturdy bunk bed in Mexico, but now the wood is stained and sealed beautifully!
We fed lunch to the kids and ate the leftovers… There are 2 new people in the house from the Rio and they wouldn’t eat our sandwiches because they didn’t know what peanut butter and jelly was… Can you imagine! These kids had never even had a PB&J sandwich before! They’ll grow to love this delicacy, it’s just a matter of time… 
So we walked around, assessed the situation and quickly got to work… We decided to take all of the kids to a nearby park just so we could have some breathing room to get some work done in the house… 
Antonio put Tripp and I to work on fixing a bad water situation… They have a covered patio that doubles as their laundry room, but the drain is about 3 meters from the washing machine… So every time they do a load of laundry, all the water spills out onto the floor, eventually making it to the drain but causing a flood in the process… Can you imagine all of your laundry water just spilling out onto the floor each time you washed your clothes? 
So we brought some PVC pipe and routed the water over to a different drain that was nearer to the washing machine… Needless to say, they were very grateful! Some of the other guys built a desk and a shelf in the front room so the family had some functional workspace… They have a table outside where the kids can do homework or projects, but there’s not really a place inside that the family could set up a computer or anything… 
Antonio sent Rob up on the roof to seal around a glass block window that was leaking… Rob put several coats of Thermotek sealant on one area of the roof while Antonio looked up from below… Rob said each coat of sealant took 3 minutes to apply and 15 minutes to dry, so it was the job for him!
When Rob was not on the roof he was “schooling” Charlie at the celebrity game… The celebrity game is where one person says the name of someone famous and the other person has to think of a celebrity whose name starts with the first letter of the previous celebrity’s last name… Charlie is clearly just making up names in this picture…
You may recall that the last time we were at Rayitos de Luz we were with the Northstar team… A lot of the guys worked on securing a fence to make it harder to break into the house… The fence is now finished (with the exception of a spot over the door)… So a big thanks to all the NSV team members who put a lot of work into something that was impossible to finish… We are now standing on your shoulders!
So while we were working at the house, a group of folks took the kids to a park a few blocks away… Jen went with them because she couldn’t wait to spend the afternoon playing with Jose! This little kid is amazing… His smile is like a diamond in a coal mine! 
So Jen and Jose played on the swings for a long time… It’s just always amazing to me that these kids are so happy with so little… A swingset in a dirty park, some sidewalk chalk, a soccer ball… 
For the kids who didn’t want to be active (it was really hot) some of the ladies set up a craft area… The kids drew pictures, colored with crayons and markers, and made cards for their house parents… What a wonderful way to brighten the little wall space they have! 
After we were done working and playing in the park, we took the kids to McDonald’s to get sundaes and play in the playland area… The kids were filled with such joy and excitement (sugar)… They ran around and climbed and wore out the plastic yellow slide… It was so fun to watch them have so much fun!
On the busride back from McDonald’s the kids were worn out… Shortly after this picture Jose was asleep in my arms... It’s such an interesting experience to hold someone in your arms that you believe in so strongly, but who’s experiences you will never be able to guide… I wonder who Jose will become… I wonder if the world will succeed in beating this joy out of him… I take great comfort, though, in seeing how God has already provided for Jose… And I know that His arms will always be able to reach farther than mine…
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