It is hard to believe that it is October and in two months we will have been here one year.  Fr. David’s saying of “every day is an adventure” is very true. Every day we are given new opportunities to learn something about the mission and its purpose and programs that help to serve the orphans and other vulnerable people.  We have also been given insight to the culture of Kenya and have seen firsthand what joy looks like in people who live in poverty and encounter many hardships in their daily lives.  In the past ten months, we have experienced and learned much but also know we still have much more to learn.   

Last Sunday, we drove to Kisii to attend the 6:30 am Mass at the Cathedral.  Because the girls were still on their school break here at Gekano, Fr. David was not sure what time Mass would be so he suggested we go to Kisii.  When we got back to the mission house, one of the Sisters next door told us that they (Sisters) went to Mass at 7 am but there was no priest and told by others that Mass would be at 9 am but in the end Mass started around 10 am…we were glad we drove to Kisii.  The drive back to the mission house gave Kathy an opportunity to get some driving time in as the roads were not very busy.  Driving here can be nerve-racking because there is always a lot of activity on the road:  people walking on the road, animals crossing the road as well as animals grazing right next to the road, pikipiki drivers passing on both sides of the vehicle and the oncoming traffic that is in your lane because they are passing other vehicles when they shouldn’t be.

On Sunday afternoon we went to visit Faith, the young girl that we have taken to different doctors several times in the past few months.  When we arrived at the shamba where Faith lives with her aunt when not attending boarding school, Faith immediately came running to greet us with a huge smile on her face and gave us a big hug.  We had brought Faith a gift – a new pink and white dress.  Immediately upon giving it to her, she went and put it on and never took it off while we were there.  It was good to see her and to see that her medical issues are resolving for the most part and that school was going well.  While there, we were served uji which is a porridge that is made from ground millet and water.  It almost looks like Cocoa Wheats though it doesn’t taste like Cocoa Wheats!  To us, it really doesn’t have much of a taste at all.  Wes doesn’t mind it as long as he has sugar (lots) to go with it while Kathy is not a fan of the porridge due to the texture but we graciously accepted a cup of it for they were offering us something from the little they have.  After we finished our uji, we said our good-byes and wished Faith a good third term of school. 

Prior to going to Faith’s home, we had a downpour of rain and some hail fell as well.  To receive hail is not very common here.  The temperatures have been very mild and something we haven’t experienced much here is wind but this week we noticed there were winds of maybe 15-20 miles per hour (best guess)!  On laundry day it was nice to have this breeze along with the hot sun; together they speeded up the drying process.  Fr. David explained we are experiencing the trade winds which are winds that reliably blow east to west just north and south of the equator – we happen to be about 45 miles south of the equator.  It is springtime here in the Southern hemisphere and therefore we are starting to see some of the trees in blossom.  Because there is green foliage year-round here, one doesn’t notice the stark difference in the seasons that we do back home.  We are in what they call the rainy season.  This past week we received 2.30 inches of rain. 

School did start this week and that was very noticeable when you saw the girls walking onto the school grounds with their shaved heads - required here at St. Teresa’s and other schools.  When we were out driving to and from WWB follow-ups on Wednesday, we drove past a number of schools.  Along the road not far from the mission house is a National Boys High School which has over one thousand boys and when we drove by, there were long lines of boys waiting to get in the front gate.  We asked Lilian and Emma about this and they explained that the students come on specified days such as the Form 4 (seniors) come on Monday.  The students and their belongings such as backpacks and boxes (suitcases) are searched at the entrance for contraband such as bangi (marijuana); thus, why it takes a long time to get the students through the gate.  Lilian and Emma also told us other school stories as we drove from one WWB follow-up to the other.  One story that we found quite interesting was if a student runs away from school, they have to return with barbed wire or a sheet of tin to help with the construction and/or fixing of the fence around the school compound!  They were surprised when we told them that students in America are no different with regard to some things like having bangi, alcohol, etc.  though they might be dealt with differently – children in America would not have to bring back a piece of tin or barbed wire for the fence if they ran away!  The new term also means the paying of school fees as mentioned last week.  Fr. David said he has been asked numerous times in the past week or so how many schools the mission has orphans attending.  So, he sat down with his roster and proceeded to add them up.  The total was astonishing to us:  for the primary level, we have orphans at 105 different schools; for the secondary, there are 95 different schools; for the polytechnic schools, there are 9 and as for the colleges/universities, there are 24.  All totaled, there are 233 different schools that fees are paid to and what makes the process even more time-consuming and mind-boggling is that the secondary schools each have their own fee schedule! 

On Wednesday, we had a Water with Blessings follow-up at Enchoro – the church that sits high on a mountain side.  We never tire of the breath-taking views along the way and from the church grounds though we are a little tired of the bumpy roads which have gotten much worse since the last time we were there in July and they weren’t good then, either.  While Emma and Lilian held the follow-up with the women, Wes babysat James, a very cute and quiet little boy who was probably around 2 ½ years of age.  James was not scared at all and readily sat on Wes’s lap to watch videos of our son’s dogs back home though Wes did play a few educational videos as well!  Because we don’t speak Ekegusii, the tribal language in this area, Lilian and Emma chat with the women about the filters and other matters as the women color in their books.  We think we have the best job of babysitting the children unless they are scared of us.  Most often, the very small ones tend to be afraid of us but those children who are around two to three years of age or slightly older tend to be more curious and interact with you…they are all so innocent and precious.    

Besides having three groups at the WWB follow-up at Enchoro, we delivered water drums to seven women at Riamatundura.  When we deliver the drums, the women have no idea they are getting these drums.  They come because Lilian tells them they have one last follow-up and they show up.  When the women came and it was explained to them about getting the drums, a couple of them asked Lilian why they were getting a second drum; it was then that Lilian realized she called a couple of women to come that had already received a drum.  We were impressed that the women were honest about having received a drum a few months ago.  Kathy turned to the group of women and said, “asante kwa kuwa mkweli” which means “thanks for being honest”.  In response, a lady piped up and said, “the truth shall set you free” to which Kathy replied “ndio itakuwa” which means “yes, it will”.  They could’ve not said anything and gotten a second drum but they were honest and their honesty was appreciated.    

We did go on some walks this week and thought how out of shape we must be when climbing the mountain-side near the mission even though we walked almost three to four miles every day when we were home.  We consoled ourselves with the thought that back home we walked at an elevation of about 2000 feet whereas here we are at 6500 feet!  When out for our walks, we purposely avoided the road where the little boy, who likes lollipops, lives since we made him cry last week when we didn’t have any lollipops.  We tried to buy some of the smaller lollipops at the grocery store this week but they couldn’t figure out the price because the bags wouldn’t scan and the code they entered didn’t work.  After about four to five minutes and three different people working on it, they still didn’t have it figured out and the line behind was getting longer so Kathy told them we didn’t want them.  In our experience, we most likely would have waited for some time so we shall try to buy some on our next trip to the grocery store and, until then, we will continue to avoid a certain road! 

The new shamba is moving along at a good pace. Since last week, the barn walls are almost done, support poles placed, and the cement floor will soon be poured.  It is amazing to see the progress made from one day to the next especially when you consider that everything is done by hand as mentioned in last week’s blog.  The only thing that has slowed the work at times has been some rains here and there.  We came on a day when a truck that was loaded with sand got stuck and it was interesting to watch them pull the truck out with a Landcruiser since there is no tractor on the premises or maybe even in the surrounding area!  We have been taking lots of pictures and videos to send back to Bismarck for upcoming stories on the new shamba as well as keeping a “journal” for the mission by recording dates and other things to document the history of this new venture. It is because of those missionaries who came before our time, the prayers and financial support of the Bismarck Diocese, and by the grace of God that this undertaking is even possible…we are very grateful to be a part of this new endeavor here at the mission. 

Please know that we keep you in our prayers and ask that you keep us and the mission in yours.  Mungu Akubariki!

See photos from this week in the album section: 

https://stjparish.com/photoalbums/kenya-10-2-22