April 17, 2022: Life in Kenya One week ago today, it was Palm Sunday and we were still in Nairobi at the Consolata Language School. Our Palm Sunday was a memorable one as it has been some time since we have participated in a procession that started outside. The weather here is perfect most days and Palm Sunday was no exception. The palms we carried were freshly cut that morning from the palm trees around the Consolata compound. After the blessing of the palms, the seminarians led us in song as we processed into the church. These young men organize and lead all the singing every weekend and it was always a joy to hear them harmonize and play instruments such as drums, keyboard, and other musical instrument unique to their culture. What was truly amazing after visiting with some of them is that most of them have not taken lessons nor do they read music when it comes to playing the keyboard. On Monday morning before leaving Consolata, we said our good-byes to the priests we have come to know, the Maryknoll Lay Missioners we have been in school with as well as a few others and then Rogers drove us back to the Mission. Since it was a relatively clear day, we were able to take in the breathtaking views of the Rift Valley. The Rift Valley, totaling about 4400 miles, is a vast geographical feature that starts in in the Middle East and runs as far south to central Mozambique in East Africa. We left Nairobi where the landscape was green but not the vibrant shades of green of the Kisii highlands. The Kisii highlands are spectacular…the hillsides are carpeted with lush green tea fields and other crops and dotted with buildings found on the small shambas (farms). Rogers left Kisii on Sunday with a full tank of fuel and when we got back to the Mission, we probably had enough fuel to go another 40-50 miles. We stopped about six times on the way back but there was no fuel to be found. There has been a fuel shortage in Kenya (the worst in at least 10 years) for the past three to four weeks and the reasons for it are different depending on who one talks to. The government said there was enough while others said there was a delay by the government in getting subsidies paid to distributors and finally there was hoarding taking place which all together created the chaos. In the end, people would wait at pumps day and night sometimes up to 10 hours to get fuel and still not able to get any fuel. This past Friday, Fr. David was able to get a few liters but paid a high price of 220 KSH (Kenyan Schillings) per liter. If one converts the KSH to dollars, the price of one gallon of gasoline would be $8.00! They say the shortage should resolve in the next few days…hopefully it does or we may not be able to do some of the scheduled projects this week. On Tuesday of this past week, we had a Wellness Program for some of the 450 orphans enrolled in the program – because there is a large number of orphans, it is not possible to do it all in one day. This is a pilot project in hopes of addressing daily health issues and to be proactive in improving the health of our orphans. The orphans had various screenings done including: blood pressure and temperature checks, weight, height, eyes, checking for chiggers and ringworm (two common afflictions in children), and blood tests for anemia and diabetes, two diseases which are prevalent in Kenyans. There were also educational seminars on topics such as nutrition and hygiene, relationships, peer pressure, decision making, and finally drugs and alcohol. These seminars were led by alumni of the orphan education program – those who have finished their secondary school and are currently in post-secondary (college) or are finished and working. The day went well and ideas have already been talked about for ways to improve the next one – the goal is to have them twice a year. On Wednesday, Kathy went with Lilan to two follow-ups for the Water with Blessings Program which was attended by forty women. The six follow-ups are for the women who have already been trained and have received a filter. These sessions help to reinforce what they have learned and to answer questions they have. Both of these sessions were held in churches that have steel roofs and it was quite warm inside…even the Kenyan women complained! Kathy thought she might die of heat exhaustion at the last follow-up, so she spent a lot of time outside the building sharpening colored pencils the women use for their books…no electric pencil sharpeners here so Kathy had a few blisters on her hands from sharpening! Wes spent the day at the Mission working with Fr. David. On Thursday we had a number of things to do with one of them being laundry. While at language school, we were spoiled as we had a washing machine to wash our clothes. Now that we are back at the Mission, we are back to hand washing which we don’t mind though it takes some time to complete the task. The trick this week was to get the clothes washed early enough so that they would dry before the afternoon rains came. This past week we have received a little over two inches of rain which is very welcome. This is known as the rainy season so rains are expected. This area receives over 70 inches of rain a year. People ask what the temperature is here – the average day time temperature has been in the mid 70’s (Fahrenheit) while the night time temperature has been around 59 degrees which we really like though for people here this is cold. We feel a little guilty mentioning what our weather has been compared to what North Dakota has endured this past week. On Friday, we again did some things around the Mission house in preparation for trainings for the Water with Blessings. Wes drilled a hole in each of thirty pails, washed all the pails and covers, put stickers on, and made sure each bucket contained a complete water filter kit. Kathy, on the other hand was learning how to use an app to record information for the Water with Blessings Program in Kentucky which is a big deal for Kathy since she is not tech savvy! The information entered is the serial number of the filter (for now) and then after the trainings, additional information is added such as the ages of the women, number of people in the household, the ages of the children, and the ages of children under two. This information helps the organization in Kentucky know how many women and where in the world women are being trained. If you go to the WWB website, Kenya is on the list of countries where women are being trained. To date over 400 women have been trained by our Mission. Getting as much done prior to the trainings makes the process go much smoother the day of the trainings. On Friday afternoon we attended the Good Friday Service at an outstation with Fr. David. This church was somewhat primitive in that it had a dirt floor and benches made from rough wood probably cut from the trees around the church…though not fancy, people celebrated with their full being. Ours was the only vehicle in the church courtyard so that means everyone there walked and some walked up to two to three miles. When we got back, we again had no power. For four days this past week we have not had power in the afternoon and into the evenings and for a couple of those days, we had no power for up to 8 hours. We don’t mind if the power goes off during the day but it gets totally dark here by 6:30-6:45 pm thus everything after that is done by small solar lights/lanterns or flashlights we carry around – tasks such as making the evening meal, washing dishes, getting ready for bed, etc. On Saturday, we had Mission Saturday at Manga Parish and then here at Gekano for approximately 150 orphans. This is where they come to get their monthly ration of maize, a small stipend and Fr. David visits with each one and checks their report cards. We had the job of taking the pictures of the children for their records – this is done once per year or as new children are enrolled in the program. Today, Easter Sunday, we went with Fr. David to two outstations where he said Mass. An outstation is much like a mission church though they are much bigger than what we know of as a mission church back home. The choirs sang beautifully and the people participated with such energy. Everyone sings – young and old and some of them dance as well. The first Mass was held inside the church where we did have tile floors and ribbons hanging for decorations. At the second outstation, the Mass was held outdoors and there we had lush green grass to kneel on. There were over 400 people there. Fr. David had us introduce ourselves and say a few words at the end of both Masses. We did try our best to speak in Kiswahili to express our gratitude for being able to join them and to wish them Pasaka Njema (Happy Easter). After the last Mass, we were bombarded by young and old wanting a picture of us taken with them. Many of them have never seen a Mzungu (term used for a European/white person) and so it seems to be a big deal to have a picture with one. While we were standing there and pictures from every which way were being taken, others were behind you touching your hair and you would hear the word “soft”! Compared to theirs, our hair must feel very soft. This past week was a busy one and this coming one will be no different. There are more water trainings scheduled and school fees to be paid as the new school year is starting and with 450 orphans, there are a lot of fees to be paid. The children and their guardians are grateful for the help received and that was very evident this past Saturday when a young lady, who just finished her senior year of high school, wrote a very heartfelt letter to Fr. David and the Bismarck Mission expressing her gratitude. She stated that without the mission she had no hope but because of it, she was given a new chance at life. When you read a letter like hers, it puts everything into perspective and your heart aches for the many others like her, not just here at the Mission, but around the world…those children who do not have the best chance or maybe even a chance at all to make their life better because of the circumstances they were dealt. Know that you are in our prayers and please keep the children, Fr. David, us, and the mission in yours. Mungu Awabariki (God Bless You). See photos from this past week in the photo album section: