More of my Maasai Life!

I returned to visit our Masaai friend, Josephat that we met in December. He invited me back to his village to meet his mother, siblings, wife and children. I was quite excited about this invitation and wasted no time! He and his family invited Needham and I to stay overnight as they wanted to be a host family to us. We gladly accepted and were in for an amazing experience! 

The family resides in the traditional mud hut which is made of cow dung mixed with mud and as it dries in the Kenyan sun, it becomes as hard as a brick. The homes usually last several years before they need repair, according to Josephat. He also shared with me that the women in his community do the building of the mud huts, the men do not! He spent quite a bit of time laughing at my reaction to this. In addition to that, the women are not educated and do not go to school as they stay home and tend to the cooking and children. While this is the tradition of the culture, he also explained that his family was the next generation and he was making changes by ensuring his girls go to school. He was also willing to share with us about the female genital mutilation that takes place in their culture, although he reported that again, in his generation and now that he is in charge of the family as the first born male (his father passed), that he is choosing not to allow this for his girls. While I have my opinion about FGM, I was careful not to impose that or show weight on the argument against it, as I was there to learn about their culture and also respect their culture since I was a guest invited to observe and learn only. Not many people get this opportunity and if they do encounter anyone from this community, its not often within a personal, close up encounter like this so I was wanted to be sure I remained in learning mode. 

His mom and wife did not speak any English so it was not easy to communicate with them. One thing was very clear though... their kindness and love! His wife showed me how to make chapatti in their cooking area which was so much fun. The kids, his sister, wife and I did the cooking for dinner and his wife would talk to me in Massai, but all I could do is stare at her since she was absolutely beautiful in her bright colors and jewelry (she is just what I see on National Geographic) and smile and nod then speak back to her in my own language. She listened, smiled and nodded and we kept rolling chapatti. 

The next day, before we left, his Mom presented me with a hand made Masaai neck ring that she made, as well as earrings for me. I was in such amazement and tears just wouldn't stop coming. At this moment, we had another cross cultural encounter.... in their culture, crying/showing emotion is not accepted much when it comes from adults, especially women so she took my tears to mean I was unhappy and did not like her gift. Josephat had to explain that Americans show emotion, crying does not always mean unhappiness as it also means happiness too. She was thoroughly confused, and he said he would explain more to her later. He and I then laughed which only confused Mom even more now. So, she laughed with us and hugged me goodbye! 

I want to thank Josephat and his family for allowing us to be part of their community and family for an experience I have ever only seen on National Geographic. This was National Geographic.... in front of me.... happening! God is good! This was an amazing experience that will forever be in my heart!

New Beginnings School - Kibera Slums, Nairobi- Kenya

We went to Kibera to visit a particular school in this community- New Beginnings. Kibera is located in Nairobi, Kenya. It is the biggest and the poorest African slum with a population of more than one million. The Kenyan Government has done little for Kibera. There are no title deeds, no sewage, no water, no roads, no government schools and hospitals and no services of any kind.  Most houses here are wooden shacks with a mud floor and a tin roof - no toilets or running water. Kibera's water is piped in by private dealers. They lay their own hosepipes in the mud, and charge exorbitantly for the commodity.  

The available schools have been started by NGO’s and the hospitals and clinics are either NGO or private.  The schools in this Nairobi slum will usually have mud/dirt floors, grey mud walls and old school wooden pews. The classes may be as many as 60 kids and no books, no pens, pencils or other writing materials. The inhabitants of Kibera live on less than a dollar a day. Often they do not have enough money to pay the school fees or buy food and medicine. About half of people living in Kenya slums such as Kibera are either HIV positive or have AIDS. 

New Beginnings was a project started by a volunteer in 2012 who came to Kenya to volunteer, just as we did. She saw a great need to address the issue of those who are developmentally challenged just being left in the dirt streets in Kibera with no supervision, human contact or even food. She was able to work with the Networks for Voluntary Services Staff, James, and secure one of these shacks to hold a day school for these individuals. There are 8 clients they have identified to date and willingly come to the location for food, health care, socialization, and there is a teacher here who works with them on educational activities and also does physical therapy with those in wheelchairs. 

We spent time here with these teenagers and staff doing different craft activities and sitting with them, interacting with them. They are a great bunch of kids that we really enjoyed. We knew we would be stopping here and knew how many kids there were, so James helped us to pull the right shoe sizes for them from the suitcase of shoes before we donated the rest of them. Each of these clients received a pair of sneakers, a back pack from Jody Ramey, and dental supplies from Hinnant Dentistry! We also had enough donation money left over to buy a 100 pound sack of rice, as well as beans for them. James estimated that since there are only 8 kids here and they provide one meal a day, this would last about 3 to 4 months most likely! 

If you would like to know more about this program or even make a donation to them, they have a facebook page, run by the founder... Kellie Hall... here is the link! 
https://www.facebook.com/NewBeginningsKenya

A visit to Hope Home and Ebeneezer Orphanages

We returned to the Hope Home Orphanage and Ebeneezer Orphage, as well as visited our host mother and father from December. It was so wonderful to see everyone again and see the kids' smiling faces. Lucy and Duncan knew we were coming, but did not know exactly when so when I reached the dirt path to Mom's house, I took off running down the driveway! Mom has a house rule of no shoes in the house, but when I saw that door, I just went right through it and into the sitting area where I found her. After we greeted and hugged... she looked down and said... Jennifer... your shoes! We laughed but I quickly went back to the door and took them off. We went to both orphanages to visit with the children and things are changing. So many volunteers have come through here since we left in December and they are adding another dormitory and painting. It looks terrific and we are so happy to see these additional improvements. 

We visited with the children, played ball, jumped rope, sorted beans for lunch, and just enjoyed spending time together. Before we left, we brought out the 120 pairs of sneakers that were donated (new Starters with light up bottoms!), book bags from Eastgate Exxon/Jody Ramey, and the remaining dental supplies from Hinnant Dentisty. Each child received new shoes, a back pack, and dental supplies so thank you everyone! Lucy explained that most of the kids grew out of their shoes and did not have any to wear or they were squeezing into their old ones, cutting them so their feet could fit. It was amazing timing for the shoes donation and..... what is even more interesting, we mentioned shoes would be a good idea, but never imagined it would turn into this many given to us- there was definitely a need and a reason! THANK YOU to everyone who donated these special items! 

Hey Kenya.... see you in a few hours!

Hey Nairobi, Kenya...... I am coming back! Needham and I did not have to think very long at all about how we wanted to spend our Easter 2014! We decided to return to Kenya for a project at the IDP camp (Internally Displaced Persons Camp) as well as make a stop to visit the kids at the orphanage in Gathiga while we were here. 







We collected kids shoes, toothbrushes and toothpastes. What did we end up with? Thanks to many friends and family once again, we ended up with 120 pairs of kids sneakers (new!), 300 toothbrushes, 250 toothpastes and about 200 dental flosses. We are on our way.... once again! Kenya, here we come! But first..... we have to weigh these bags and make sure they are not over that 50 pounds! How close can I get? To the last ounce! Needham is thinking.. another 16 hours in the air, all these bags of donations to keep up with..oh my!