A seemingly slower pace... for the moment [smile]

Tues25sept-Sat29sept07
A weeklong “breather” filled with odds and ends, office projects, and a bit of one-on-one work with Levi finishing rafter cuts and other “small” tasks to prepare for the arrival of our final GV team for 2007 on Sunday. A welcome “slower” pace (all in the perspective, yes?), before engaging in virtually non-stop building from 30sept to 14oct!

With the help of document from my home affiliate in Kitsap County and shifting weather and related build opportunities, I am beginning to address the more “administrative” goals for my time here, among them ways to involve the community in HFH activities. One area still to be tried here are educational opportunities for families, both HFH families and others in the community, in the form of financing, budgeting and home maintenance. They are places to start, and it is an interesting mental exercise to translate the format and structure of what is so familiar in the states to meet the cultural and other expectations of the residences of a small town in Hungary… and I’m lovin’ it [smile]

In working through the Family support module in HFH University as part of this process, I ran across perspective/perceptions phrased in a context that caught my eye: “Often in helping relationships we are drawn to perceive needs and weaknesses. In so doing our focus becomes so oriented on needs that we are unable to see the strengths and capacities that an individual has or could apply to their situation.” Translation? It’s genuinely about perspective and where we place our focus. We can begin from a point of presumptive knowledge, or alternatively, start from the strength of the receiving audience and build from there, working from where they are versus where we either are or think they/we “need” to be. In some circles, more of a revelation than one would like to think, and a portal to learning on all sides.

Other measures of work at present…
Weather has dictated a “between the deluges” posture, picking up wood, helping with other community organizations (our HFH truck is a welcome “tool” for picking up bulk palettes of sugar/flour/pasta and other edibles for the local food bank), and working on site when dry enough that moisture and our 220 volt power tools maintain a healthy “separation” [laughing]

Acknowledging the value of “inside jobs”, they often longer/more tiring than a solid day’s work on site, and it’s become challenging to work indoors (who knew [smile])