Handsome Wages

Townhome in Progress

Saturday dawned cloudy and cool, perfect for a day of painting, hanging drywall, and trenching. We met in the church parking lot and caravanned down to the worksite, joining thirty other members of our denomination.

This was the first collaboration by Peninsula Episcopal churches—a day spent helping the Habitat for Humanity build townhouses in Redwood City. Habitat’s cost per unit will be about $300,000, pricey in many parts of the country but half the cost of a new home on the Peninsula.

Don Varney

I grabbed my hard hat and listened to the safety instructions: bend your knees and not your back, watch where you walk, and don’t climb ladders propped against the wall. Common sense to be sure, but not an attribute of which I have in excess supply.

We volunteered to hang insulation and carried rolls of fiberglass to the top floor of one of the more finished units. Our job was to measure and cut the strips so that they fit the spaces between the beams, then secure them with staples. There were many false starts, especially with odd-shaped pieces and fixtures that got in the way, and it wasn’t until late morning that we hit our rhythm.

By the time the noon horn sounded, we were ravenous. The lunch crew had laid out an ample spread of hamburgers, hot dogs, chips, and fruit. Drinks were soda and bottled water. We had been drinking water throughout the day in order to keep hydrated---a word one hardly knew existed 30 years ago but which one now hears all the time as a precaution against heat exhaustion. Drink lots of water, get plenty of sleep and exercise, quit smoking, and eat your fruits and vegetables---did we really need science to confirm what our mothers told us?

Insulation Workgroup

By mid-afternoon I took stock of our progress. We had completed half the room, less than I had hoped. Partly to make up for our lack of speed I attempted something best left to the professionals. Perching a ladder somewhat precariously on a couple of planks, I stapled insulation in some hard-to-reach spots high above the stairs. (I also wanted to impress Karla, the cute supervisor, who had been frowning and biting her tongue all day.) At four o’clock Karla thanked us and smiled. Helping others, free food, and a woman’s smile…..handsome wages for a day’s work. © 2008 Stephen Yuen

A Tiny Bit

Volunteers on a lunch break.

The youngster sat on the curb and voiced his frustration. “I’m not doing anything useful. I’m just pulling weeds and hauling garbage.”

I’m doing that, too.

“Why can’t I help you? I want to use a hammer.”

You can’t step into the buildings because of the insurance. The insurance doesn’t allow kids to be on the site. Once some children probably got hurt, and their parents sued Habitat for Humanity for a lot of money. Habitat needs money for materials, not lawsuits.

“But I want to do something important.”

You are doing something important. Building a house is more than hammering and sawing and painting. Someone has to clean up the outside and pick up the trash. The guy who installs the balcony is no better than the guy pushing the wheelbarrow; each has given eight hours of his time. Do you think that they’re doing it for recognition?

“No.”

Are they getting any money?

“No.”

So why are they here? Why are you here?

“To build a house for people who don’t have a house….?”

Yes. You gave up your Saturday to help somebody, instead of playing games or going to the movies. I’m proud of you.

My brief sojourn into the Socratic method had reached a dead end. With young teens there’s a limit to subtlety and inductive reasoning. You have to tell ‘em, then show ‘em, then tell ‘em again and hope a tiny bit sticks. © 2006 Stephen Yuen

Building Five Homes, in Daly City. 15 Peninsula churches participated.