Home Sweet Home

“You made this shack a home”. That is the one statement that Mohammed made on our last day in Hegde Nagar. We were able to complete the basement, start the walls and we even began working on the foundation for the kitchen and the bathroom. Maybe we were not able to get the roof started, but we turned their piece of property that was nothing more than dirt and rubble to a dream in progress.
I worked with a team of strangers that now are family. Jan, Jane, Jim, Melissa, Steven, Rachel, Diane and I will always be connected. We also now belong to Pyari and Mohammed’s family. My sweet girls, Ruksana Banu, Yasmin and Hajira Banu will always reside in my heart. I look forward to keeping in touch with them and watching those beautiful girls develop into strong women who will change their community and the world.
When Dad died, mom and I didn’t have anywhere to live. We lost our home. Helping to provide a home for people who once were strangers, helped me to push past that loss.
I’ve been back in Seattle for almost 40 hours. I am sitting in silence, missing India. The sounds, the people, the energy, the constant actions and reactions…I miss it all. I sit here writing, feeling so fortunate that I have a roof over my head, clothes on back, food on the table, yet so sad because I sit here alone in silence. Pyari and Mohammed don’t have any those things, but they have each other and a wonderful family. Pyari is such a strong woman and I learned so much from her. I hope that one day I can be half the woman she is.
Habitat for Humanity’s Global Village Women Build program was the most rewarding two weeks of my life. I’ve traveled around the world in a group and alone, but nothing compared to this experience. I have officially been infected with what they call, “habititus”. I look forward to my future builds with Habitat. I promised myself one build a year.

Thank you Habitat for Humanity for changing my life.