Last night we had 10 volunteers sleeping in the house. About half are Israelis. The other half are from the United States, Colombia, Panama or Mexico. I'm in both the halves. And neither.
The house is full. And it's empty.
In the house we have one shower and one toilet. I'm the only person that has a language in common with everyone else, unless you count one of the Israeli girls, Alona, who says she can understand a little Spanish. (She uses her English to talk to the South American group).
There's also a cat that is always trying to get inside. One of the Thai workers, who we know as Nop, named it "Barbecue" as a self-aware racist joke, and also because Barbecue is very fat. He is constantly rubbing up against people's legs and looking for attention or food. But most Israelis think of cats the way Americans think of raccoons. He is still very sweet, even to people who've threatened or chased him. And Barbecue might be a she, nobody's been able to check.
The master bedroom sleeps two, another bedroom has 3, I'm in the sheltered room with two roommates, the office room in front of the shelter has one more, the sofa in the living room had 2 last night (I think they moved to another house in Yated today though) and Alona's mattress is in the corner by the dining table.
Nobody complains, and everyone is considerate and helpful. A couple of people are more religious and have koshered a pot and a few knives. There's no internet or TV, which I'm grateful for, I prefer the sound of people talking.
In the morning on Tuesday it rained, we cancelled work until 11. I cleaned the house a bit and learned a few Hebrew words with a few games of Codenames.
From 11 to 3 I worked with two other volunteers to roll up dry passionfruit vines and clear the dead plants from the field. A third went ahead of us to pick the remaining passionfruit and the Thai workers were in between cutting the vines with chainsaws. It's extremely fun rolling the branches into a wheel. And it was the hardest work I've done since I've gotten here. I want to work that hard all the time, but I probably would collapse.
When I got back to the house I took a shower. There was a bit of a puddle when I was done, but I was used to it draining slowly. Only this time it didn't drain at all, and after I got out, it was only a matter of time before someone else wanted to take a shower and noticed the problem. Still oblivious, we made and ate dinner. As the sun set I relaxed and watched one of the volunteers, Ahava, help Alona learn the Arabic alphabet. They are both 17 years old and about to enlist in the coming months.
But soon, I was working with a few housemates to open the shower pipes. What we eventually had to do was go around the back of the house, open the manhole over the septic tank with a crowbar, ignore the swarm of cockroaches, and clear the blockage in front of the central drain from the house (the crowbar was also useful there). And now I know where everything is and how to do it myself.
Over her dinner, Alona talked about counting calories. She had to gain some weight to reach 50 kg, a minimum weight for the units she wants to serve in. Now that she's above the minimum she's trying to maintain the weight and build muscle.
Over the last two days, I've been a farm hand, an amateur journalist, a plumber, and a translator, sometimes doing more than one thing at the same time. There is a rare beauty in Talmei Yosef. Even when I'm tired and a little grossed out.
Eidan, you MUST go for a singles night on March 5 at Match Madness, Tel Aviv’s first live dating show in English! Grab your tickets starting February 15. Margot Touitou is the mastermind behind this! https://bit.ly/m/margotexplainsitall
I know what you mean. It is so, so important to feel useful.