Miguel's Walls

Given that Tito wanted Nicola rather than me to stay to finish his wall I set off with Jan, Laurent, Kate and Trevor to Miguel's house.

Miguel was building a house himself in front of the shack he had been living in. This was the intention of most inhabitants of 22 de Enero (22nd of January) neighbourhood although many never achieve that dream with the shack often simply being extended to form a larger shack/home. You will see from the photo above the shack to the top right and the new house in front. Miguel was already living in that part of the house that had been finished and had a roof over it. This just had his bed in it and a couple of hooks on the wall for his clothes to hang on. It was a humbling experience to see a man of his age living with so little and striving to provide himself with a proper home. He told me that he may be in heaven before he completes his task. I truly hope that he is able to live out many years in a finished comfortable home to replace the hardship that he has clearly gone through in recent times.

The morning spent in Tito's house under Nicola's expert tuition set me in good stead to work with Jan in laying bricks along one side of the house whilst Laurent and Kate tackled the other side. We worked hard through the afternoon until the cement that had been mixed was used up and Miguel was ready for a nap.

[Back Row - L to R: Kate, Brian, Miguel and Jan; Front: Laurent]

I left Miguel's feeling very glad that I was part of the Habitat for Humanity Global Village Challenge and had been able to help in a small way with the construction of a home for someone that was very much in need of it.

You can help people in Miguel's situation by donating at www.justgiving.com/argentina2009.

See also: Day 10 at Miguel's House in Pictures