When Isabel met Olivia

From above our heads, hammers ring loudly through the thin, water-splotched walls, mixing delightfully with the teasing and busyness bouncing around me as I try to help prepare lunch for the team outside. Just a few feet from the kitchen door, sheet rock, electric wiring, window trim, and shingles are somehow managing to fit together into a new house. Around the crowded table in the old house, onions, batter, fresh fish, and cactus will soon be mouthwatering fish tacos with all the trimmings. Between slices of cucumber, I enjoy watching the three women I'm working with interact. You can tell they've known each other for awhile- for all the teasing, Isabel is undisputedly the one in charge. In her late fifties-early sixties, she's had a lot of practice leading at her 7 day/week job supervising vegetable packing at some of the farm operations, the huge white tents just tiny specs in the valley below the build. Her eyes are warm and deep, her face telling a hard story. But she's a survivor- not the bitter type, but the one who's chosen reserved, dignified gratitude to a new-found Jesus. The kind of person who has your respect in the first few minutes of a conversation. And her friend, Irene, is all braids, honesty and exuberant life. Easily letting Isabel call the shots, but not afraid to shush her fretting and make her relax.She's the one who let me in on my favorite discovery of Mexican cooking- fish taco batter comes in a Just Add Water mix, available at any supermercado! And their third friend, who's name escapes me, adds a little quiet sweetness to the blend, trying to let me feel like I was actually helping.

Just as the cooking crew of the day is special, so is the team outside. John and Jane Ray have been part of our Ensenada family for years (even if they actually live in Arkansas), blessing us with their caring hearts, love, and expertise on responsible support raising and how to do it (Jane is the one I mentally beg for forgiveness from when I get lazy about keeping up this blog!) This summer, I got to meet their daughters for the first time (because I'm newer to the base than they are, not the other way around). Sadly, I never got to meet their youngest, Olivia, who died in a car accident last fall. This team is made up of people from different parts of the country who love Olivia and her family. It's in her memory that they are here, representing a whole community of people who gave financially to make this and three other houses possible so far. And despite having a good time and working hard, I can sense the seriousness with which they work. This house isn't just about feeling good- it's about love.

For the Olivia's Basket team, this home is an extension of their love for one little girl. And I know Isabel and her family felt that love deep down.

 The fish tacos were a huge hit (I believe I ate four myself), barely a scrap left over in the aftermath of bowls on the kitchen table. And a few hours later, as the keys to Isabel's new home are being passed around and each person has a chance to share his heart, I sense something that I'm just now putting into words. I may never have met Olivia Ray, but I think Isabel and her family did that weekend. I think they understand who Olivia was everytime they walk through the door of their home. And even more, they understand a God who collects our tears in a bottle and refuses to waste our pain.

Isabel's grandchildren and friends play follow the leader- the 4 yr. old in pink takes after her grandma's management skills. Isabel's husband, Ramon, watches quietly from the background.

Haley carefully paints a sign with Isabel and Ramon's family name to hang on the outside of the finished house. Go, Haley!

The aftermath of fish tacos and ensalada de nopales (cactus salad) for 30 people. Good times!

Jane's fabulous instructions for the paint crew adorn the corner of the port-a-pottie.

Impromptu soccer games are always hit in any Mexican neighborhood, especially since school's out for the summer.

This lovely young woman is doing an excellent job of painting the interior. Notice the drywall cutting going on behind her. Multitasking is the bottom line of getting a house done in a day and half.

During the dedication of the house, Isabel's sister and friend both thanked us for blessing her with a home. From the amount of tears shed in English and Spanish, I don't think that Isabel was the only one blessed by this outpouring of love.