Home for the Holidays

Rebuilding houses for people who have spent the last 2 and a half years squeezing their very large hearts into very small spaces has given me a new appreciation for the value and power of four walls and a roof. I have never felt especially compelled to give up the no-strings-attached life of a renter. It is a lifestyle that, among other things, allowed us to make the journey here. I am beginning to understand, however, the beauty of a home that is completely your own. Here, of course, the homes belong completely to others, but I must confess to becoming a little attached (possessive?) as I hang drywall, mud seams or install trim around doors and under windowsills.

Being "home for the holidays" has also taken on new meaning here. St. Bernard Parish is full of people who have been celebrating Christmas in trailers for two years. Last weekend we joyfully celebrated the end of all that with one family. Steve and I had both done some finishing work in the home of a single mother, and on Saturday, when we showed up with several other long-term volunteers to take care of a few last-minute issues, she asked us to help her decorate the tree she had just hauled into the living room. It was the first thing that came into the house - before dishes, before curtains, before furniture. Several months ago, when she told him that St. Bernard was going to be able to help rebuild their home, her ten-year-old son's first question was, "Does that mean we get to have a Christmas tree in our own living room?" Last week, we hung ornaments on that tree, and watched a ten-year-old stretching from the top of one of our construction ladders to place the angel on top.