For a quick look at the build check out this short video taken over the two days of construction.

[There is a video that cannot be displayed in this feed. Visit the blog entry to see the video.]

As you can see the whole thing happens so quickly. It feels like we have barely arrived on the job site and the walls are going up. This home went to Jasmine and her two sons Fidencio (5) and Alvieri (2). Can you imagine working seven days a week from 1am to 6:30am and then returning home to care for two young boys, one of whom has cerebral palsy, by yourself? That’s Jasmine’s life right now. I don’t think most of us can get our minds around the first concept of working seven days a week, much less the second. This young woman was certainly in need of a break.

It’s difficult to synthesize even a short trip into a readable blog post so here are some bullet point thoughts/reflections/rememberings/summaries:

• Caravanned from Phoenix to El Paso on Wednesday and met up with our Missions Ministries contacts: The Fields family and Jesús.
• The border crossing was longer than hoped for as we had to unload part of our U-haul-type trailer for an inspection. Held our breath and prayed, hoping they wouldn’t turn us back. Made it through and arrived at the Team Center more than 12 hours after leaving Phoenix.
• Sage was quickly adopted by the fabulous kitchen staff at the Team Center.
• Job site this year was quite different from last year and much more centrally located in the town. This meant a much smaller property to work on and several onlookers including some young men working on the house next door and the neighbor, Carmen, who Krista and Erin had the chance to chat up.
• Sherry and Erin swapped off caring for Sage and Sage napped on and off throughout the time on the job site. She was a trooper! Especially considering she had her first cold.
• Jasmine worked hard along side us pounding nails, hanging insulation, and painting. Fidencio scooted himself around on the ground with a hammer and pounded on anything he could find. Alvieri made himself at home in Randee’s arms and took a nap.
• Seeing Fidencio bouncing on the bed so excited and then watching him watch himself on a video play back of the same event and hearing him laugh hysterically and joyfully was a highlight for everyone.
• Watching the tons of diapers and formula being unloaded from the trailer and being stacked on tables was such a kick. Knowing the items will go to moms who cannot provide either for their babies makes my heart happy.
• The construction crew, kitchen staff, and Team Center hosts were pretty much the same as last year and it was fun to see familiar faces and continue the good and rewarding work of building trust with these folks who are becoming friends.
• Hosted a food outreach and craft time for the neighborhood. Highlights included watching Mauri hangout with the smallest of the kids and color pictures; Sage and I pushing kids on swings while they called out “¡Hola, bebé!” and “¡Adiós, bebé!”; watching curiously as the mothers carefully saved the sandwiches for later but ate the chips, ice cream and fruit right away; seeing Jasmine roll in having pushed Fidencio a decent ways in his off-road wheelchair; driving Jasmine and the boys home with Dusty hanging on to the wheelchair out of the back of the van.
• Joining the neighborhood church for their Friday night service. The Anderson kids, John, and Mauri shared two songs with the congregation and Krista shared greetings in Spanish on behalf of the whole group.
• Sweet goodbyes were exchanged on Saturday with hosts Leo and Susy, transportation captain and foreman, Jesús, the ladies who prepared each meal, and family member Krista who flew home from El Paso as the rest of us drove back to Phoenix.

We were supported by so many individuals and families without whom this would not have been possible. We owe a huge THANK YOU to each person who contributed with both financial and prayer support. We really tried to remember that we were representing each person who helped fund the home. When the home was dedicated and the keys handed to Jasmine we let her know that 1) there were many who sent us who provided the means and 2) the home was a gift from God and that we were merely the hands that got to build it for her.

We continue to muse and brainstorm how we can be the greatest help to the people we have met, what continuing assistance we can provide, and how we can empower them to keep changing their lives. It’s only been two trips, but we are definitely developing a love for Juarez, an amor por Juarez.

Last week I found a little list I had jotted down on the plane as we returned home last year. The list was my ideas of how to continue to be part of what’s going on in this colonia. Things like praying for a woman I met who was at about the same point in her pregnancy as I was; looking for videos in Spanish that the pastors there could show; and learning Spanish better. The best idea I had was to encourage whoever it is that does the grocery shopping in a household to add a can of formula and package of diapers to their list each time they do a big grocery run. Or, more simply, set aside the cost of a can of formula and diapers from the grocery budget and send that to Missions Ministries for the purchase and distribution of the items. (Diapers and formula are desperately needed in this community and is a significant amount of the cargo brought into the colonia each trip.) I admit I didn’t follow through well on many of the action items (and am now scrambling to practice as much Spanish as possible before we leave). Sure is easy to just get back into regular life when you return home, isn’t it?

We now wait for the final funds to be raised (we’re more than halfway to the $8300 needed for the build–click if you want to contribute) and for news about the family for whom we will be building a home. They will be our partners in the build. Perhaps they will be moving from an old van or a house made of wooden pallets or corrugated tin. Maybe they will have young children or an elderly mother or father who will survive a frigid winter (yes, it gets cold in Mexico–last year it was below freezing while we were there!) because they have an insulated home. Whatever their case, they deserve a chance to improve their lives and their health through this small thing of a home. A home without plumbing, electricity, carpet, kitchen, sink, closet, shower…just six windows, one door, and three small rooms. Quite simple, but profoundly life changing.

From there I started thinking about another one year anniversary we are celebrating soon–the start of our photography business Photo Macy. It’s kind of cool that our nearly one year celebration of a photography business should align with our first photo show, starting this Friday and lasting through the end of the month. We’ll be taking part in Newberg’s First Friday ARTwalk, which happens every month. Our stuff will be at the Pitter Patter Children’s Consignment shop–a newer shop in town that’s carries gently used maternity, baby, and kid items. It’s worth checking out and definitely meets the desire (I think) of the greater community to re-use what we can!

If you’re around and want to see the photography display for yourself, First Friday runs from 5-9pm. We won’t be there the whole time, but we plan to make an appearance during the evening. See what else is going on at Pitter Patter during the evening and other First Friday evenings at: www.newbergartwalk.com

Here’s one image you just might see on Friday…

On Tuesday I commented to John that I was feeling a bit sad and some of the feelings of mourning were on the surface. His response was great as he reminded me that one year home means we are one year closer to the next time we take a year off and travel. His positive spin gave me just the perspective I needed. We do have the goal for making another trip and hopefully many more similar trips in the future.

The flight to the US from Doha, Qatar to JFK in NYC.

]]> http://www.johnanderinmacy.com/2010/04/one-year/feed/ 1 http://www.johnanderinmacy.com/2010/03/fdft/ http://www.johnanderinmacy.com/2010/03/fdft/#comments Fri, 05 Mar 2010 17:44:34 +0000 john http://www.johnanderinmacy.com/?p=2520 Continue reading →]]> I believe it was our friend Rachel, perhaps in collaboration with others, who coined the acronym “FDFT” which stands for “Friends Doing Fun Things.” If you add a second “T” at the end, which I like to do, you tack on the word “Together” and I think that’s key. This week has been chalk full of FDFTT and as we look ahead to the weekend there’s more coming. Two of the “fun things” this week were Ignite Portland 8 and a Half the Sky movie event.

Ignite Portland is an evening of unusual public speaking. Over the course of two hours we heard 20 individuals speak for five minutes each on a topic of their choosing, in front of a backdrop of 15 slides. The topics/speakers ranged from a woman sharing about traveling with her cats to a guy who is a volunteer editor for Wikipedia to a young man highlighting how to effectively be unemployed. Some of the talks were more serious than others, but they all were comical in their own way. This event takes place about every six months at the Baghdad Theater in SE Portland. An interesting and fun evening (and FREE) worth checking out!

The following evening we headed out of town again for the Half the Sky movie. A bit more solemn than Ignite Portland, this presentation purposed to continue building awareness and activism in the area of international women’s rights and it lined up with the celebration of International Women’s Day. If you haven’t seen or heard of or read the book Half the Sky I hope you seek it out. The title of the book is based on a Chinese proverb stating “Women hold up half the sky” and the book makes an argument that the world’s most under-used resource is women. Cultures accepting and sometimes even promoting and condoning oppression and violence against women around the world stifle the advancement of the world as a whole socially, politically, and economically.

The book quickly became one of my favorites when I was hardly halfway through the text. I came back from our travels overwhelmed with thankfulness that I am a woman of a Western country. As a result, my heart developed a new compassion for women who has no basic rights or opportunity for self advancement. And I love that the statistics of this effort show an impact not only how women feel about themselves and the opportunity they have for economic growth, but even more serious things like the conviction of sex traffickers, the lowered rates of extremism and acts of war, the healthy delivery of new babies and the subsequent care of those children, the decreased spread of HIV/AIDS, and so much more.

Our weekend continues with George Fox University women’s basketball games, a birthday party, cheese-making, and who knows what else. Thanks to the “F”s who make the “FT” fun!

1. Graduated from George Fox University 2000
2. Erin finished Master’s Degree from Ithaca College 2001
3. Erin worked at Indiana State University in 1 year internship 2001-2002
4. John started working at Nike 2001
5. Erin took job at Southern Methodist University in Dallas, TX 2002
6. Started dating  2002
7. Erin moved to Oregon and took job at Portland Community College 2003
8. John gets new job with Nike GPS 2003
9. Started the weekly tradition of “Family Night” 2004
10. Got engaged and then married 2004
11. Bought a house 2004
12. Erin took a job at George Fox University 2005
13. Grandpa Roy passed away 2005
14. Erin started working on a book with colleagues from grad school 2005
15. John ran the Honolulu Marathon 2005
16. Grandpa Williams passed away 2006
17. Traveled to Costa Rica 2007
18. Decided to travel around the world 2007
19. Erin continued writing the book 2008
20. Quit our jobs and left the country 2008
21. Erin published “Golfing With Your Eyes Closed” 2009
22. Returned home from travel 2009
23. Blessed with jobs at George Fox University (Erin) and Nike (John) 2009
24. Started a business (more on this soon!)

Of course there’s tons of other things that fall in the gaps of each of these big items and should make the list, namely our families who have given us uber cool spouses, awesome nieces and nephews, and so many memories (Lins, John W., CJ, Dusty, Bailey, Marissa, Cassidy, Kylan, Addison, Paul) AND the amazing friends who have journeyed with us in that time–both those we still see regularly and those who we were with only for a season.

There are really so many more important and significant life events that have happened over the past 10 years. These have been years that have formed who will be forevermore–these are years that have truly shaped our beliefs, our friendships, our worldview, our traditions, our family habits, our relationship with each other, our passions, our careers, our lifestyle, and our goals and vision for our future. Pretty cool, hey?

The celebrating continued with New Year’s Eve–another tradition that was seen through fresh eyes. We hosted friends for a fun evening which included ping-pong, BINGO, a white elephant exchange, clanging and banging pots and pans, a midnight run, and a table full of delicious food and drinks. Again, it was good to be together.

It’s been great to have a new perspective on the usual things of the holidays and we hope to find ways to see this season with fresh eyes each year.

It ain't a party until someone's wearing a lampshade, right?

The guys gather around to find out where the child stars are today from Pete's People magazine

Midnight run... short shorts, gold leggings, and rain... great combo

]]> http://www.johnanderinmacy.com/2010/01/fresh-eyes/feed/ 1 http://www.johnanderinmacy.com/2009/10/simple-gifts/ http://www.johnanderinmacy.com/2009/10/simple-gifts/#comments Tue, 13 Oct 2009 03:26:11 +0000 erin http://www.johnanderinmacy.com/?p=2181 Continue reading →]]> Over the weekend we got together with “the fam” for what has become a favorite event–a slumber party. You may think we should have grown out of the slumber party stage after the age of 14 or 15, but we are bringing ‘em back for another round. We aren’t in the habit of playing pranks on one another or even staying up until 5am–guess we had enough of that in college (at least the latter). However, we have been known to sit around and eat pizza, talk, watch our favorite shows, and perhaps bust out some sweet dance moves.

This was the fifth or sixth slumber party in the past two years and the first time, to my knowledge, that we did a group project. The project was to make up care packages for the homeless. How many times have you driven out of the grocery store or off the interstate and seen a man, woman, or child holding up a sign asking for help–food, money, beer… anything? The idea of these care packages was originally introduced to us by our friend Tami and we have intended to do this for quite awhile so we were glad to take advantage of our time together. We divided up the list and everyone brought their goods to the party. Saturday morning as we lazed around we sorted everything into ziplock bags and voila, in no time at all we had put together 24 bags, three per person, at a cost of approximately $5 per bag.

This is a great and super easy way to join forces with friends and make a small difference. It’s also a great alternative to giving money. There are a ton of different things you could put into a gallon Ziplock bag. Here’s what we put in our bags to give you some ideas for your own:

• gloves
• hand warmers
• raisins
• granola bars
• bottle of water (juice box is great too!)
• tissues
• hand sanitizer
• warm socks
• stamped envelope and a few sheets of paper

So now, we leave the bags in the car and when we pull up to someone who is in need, we have a great care package that we can hand out the window (or even gently toss if you can’t stop completely). You could even go for a smaller version of these bags that are easier to carry in a purse or bag if you’re not in your car very often, but still have encounters with people who need a little help.

• Family time at the airport with the Macy’s in person and Erin’s parents over the phone
• A lunch of Panda Express Orange Chicken
• Arriving in the wee hours of the morning into the rather small Nadi, Fiji airport
• Airport ATMs that did not want to give us money (a bit stressful)
• John nearly getting smacked by a bus within the first two hours of being in Fiji
• A beautiful ride out to the Yasawa Islands on the bright yellow and purple Yasawa Flyer
• ..and being greeted by singing Fijians as we embarked on Waya Lailai Island

It’s fun to think back to those first few days of travel and consider how much we learned between the time we left PDX in September and when we returned in May. One of the “takeaways” John suggested from our Fiji time was to have a day at least once a year where we turn the heat in the house up to about 85 degrees, laze around in shorts and swim suits (preferably in hammocks), read an entire book in one day, greet each other and everyone we see with a big “BULA!”, summon each other to meals by hitting a drum, have a Farkel tournament, play some rugby, and perhaps give fire dancing a try. Once the winter weather hits this will surely be going on the calendar!

The bill itself asks Congress to provide an additional $50 million over three years to be used in focus countries to help them work against trafficking in children. This may seem like a big chunk of money to be going abroad in such economic times, but when you consider that less than 1% of the national budget goes to foreign aid, AND when you consider the incredible and nearly unbelievable crime of selling and purchasing children for slave labor and prostitution, it doesn’t seem like such a sacrifice. If you’re interested in learning more about this bill, HR 2737, or encouraging your Congressperson to take leadership in this bill, get connected with IJM.

Our experience in Cambodia (a country that has a terrible record of child prostitution, but is taking steps slowly to bring justice to the offenders) working with girls who were at risk of being sold by family members into the sex industry clearly impacted us. It’s easy for us to quickly become overwhelmed with the complexity and depth of this problem. We are grateful to have the opportunity to be small voices that will hopefully join with other voices to make a huge impact in the world.