November here we come!

November 2^nd

Can anyone else believe that it is already November?! I cannot believe how fast time has gone by. It feels like just the other day I was leaving my family in the airport and now I am living life in Kaimbu district just as if it were my own home—which by now it is another home to me. Many things have happened in the last few weeks. Life has been very busy with visitors, events, and the normal day to day tasks.

On the Sunday after our Mombasa trip the majority of the family went to the town of Banana for Peterson (Mary’s brother) and Winnie’s pre-wedding. A pre-wedding is a way for the bride and groom to raise money from their family and friends to help support the wedding financially. For this event there was a panel of people that were designated as ‘guests of honor’—their job was to collect as many donations as possible for the cause. They collected this money both before the event and during the event. During the pre-wedding there was a DJ/announcer that led different activities and speeches to make sponsoring the wedding a fun and eventful time. There was one activity that involved having the bride and groom stand in front of everyone and anyone that wanted could come up and pin cash onto them—for example onto their clothes, shoes, hair, etc. It was a fun to watch and much of the spectators couldn’t help but laugh. The event, like most events in Kenya, also involved delicious traditional food and tea. Like always, it was enjoyable to spend time with family and friends—I especially loved seeing Mary’s mom, nieces/nephews, and her brother/sisters.

The weekend that followed the pre-wedding was the first weekend that I spent in the village in a long while. It was pleasant to relax, walk around, and enjoy church on Sunday. I even got a sunburn from walking around the village on Saturday. Little things, like walking around the village on a weekend, are some of my favorite things to do here. It’s so pleasant to meet and greet old and new faces. No matter where I walk around the village, every person I pass comes to greet me—the kids especially love running up to shake my hand. Not only do I enjoy the people I see along the way, but I also really love exploring and seeing new places within the environment. I love when I get to learn new routes and paths to get to places like the church, the school, the market, etc. Learning about the environment—the landscape, trees, flowers, birds, etc.—is exciting and I feel like I could spend several days exploring the area.

This past week has been one of the busiest in a while. Joe and his wife Mary are cousins to the family and came to visit at CuCu’s for the week. They are originally from Kenya but they both live in Oregon and came to visit family and friends throughout Kenya for a month. The two of them also came with their four year old niece Nicole. I loved having her around for the week—I was able to play with her often, read her stories, and watch movies with her. Her presence in the house reminded me of teaching preschool like I used to do back home before I left. It was also really nice to be able to chat with Mary and Joe about anything and everything. Mary and Joe recently got married (a year ago) and Mary was meeting many of Joe’s family members for the first time. On Saturday we hosted an event to introduce Mary to all of the family members that she had not met yet. It was an exciting and busy weekend with all of the guests. The compound was filled with bodies from Friday evening to Sunday afternoon. There was great company and a bunch of food—chapatis (my favorite), goat meat, rice, beans, vegetables, fruits, tea, etc. It was a lot of fun to meet new friends and family and greet those that I have already met several times before. By Sunday evening the house was completely empty of all of the visitors. It was nice to have the evening to relax and get ready for the coming week.

I continue to see the girls at Gathirimu every day that I am in the village. If I am free on the weekend I still go to visit with them. Because it is a boarding school, the girls are there so much that they often get bored. Not only is it fun for them to have me visit, but I enjoy their company as well. Most of the time I am teaching at the high school everyone is all smiles and laughs. It is such an easy going environment that I cannot get enough of it. I love teaching the girls Life Skills, playing games and singing during PE, and just simply hanging out with them. Like I have mentioned before, there are many girls that ask to talk with me on a one-on-one basis. I am very thankful for these girls’ courage to find me and talk with me. Many times their stories are hard to hear but I know that they need my support. Some of the girls have lived very challenging lives—their stories break my heart and I always wish I could do more for them. I know that my support and presence helps them a lot. There are a few girls that I am really close with and they have written me letters calling me an angel. It is hard to even comprehend such statements. There is a reason I am here in Kenya and there is a reason I am with these girls from Gathirimu. Not only do they need me but I need them. It’s a perfect match and I’m very thankful that I am able to spend time with them.

As for the primary school, I have not been going there as often as I was before. I am primarily there to teach and implement the Pen Pal Program. Class three and class eight have been working hard to create letters for schools in Oregon. They are eager to learn more about America and hear from their buddies. I have sent both of these classes’ letters to the designated schools. The teachers involved on both sides are very excited to partake in the learning. Since the school year is coming to the end for the students at Mitahato, I will not start implementing the program in other classes until the new year. Also, once the new year begins I will create a new schedule for myself and hopefully create more involvement for myself in the primary school setting.

As a whole, everything is going really well. I am happy, smiling, and loving my new environment. The people are great, the food is great (too great), and the surroundings are great. I enjoy learning each new day and I look forward to the time to come. My next big goal is to buckle down and really learn Kiswahili and Kikuyu. It has been over two month and I should know more than I do now. I will let you all know how my progression and learning comes! Maybe I’ll even add some of the languages into my postings! 

Until next time…