When we first arrived in our Ejido, named “21 del Marzo (March 21), Lacynda was in need of a counter top. I faced a dilemma: We may never live in this house again, even when we come back to Mexico next fall. After prayer and talking with the brothers in Christ, I decided it would be a blessing to build but not only for us, but for the others who may come and use this house for the work of the Lord. In addition, it would be very expensive for the owners to add a counter, but only a small sacrifice for us.

How to build it?
In the states, a run to the nearest LOWES or HOME DEPOT to buy the correct amount of prefab. cabinets and a cheap prefabricated counter top is the answer. This is not so in Mexico, for two important reasons:
1) Wood and anything made with wood is extremely expensive. For example, a small wood cabinet in the states would be $50; here it is $80 or more.
2) Wood has short shelf life due to high heat, humidity, and the plethora of termites that infest an unattended home very quickly.

So here they build everything, and I mean everything, out of bricks and concrete. There is a phrase in Mexico for when someone takes unlikely things and remakes them into something useable: “Mexicanada”. To me, building a new countertop out of concrete is mexicanada; to them it is a way of life. I thought I knew how much work was ahead of me, but I did not have a clue. Being a “jack-of-all-trades and master-of-none,” I set out to learn brick laying, concrete mixing and pouring, plaster mixing from my mexican brothers in Christ.

First, we chiseled the outline where the bricks would go. Next, we drove to the old dry creek bed, called a Rollo, and shoveled out as much sand as needed. I brought it home and sifted it, shovel load by shovel load, to remove big rocks and debris. For a project as small as mine, it was a three-day task; I can only imagine for a whole house. Then we mixed the mortar: sand, cement, and cal. Next we built the walls. This is where I learned the most of my lessons.

This whole section of my post I dedicate to Steve Shelton…
…The worship leader at the church I attend in Evansville. If he were here to see my crooked lines and unleveled surfaces, I would have heard about it for days. If I had taken my time with this part, my next task would not have been nearly as hard.

After he and I spent many days correcting my work and applying the plaster correctly, I enlisted the help of another Mexican brother, Alfonzo, whom I have also mentioned previously. He has spent many years working concrete and helped me prep, mix, and pour the counter top.

So, after all the hard work and 3 days of good drying time I took off the form boards and put in a sink and connected a gravity-fed water tank to a hose for Lacy to do dishes. And it was complete!