Being Rich...

This was an interesting week for Amy and me as God continued to work on our hearts and minds (and bodies!) like the potter and the clay written about in Isaiah 64:8. On Sunday, Amy developed some pain in her abdomen that we didn't think too much about until Monday morning when it got pretty severe. Just another indication of how disrupted life still is down here, we had to search for a doctor and finally were able to find one in downtown New Orleans. Many, if not most of the clinics and hospitals were wiped out in the storm and have not returned yet. The closest hospital with 24 hour emergency care that we could find is almost 40 minutes from Camp Restore!
So we spent much of Monday at the doctor's office waiting for someone to look at Amy. (Note picture of "sad Amy" to the left...) Our biggest concern was that she had something like appendicitis or a hernia, but after the doctor (also a Christian!) was able to poke and prod a little bit, he felt that it was most likely a muscular pull or something like that, so we had to monitor her temperature, etc. just to make sure. She was on "light duty" for much of the week, although she definitely did alot more than she probably should have... Her heart wouldn't let her body slow down and she continued laying tile and grouting at Eddie's house when she probably should have been taking it easy... One of the things that kept her going this week was actually one the guys we were working with - a guy named Rich from Illinios. In 2005, Rich was in an industrial accident at his workplace and was burned on over 60% of his body. He was in a coma for 3 months after the accident and is still having skin grafts done nearly 4 years after his accident. The first morning Rich joined our crew, we noticed that he had lost a couple of fingers in his accident, had difficulty walking, had lost some mobility in his wrists and ankles, and was visibly burned on his face, arms and legs, and had a bandage on his arm from a skin graft that he had received just before he came down to volunteer.

Rich is a pipefitter by trade and the house we were working on needed to have some sinks and tubs connected so we could get running water to the kitchen and bathrooms, and praise the Lord, Rich volunteered at just the right time so the work could be done. When we started talking with Rich, he told us that he spends most of his time volunteering at different camps like Camp Restore, and that this was his 4th or 5th trip down to New Orleans in the last few years. He gives more of his time to volunteer at burn camps to work with children who have been burned and to help them deal with the trauma that comes from being a burn victim....... So just when Amy and I are feeling pretty good about what we are doing, God sends someone into our lives to (rightfully) knock us down a few pegs and put things back in perspective once more. Here is a guy that had every right to give up and focus on himself and his own problems, and he has chosen to put all of his energy into volunteering and making the lives of other people better. God doesn't need our tile laying abilitities... He wants our hearts. The Potter and the clay...

On a lighter note, over the course of the past week and a half, we have made a neat bond with Eddie (the homeowner that we have been working with mentioned in last week's post). Eddie is 76 years old and is a jazz musician here in the city. On Monday, he invited us to come and hear him and his brass band play at the Candlelight Lounge in the 6th Ward (also known as Tremme). Tremme is the oldest free settlement of African Americans in the United States and has a long and storied history. Amy and I so were honored (and excited!) to go hear him play. He was AWESOME! (See attached video clip of him soloing on the trombone). It has been such an inspiration to us to see how the people of New Orleans have continued to live their lives in the face of such adversity and are slowly putting things back together, and how important their relationships with their neighbors and friends have become to them. I know that Amy and I will treasure the relationships that we are making already.
As we ask every week, please continue to keep us in your prayers. As we are both rediscovering muscles in our 35 and 40 year old bodies that we forgot existed (yikes!), please pray for strength and endurance for our bodies as well as for wisdom and safety as we continue on our trip. We love you all! ~Dave and Amy

Don't forget to listen to Eddie below!!