The Big Dig

You may have heard about a transportation project in the east coast dubbed, “The Big Dig.” Of course Chapelwood members are familiar with the Katy freeway expansion. Well, in Kidapawan, The Philippines, “The Big Dig” is the many foundation holes that continue to grow at the Southern Philippines Methodist Colleges. No question it is hard work, with B.J and Warren Castagnetta, Dave and Kathie Luther, Bob Lassalle, and Chris Archer doing the heavy lifting. You would think just shoveling out the dirt doesn’t take much thought, but in a climate like the Philippines there are special challenges.

Take for instance the rain. You would think after living in Houston the team would be adequately prepared. However in Kidapawan, it rains more than 120 inches per year, nearly 3 times the amount that falls on Houston annually. So rain isn’t just a some times thing, it’s an everyday thing. So when you’re digging out a hole, it gets muddy, the shovels get heavier, and you look like a mess. But there are things to do during the rainstorms. The tap dance is to make sure you have a tarp over some of the holes you are working on so when it rains you shovel out them. But when it’s sunny outside, that’s when you begin clearing out new holes, knowing you’ll be back under the tarp at anytime. So you see even in digging out construction holes, it can be a science.

It was mostly sunny today, and the team got a new construction project which goes hand in hand with the other. The men’s dormitory is in badly need of a new stove area, so today the job began. So guess what, that meant digging holes in a new area, although these weren’t as deep. Only four holes for this project and then the fun to make suitable concrete to set the rebar to anchor the base. Since it’s Friday, the concrete should have time to set so more work can be done on Monday. After just digging for the past few days, this project was a nice respite.

Doctor Ed continues to see students as he is providing much needed medical services to the school. The count is up to 50, or nearly half of the student body, pardon the pun, this week alone. The good doctor also finished his lectures on the history of Christianity. Frankly, other than his wife Nell who took the tours with him, I don’t know a person who has visited more Biblical sites than Doctor Ed and put them into a PowerPoint presentation.

Kathie Luther not only taught another English class today, but she got a music lesson this afternoon. It’s a very good thing because many of us can’t carry a tune, and we have a command performance at Church on Sunday. We endeavor to hold are own, but we’re happy to report will be singing with a group a students, not all by ourselves. I’ll let you know how we do on Sunday.

And for the first time in perhaps 15 years, I played some full court basketball. The Philippine youngsters are especially curious about my size. You may find this hard to believe, but in the 6th grade I was one of the smallest kids in my class. Now at 6’1” and a bit on the heavy side, I tower over the Filipinos. I sort of looked like “Big Country” out there with my overalls, but I did hit a couple of shots earning big cheers from the adoring fans. Well it least it gave them a thrill. As for me, I was a bit winded after only a few minutes and I’m not going to talk about my shooting percentage.

Carleton Cole