Karibu Kenya! Welcome to Kenya!

Home Again, Home Again, Jiggity, Jig

Image by rogiro via Flickr

Yes, I'm back home safely.  Reflecting on the journey...wishing I were still there even though it's good to be "home"...planning on returning in July.  See my post on the Team 3 blog ;)  I'll be working on posting pics & video soon...I've got about 2,300 to sift through!  

Random Kenya Stuff

1)   The DUST is embedded everywhere!
2)   Small ants crawling on  the bathroom sinks
3)   Moly's amazing ability to use Mchuzi spice in every meal ;)

4)   How much at home I feel there

5)   Carry water with you at all times

6)   Carry TP with you at all times
7)   Be like a Boy Scout: Be Prepared!
8)   Purell is your best friend ;)
9)   Coke Kiosk's are everywhere!
10)  Lovin' the Nakumat- auto parts to machetes ;)

11)  Tucking yourself into bed involves a mosquito net

12)  Kawangare is the more "developed" slum-crazy thinking, but true!
13)  Buying livestock & taking it home in the van is a true Kenyan experience
14)  Getting really good at bartering
15)  Kenya time has it's own reality-nothing ever takes "just a moment"
16)  "In the rural" = anything outside the city
17)  "up country" = "up north"

18)  Kenyans are thrilled when you just know a small amout of Kiswahili
19)  Luos think you can speak their language if you know just the basic greeting
20)  I ate stuff that makes most people want to retch & I never got sick
21)  Omena, porridge, and goat are really tasty (see # 20)
22)  You can communicate with a Coke & a smile
23)  My pasty skin produces laughter & fascination everywhere I go-yeah, I'm dayglo
24)  Way Kenyan stuff makes me smile
25)  Everything is either painted Coke red or Safaricom green ;)

Broken...

hearts, vans, & one leg in two places...not  mine, our Deaconess who is also our fearless leader, broke her leg while going through the Kibera slums on a home visit :(  Sometimes the unexpected happens whether you are in Kenya or at home.  So our team's hearts are breaking in a new way for Linda & Sue who will travel back sooner than expected.  Linda will need to have surgery & the decision was made to put on a cast & go home to follow through with the care.  They hope to leave tomorrow evening on the 10 pm flight  which is the only flight out.

The rest of the team is well & worked hard to unpack a cargo container that had been sent full of donations that needed to be sorted.  It's amazing to think that even with these donations, once distributed the need will still not be quenched.  Rockie worked on finishing the tile in one of the classrooms & it now looks fabulous!

We were able to place desks in two of the classrooms where there were only benches with a narrow table top.  The teachers all received a proper desk and a file cabinet for storage.  I was able to meet with two of the teachers today during the school holiday.  I will be going to work in the classrooms on Monday as well.

The van broke down twice yesterday on the way home; both times our driver took out a tool box & got to work.  The last time we were close to home so some hopped into Pastor Meeker's car to go home, while the rest of the team got a taxi to go home.  The driver stayed behind with the van & called for help to fix the problem.  The van is fine & so are we,  just a bit bummed to lose more team members.

Ready? Steady? GO!

I love that I'm married to the only other person who gets me enough to say, "If you die over in Kenya at least you're doing what you love."

 I'm getting the last ends tied up to head out to Kenya this Wednesday.  NO, I'm not packed; everyone keeps asking me that!  I'm only taking a carry on and a backpack.  I'm also taking the same dirt colored clothing I took two years ago.  Oh, and this really sweet baby doll for a little girl my family sponsors.  Really, the hardest thing about packing is the < 3 oz. & 1 quart sized bag thing. 

The other difficult thing is one of our team members & my friend probably won't be able to come because he's so sick.  That impacts our team quite a bit since he was going to be the techie & photog.  Our challenges keep mounting: power rationing, drought, recent violence. 

One thing remains unchanged...Our Heavenly Father.  He does not shift like the sand (or Kenyan dust!).   He remains steadfast in His constant care and love for us, especially when the challenges increase.  Life is tough, but God IS Faithful! 

Pray for our checked baggage filled with medical supplies, clothing & shoes,  to make it through Kenyan customs without causing hefty bribes to be requested.  Pray for the health & safety of our team: Linda, Karen, Shani, Sue, Rockie & me.  Pray for wholeness & healing for Kirk.

Going Home?

Going back to Kenya seems like returning home; people I dearly love, places I've longed for, and a land so beautiful it makes my heart ache. I even recall the dust fondly! Yes, I felt at home there...yet I wonder what I will find when I get there. Much has changed since 2007. The December 2007 election & the eruption of post-election violence drove me to weep everyday for the people & land I had fallen in love with. People who were in such desperate need before the riots, now had lost all hope; it seemed as though the world had turned upside down. I was at such a loss to even grasp the fullness of how this changed life for hundreds I had just met. Fear for the Meekers gripped my heart & drove me to my knees.

2009 finds Kenya in the midst of a severe drought, placing those who already have so little in an even more tenuous position; crops have failed, animals dying, water becoming increasingly scarce. What will the 2009 team be faced with? Only God knows. By His Grace & Mercy we will serve in any way necessary. Will there be challenges? Certainly. Will our hearts break anew? Most assuredly. Will God be there in the midst of all the suffering? Count on it! Will we see hope & joy even in great suffering? We sure will...He gives hope to the hopeless.

16 days...1/2 way around the world...7 people..only by the Grace of our Father!