a week in a place called "hope"

Reflections from Esperanza,

It should come as no surprise to me that past week I spent serving and helping out at a native rehabilitation and healing center served to refocus and cleanse me. Esperanza, which when translated means hope, is nestled in a West Coast Island setting that can best be described as being an eerie kind of beautiful. It’s the kind of place that sent shivers down my spine at I stood in the damp cold rain and looked across the water at the mist that seemed to hover above the mountains.
This week had its challenges on many levels. From the pounding rain, yielded from a series of major storms, that kept us company like an unwelcome guest for our entire stay, to the fact that I took on the role of head cook for our group of 41 people for the week, to the work projects we helped out with. Our group of students amazed me yet again with their positive attitudes and resilience. They were more than willing to help out wherever they were needed which included anything and everything from; chopping firewood, installing drywall, playing with the children, cleaning and cooking.
The most memorable of all our work projects would have to be the reconstruction of a pipeline that will equip the residents of Esperanza with a power source, freeing them up from the generator they are dependent upon. I am still not confident that I can paint an accurate picture of what this work project looked like, but I must say it reminded me of my time spent building a house in Guatemala five years ago. It was primitive, and labour intensive work as we hauled huge pipes up a hill on our shoulders in the rain (and the occasional period of hail) to rebuild a pipeline that had been washed away the week before in flood caused by a rainstorm. It was both intense and character building to say the least, and I couldn’t help but laugh at the hilarity of my life at moments like those.

For me personally the week’s experience was a profound one. Having made the choice to stay with my community instead of going home to be with my family for my uncle’s funeral I subconsciously decided that I would give this group of people, this place, this time all that I had to give. For me it was a week of rest in the midst of stress and busyness, and it was the subtle yet meaningful shift for me from seeing life in light of the duties and tasks to be accomplished to seeing the beauty and the honour in the opportunity that I believe God has called me to.

Earlier this fall I read a book by Jean Vanier and he says “I do not believe you can put down roots and grow in community unless you consciously believe that God has called you there”. In a lot of ways that is how I would describe what happened for me, I decided to embrace where I am instead of wishing I could be somewhere else. As a result the way I interact with the students, my co-leaders and even with myself has been refreshed. And once again I cannot help but recognize the way that God was with us that week. We were on an Island without power, yet we stayed at a place that ran off of generators… while we were there the logging road we arrived on was washed out by the storm, yet there was a barge nearby and the driver offered to relocate our vans to another port for free… time after time I felt as though we were well cared for, in a way that exceeds logic.
All in all I can conclude that the week we spent in Esperanza was a highlight for me, and instilled in me a new sense of hope for the days to come and the adventures that will accompany those days.