Kenyan Diaries: This one's for the people

I am so missing out blogs- I seem to be writing way to much than there is time to type up! But I'll leave the long ones till time permits (yep they do get longer)

29th April

I fear that I have run out of emotive words to use to describe the magnitude of my journey here. Nevertheless I must document the admirable places and people I have met even if the only descriptive words I can conjure up are 'amazing' and 'wonderful'!

A couple of weeks ago we attended a HIV/AIDS support group meeting. And while it was difficult to grasp what was going on as the meeting was held in Kikuyu, it was an enriching experience. Most people know that there is a heavy stigma attached to being a HIV/AIDS carrier. In many places in Africa people see it as a female spread virus and associate it with prostitution. Needless to say many men have disturbing views on ways to eradicate the virus from their bodies.

It was lovely to see that in this poverty stricken village people have the courage to openly admit they are infected and support each other. During the meeting we were able to help count the endless pills the attendees had to take and we were able to talk to a few too. Her name has escaped my memory but the owner of the house(lets call her Margret, there are loads here!) was a really sweet woman. She contracted the virus from her late husband. It was only once he passed away that she decided to get tested, she was then told he had brought the virus home and passed it on to her. One can only imagine where he got it. Margeret had this generous spirit about her that I admired and I can vividly recall her laughing at us while we choked on the smoke they are so used to as she made us tea on the bbq like stove.

I love the community spirit of that and I think that is lost in the UK really. We dont really talk to our neighbors as we should not do we show so much love and support.

This wednesday we did something really fulfilling and touching. In Thigio there are only a handful of relatively wealthy families. One of the volunteers host families are one such wealthy family. They own a private school, Park Hill, which is actually where my host siblings attend school.Sir Stevens (the father) seems to therefore be a very valuable source to the community and he organised a trip for us in his run down school bus to visit a needy family where we worked on rebuilding a woman called Lucy's mud made home.

Lucy is a single mother in her mid to late 40's and her husband abandoned her and her childrens years ago leaving her with no money and their mud home to sustain. Thankfully Sir Stevens allows her h\children to attend Park Hill school for free, despite the fact that it is an hour and a half walk w\away from their home, the children go. SubhannaAllah! And Lucy is known in the area as needy so she does odd labor jobs for money to feed her children.

The structure of the home is mud and planks of wood and we actually helped put another layer of mud on the outside and inside of the house. It is literally just her mud dug up and mixed with water (which I went to fetch with two others, that's another story!). The method of layering is seriously just grabbing handfuls of mud and throwing it at the house! So surreal!

The most rewarding part was hearing of how overwhelmed Lucy was to have us. I was told she was so nervous when she saw us o\unloading the bed and clothes because we were in such numbers. That is a great feeling! It was truly rewarding to see how sir Stevens and the teachers from the school banded together to help her. It was such a great experience, despite the heat!

Finally, yesterday we visited a children Orphange, much like Agape! But alot larger!It was called Karai childrens home. The home sheltered street children and orphaned children. The street children were those indulged in a life of crime driven by poverty.

I met Maggie, an 18 year old young woman who had been at Karai since she was 7 years old. Here and her twin sister have finished high school and hope to go on to university. Their father died and mother abandoned them before dieing. She was so cute and expressed how happy she was to have us there as they don't get to socialize much out of the home. I later discovered it was because the stigma attached to being an orphan or street child deterred people from befriending them. We assured them they have friends in us!

The home houses 160 children and educates them. They do not leave until they are educated and trained enough to become self reliant and it means that some people leave fairly old as they enter primary school as late as 12 years old. The discipline was very impressive as they wake up early daily to clean their beautiful compound and they cook too! Their bunk beds would so put our ones back at our volunteer house to shame! So neat!

It had a real family feel to it and we enjoyed orienteering with them, It was really interesting to observe the impact music had on them in light of the film Agape we watched. The boys had a group - The Obey brothers. They sang us a song and then showed us there Channel U like video! It was cool! They were funded by the German charity that funded the whole home, bless them. A few volunteers also bought some DVDs to support the cause.

Time is wasting so I must round up but everything here is to be cherished! It's all so overwhelming at times. One thing I will take back is that happiness is in the eyes of the beholder. You don't need to be rich to be happy!...

BTW...things in the BB Kenya house are so great!Sometimes I don't want it to end!

Still smiling!

Kenyan Diaries: Words of an angel

22nd April

Today was the first time I can honestly say I met a truly blessed, inspirational, nothing short of amazing woman. I have never described someone as angelic but this woman was.

As part of a project myself and my roomies are working on we select and interview members of the community to get their stories and learn something amazing to share with you all at our video and picture fundraising display. So far we have interviewed John from the Kisima project, a youth group and today was sister Catherine, a nun from the Daughters of Charity group. This woman is truly wonderful. She j\has a truly amazing spirit and loving heart that I saw as so very beautiful. She spoke with so much passion and she is so warm she'd make even the hardest criminal soften their heart.

I really have love for her and all she is putting her love into. She welled up with tears about 3 times while she spoke about the issues they were dealing with and the strength of the Kenyan people. Attempting to reiterate all she had said would be futile as I could b\never do it due justice so you will have to wait and watch!

She did tell us about the 12 projects they are working on here though. The library being one , im at the library now, and a great triumph it is! The whole compound shines really. They have a physio therapy place, a hospice, HIV/AIDS centre, sewing class, disabled children's home and football teams. They also support many through food, education and just love really. she is honestly a woman of love. If everyone in the world w\thought and loved like her I cant even imagine what a wonderful world it would be.

She spoke so warmly of the community. Though no community in poverty is without its problems she sees the beauty in it all and spoke of how generous the people here are and how smart they are. This is so true in many cases. The people here are so much more able \, just through their hard graft lifestyles, they are able to endure so much more hardship than us westerners. They may not know much about history and politics but they know God and sister Catherine highlighted that. And when you live in a place like this faith is one thing you need. When the rain has not come and your crops are dieing so your children are starving and relying on handouts, all you need is your faith. That's all they use. SubhannAllah. How beautiful! And how may of us can say the same?

How beautiful is this village and its inhabitants. This is what I came here to witness. People like sister Catherine, Dennis, Sarah, John and all the other inspirational souls I have encountered. They all touch me in their own small ways and I can only hope my passion and desire to help touches them, even in my silence.

And as I sit here on this concrete slab overlooking one of the most beautiful sights I have seen I am so so very grateful to God. For blessing me and my family and friends with our loves and for all the people who consider themselves blessed No matter what race, sex or religion we are, we re all one, unified by our creator. Lets love him and love each other.

Still smiling!

Kenyan Diaries: Dennis and Sarah

19th April (Thought I'd begin dating them as I'm posting all jumbled up)

I have been meaning to dedicate an entry to my lovely host parents but haven't yet gotten round to it. Now is the perfect time.

It goes without saying that the standard of living here in Thigio is very different to that in the UK and in parts of Nairobi for that matter. A small example I observed was the fact that in children's text books there are instructions as to how to dig and plant at school!

Many homes here are without what we deem basic electronic appliances - TV's, radio, washing machines, cookers, microwave, kettle and even fridges in many cases. My host family are an example. Dennis and Sarah are both such wonderful people and I pray I have touched them with at least my presence as much as they have me. They live in a humble home made of coregated iron and wood and they have an acre of land Dennis inherited from his fathers estate. With this land Sarah farms the families food and also grows crop at her plot of land a while away. They also keep a few animals for food and for small income.

They are so hospitable and on our first visit we sat and spoke for 6 hours straight about everything - politics, geography, life in Kenya as a contrast to the UK, money, religion (he's very interested in Islam mashaAllah!) and all sorts. He really did open my eyes up to how blessed I am.

That day they made us a mighty feast which I could nt finish. It comprised of chipatti's and cabbage stew.

Dennis and Sarah have 2 children, Yvonne (10) and Francis (5). Yvonne had her birthday on the 9th of April so we brought her a new school bag (as i observed that hers was falling apart) and some school books. They were so very grateful. We got Francis a bag too!

Last week (now 2weeks ago) was their 10 year anniversary (they're only 30, bless them!) and we were invited to celebrate with them. Myself and 6 other volunteers took up the kind invitation and although we were hours late they waited for out\r arrival before starting and treated us like their guests of honor. God bless them! They brought out a mighty feast again and even made me a separate dish with no meat in it as they had no halal meat! How sweet. Then after some traditional Kenyan songs we were told to return the gesture and sing them a song - the best we could come up with was 'For he's a jolly good fellow!'Then the cake was cut. It was truly wonderful and I really have come to admire Sarah's kindness and her happy nature. She's a real joker too! She doesn't moan or even bring her hardship to our attention unless prompted to do so. She's just content and happy. I long to be like that and in many ways, here, I am!

I also met another lovely and note worthy couple that week. Grace and David. They are the parents of 13 year old Hannah who we met at Kanyanjara school. She bonded with one of my roomies and invited us to her house to meet her family. And again we were so warmly welcomed and treated like royalty you might say! Hannah's mother is 28 and a mother of 5! She had her first child when she got married at the tender age of 13 and she is so beautiful! She made us fried egg, w\sweet potato, bread and Kenyan tea and even though, truth be told we struggled to eat it, we appreciated it all. They really prepared for us and even sang us a song. We took pictures and had a bundle of laughs with them as well as promise to come back as they were just so happy to have us.

I'm so happy our presence was the source of joy to them and all others we visit. This is truly a fulfilling experience. Thank you God.

Still smiling!

Kenyan Diaries: A Life of Balance

At the project there are people of many faiths. Some agnostic, atheist, Muslim, Christian and Catholic and some who just "got the faith!"

An agnostic volunteer said she believed in a higher power but she believed in a theory of balance as opposed to God controlling our lives and destiny. I began to ponder this...

Our 3rd Sunday in Nairobi and I feel a lot happier than the first weekend. I have found my balance. Back then I was fresh out of Dennis and Sarah's humble home and their struggle stories so I couldn't indulge in the expensive Hilton restaurant out of sheer guilt and the knowledge of what the money I'd spend on my meal could do for them. My mind hasn't changed and I still wouldn't waste money on overly priced food or anything excessively indulgent but I have come to understand that what we need is a life of balance.

In Nairobi we met one of my friends from university i\who is from Kenya and lives in Nairobi. Now Nairobi is very very different from the village of Thigio where we are living. There are people of all races and aside from what I saw at the Kibera slum, everyone seems pretty economically stable. Though I know appearances can be deceiving. We went to swanky cafe called Java which was as good as being in London or New York in terms of the food and the decor. But it was reasonably priced and worth every penny considering I haven't had a burger or good chips in a month!! The food situation is a madness but I thank God because we have some...and I thank God more so because we can go to Nairobi and get a pizza or burger and not eat cabbage and potato and iams! Lol! So anyway during the food (and I was seriously enjoying it!!) I realized I didn't feel guilty!

I was born into wealth in comparison to the people of Thigio. But I live in an area of 'poverty' in comparison to the estates of the filthy rich. But that's not the balance I mean. God does everything for a reason. So rather than me scolding others for choosing luxury over basics or trying to live a very basic life when you have been blessed with a comfortable one, I opt for a life of balance.

By that I mean I wont go to a overly expensive restaurant and spend like a bill on a meal because there is just no need. Special occasion or not! I can go to a nice place and eat a guilt free reasonably priced meal and have a clear conscience! So by balance I mean like I want to have one Facebook Album (so funny that that is such a normal reference now!) of me on a modest holiday soaking up the sun and showing love to God's earth and another album of me working on a meaningful development project or worthwhile protest or fundraiser. Or if I am indulgent on a bag or something, I can give just as much in love to charity. That's my balance!

I'm not going to come back home on some hype and decide to use the cold tap rather than hot and wash my clothes by hand as opposed to utilizing my blessed washing machine but I'll perhaps increase my direct debits and range of charities in order to strike that balance. Aside from wasting less and reusing more mind you.

Balance is very important. It is vital even. In all aspects of life. God teaches us through Islam that we should do everything in moderation. Don't go to ether end of the extreme. Don't live like a extravagant king but don't live like a pauper either.

And I love that I have learnt that lesson. It's the same way I have a balance of friends - some Muslim, some Christian, most black and a few others...life is about balance...it prevents ignorance and makes you a more well rounded and open person.

Love = A life of balance!

Kenyan Diaries: Big brother House or What!!!

"And today I would like to nominate...!"

One thing I did think about before I came out here was the possibility of not liking or getting on with the rest of the 15 in the group. Thankfully, that isn't the case and I do like everyone, at least a bit!! But i did forget how irritable I am and sometimes it is very easy for a person who has specific characteristics to annoy the heck out of me! Patience Alimah!Patience is surely something I am both working on and exercising out here but at times like at today's house meeting I begin to reach boiling point!

Little things like people being impatient over butter, always asking but never offering and my worst - always feeling the need to butt into my conversation and add their two scoops of unwanted input!

Earlier this week we had a big brother moment when some mess over volunteers 'work ethic' caused a big madness during the mid week meeting. Needless to say the supervisors handed it rather badly in most of our opinions and it did cause a lot more upset than anything else. It was like nominations in the bb house when they are done publicly basically!!!

And at today's meeting I did manage to keep my mouth shut through most of it but I was set off and one point by a small comment that was highly inaccurate. It's so easy to get irritable out here!

Working on my character means trying to rid myself of characteristics I dont think reflect well of me as a woman, a black woman at that and most importantly, a Muslim. And my somewhat 'faisty' nature when I get vex is one of them. So I am proud I only allowed one small warranted outburst just there! But by the end of this I do hope and pray nothing trivial will be able to frustrate me as much as things often do and if they do that I am able to handle them a lot better!

Especially miss 'two scoops'!!

Another Tear Drop

I don't think I have another teardrop
To describe the pain I feel
I don't think my eyes can take the burning guilt
And I don't think my heart can take the aching pangs of anger

I don't think I can read another sad story
I don't think I', strong enough
I don't think I can see another example of poverty
My sensitivity is too much

I feel weak
Like there's nothing in the world that i can do
Like my next set of teardrops
Will just deepen the puddle of pointlessness

Hopeless even though I am here
Because I am not doing enough i fear
Hopeless because tomorrow will be tomorrow
And today is still today
S0 who is to say
That i will even feel the same way

This world is so unjust
And when I see it
]I see red
I feel red hot in anger
And sad in cold blue

But i don't want to shed another tear of inaction
I will do my part and have faith in You.

Inspired by Agape South Africa.

Today we watched a DVD about a children's home in South Africa. The children were all Orphans...many of which AIDS orphans. Through music they ultimately saved their home...long story...

During the DVD we were introduced to a particular family. Both parents had died leaving 5 young children in Agape and two older sisters and a older brother in the falmily home. The older brother was also ill and during the film i\we discover the\at he actually had HIV and he later dies. It was so emotional from start to finish. I cried throughout. I hate that I always do that. It hurts. And miss Keys who I happen to be listening to as I write this sang with the children when their home burnt down and they were flown to the states to do a fundraising concert for their home. It was part of her Keep A Child Alive charity.

So I can't help but feel sad. Though I'm here 'doing my part' there is so much more to do! And I resent us when we (us volunteers) sit and bitch and complain about such trivial things when we have so much. And more so because Platform 2 has allowed us to be here at close to no cost at all!!

If today's house meeting and this DVD have taught me anything it is to really 'still smile'. Smile because its the loving thing to do. Smile because it is an act of charity. I will try my very hardest to moan less, gossip none and appreciate every little thing with all thanks to God.

Kenyan Diaries: Still smiling!!!

I just want to note that today was the last day of digging for 2 weeks and I have become rather good at it!!!

Today we split ourselves into 3 groups - the hard bodied diggers, the ad bodied machete users, and the soft bodied seed collectors!! The machete's btw caused a lot of upset in the bb house as some people didn't feel comfortable carrying the sharp big ol knife's to work! I was a hard bodied digger! And i have come to understand and appreciate that some people are just better at certain tasks than others. Because someone is not good at manual labour, it doesn't always mean they are lazy, just not as capable! Or skilled for that matter! So i see that it isn't fair to l;abel people as lazy for this reason alone. I found the digging ok today and though it was baking hot I drank enough water to see me through. Better yet in the way home though I said I was gonna kick back and walk real slow I somehow ended up passing everyone walking home and getting home 2nd, even though I left work last! Mount Kenyamanjaro wasn't so bad for the first time ever!!

AND...I'm getting so much better at hand washing! Many volunteers have resorted to taking their clothes to the dry cleaners due to the effort of washing coupled with the unpredictable weather and a was\hing line that keeps falling down and dropping our clothes onto the dirty earth!

But I am determined to stay committed to the old hand washing graft despite my hands being sore!

AND FINALLY...the food is starting to grate on me! When we get to Nairobi I may just have to buy at least 10 cups of cuppa indomie coz I canni eat no more ugali and the 'iams' is starting to sicken me a bit too! God forgive me! It's not that bad really, and i am so grateful. I eat the most so I must enjoy it a bit. But that may be more so related to my not wanting this weight loss to continue!

Anywho...soldiering through and still smiling!!!

Kenyan Diaries: Cleanliness is next to Godliness!!!

Everyone always says "I would never go a day without washing". And I am definitely an advocate of this. But have you ever considered that many factors would result in you actually not being able to wash? Before I came out here I expected not to be able top wash everyday due to the drought Kenya was facing. Thank Almighty God the two year drought is over so we haven't had to ration water as much or order it in from the city. We rather use the rain water that is in our tank. Only thing is, the water is seriously cold! And in the mornings it is not particularly hot here so its not like you want a cold morning bath! And the hassle of getting up every morning at 630am, putting on your coat to go out and fetch water., is far from fun!

But so far I have not gone a single day without doing so! I feel like a real African with my water bucket. And though one of my room mates has bought a kettle, as I don't really like using people's stuff I still soldier the cold washes! And I'm normally up first so there is no que. But one thing I have noticed is that everyone else seems to g\have given up on the daily wash thing! I say again, if its good enough for the locals who am I to be above it! Though I'm saying that knowing that if I catch a cold from this the cold washes will have to get locked!

But to be fair, ppl do wash when we return from work sweaty sometimes!

The cold washes are hard but I see it as part of my journey. It so makes me appreciate water so much more. We try and recycle water to flush the toilet and I have kinda given up on the smelly pit latrine outside btw! But praise God for flushing toilets, running taps and hot water! It is such a blessing!

The moral of my blog entry is just to not let your standards slip. Utilize what ever resources you j\have and be thankful!

Gods teaches that cleanliness is a part of worship. Love yourself, love your body, love to be clean!

Never caught slipping! (Wink!)

When did we become so ungrateful?

Inspired by work at Compassion.

So I sit here and my mind cries
For the cries I hear are fake
Unfounded, Unwarranted
The cries I hear are so undeserved

What do we really do?
In all honesty, what do we truly do?
We rely on so much
Use our strength so little
Yet at the first appearance of hard work
Real work
We cry

Using intellect to challenge and confront
Using intellect to avoid the simple truth
To make excuses
But a thousand excuses
And a thousand more
Will never release our minds from the laziness we adore

Learning to love
Is learning to work
To be completely selfless
To wash, bake and rake with a smile
A real smile
Heart felt, from within
Yet our smiles are paper thin

It hurts my heart
And it pains my mind
To hold back the complaints I feel boiling in my head
And I am ashamed to utter the words of complaint
So I take them with me to bed

What did we come here for?
To serve
To truly serve is to truly work
To truly work is to truly love
So I promise God that when I leave here
I will have learnt the value of this love.

Kenyan Diaries: Community Day

Today's task was unsurprisingly....wait for it...DIGGING!!!! Happy days!! But I'm still what...smiling!!

So we worked at a charity organization called Compassion. And the most annoying thing of the day was everyone's constant complaining!!Argghh its doing my head in!!!I wonder how pleasant this experience would be if we all just got on with it and were just positive about everything, despite how hard some things are! It is unfortunate that we are not doing work that everyone deems fulfilling but if it helps this poor community in some way I believe we are doing a worth while job! Though easy to say! And hard work is hard work! And I tell you digging and planting may not seem such a big deal but in heat it really is!!One thing I can say I have learnt is a true work ethic!

I', on digging duty today as I don't want to bed low to plant so I don't expose my booty! And I have never worked this hard in my life!! Give thanks if all you do a day is stand up in a shop waiting for customers to come in or at a desk answering the phone. The work may not be intellectually challenging but its hard work that people get paid peanuts to do and we get paid nada of course!!

So anyway to drown out the moans I just have my headphones in the whole time because otherwise miss 'faisty Alimah' as they have all dubbed me will have to come out!! I love bringing out ghetto Limz! If there is one thing I have learnt about my personality is\ts that I really am a leader and not a follower and I speak my mind, sometimes very bluntly!!

About the charity - Compassion takes children in who are from very poor backgrounds and coaches them on weekends in various areas of their lives. These areas include spirituality, economics, socially and physically. Sponsors come from all over the world and children depart from the program for a number of reasons including a better economic situation, getting married, disinterest etc. The only thing I had a problem with however, was the missionary style it has. Bible in one hand and money in the other. They take in non Christians but these children must, during the course of their time with compassion, convert to Christianity. Now this I don't play! Charity is charity. It should not be used as a bribe to get people to join your religion. I believe anyway.

Giving is a part of Godliness.

Kenyan Diaries: The day of the Terential Rain

I hope I will only have to document this once!!
Wow, Kenya really experiences the worst of both worlds- Serious rain which is so heavy it appears as though it could even wash away the crops and extreme drought!!!

We thank God for the former as it does have a positive effect on the growing of crops but the irony is, as my host father informed me, because it is raining so heavily and there are a number of crops everyone grows, the price for these crops fall as it is easily accessible! Hows that for a catch 22!

Anyway so on this day, after digging in the morning (which i silently despise!)It began raining so heavily we had to stop work till it finished. The children at the school tend to walk home with no shoes on (not that their shoes would protect them much anyway) and it is rather sad as it is not only mud we walk in, its cow and donkey poo all over the gaff too!!! Thank God I bought some wellies in Nairobi!!

The mud on the way back was so deep tho! And very red! And as I explained before the walk to and from work is no joke and its so much worse from work as there is one ma-mouth hill to walk up!!I call it mount Kenyamanjaro!!! But wont kill me just makes me stronger and my tactic is to stop half way up the hill and get my heart rate back to normal then I can keep going!!!

The rain does also mean we cant put our clothes out to dry! I have been trying to dry these clothes for 3 days n now they smell of damp!!Happy days!!But I'm still smiling!!! And tbh working when its hot has another list of problems tbh so I am thankful!!!

Hard work is beautiful n so is Kenya!!!

Kenyan Diaries: Ambassodor for Realness!!!

So today was our first day in Nairobi city center and our first day off work! Im surprising myself everyday. I wake up first usually around 6.30am to have a cold bath...water which I fetched myself!. I don't moan that its cold as this is how the villagers live so who am I to be above it? I am being humbled and challeneged everyday. Both physically and mentally!

So here's what I jotted down during a moment of annoyance in Nairobi!

Its interesting to observe the effect this project is having on us as volunteers. I came out here to learn about myself, the world, poverty and Kenya. I came out here open to change for the better. I came here to open my eyes to the life I live sop blindly. It seems that some people dont want to embrace this experience the same way I do! Fair enough I guess. Anyway so on this Sunday we all want some good food for once. The Ugali, rice, potato's and cabbage can become really hard to stomach when you eat it everyday!But it just took me back that the first place we come to when we get to the Nairobi is the most western joint around-the Hilton hotel!

I didn't feel right being there! This isn't a holiday for me and the day before i met my host father (whom I will write about in another post) and he pointed out that the wage I earn in one day is more than he earns a month. After speaking with him at length for about 6h\ours I just couldn't sit in the Hilton and spend a weeks wages on one meal! I instead went to a nice pizza joint access the street!

I think we need to understand that we are here to embrace the Kenyan lifestyle. And not the wealthy one we see here in Nairobi but the villagers life we witness in Thigio-where we stay. This includes repetitive food, cold washes, washing clothes by hand and waling miles in rain or heat in mud. And even the outdoor pit latrines (toilets in the ground). I just felt like a spoilt brat running there so had to leave! The day before I was sitting in a core-gated iron house talking religion and poverty with my humble host family and the next day Iam where...abeg!!Growth will not allow it!! I would rather spend money on something of substance!

I did later buy my host sister a school bag and some books as she turns nine on Thursday!

Also had a brief moment of vanity that day as I only brought swag clothes out with me while others camne kitted out!!I do love my fashion so it has proven hard to strip myself of all of that but I definitely snapped out of that! I am not here to be sho sho anyway and I could care less about how fly my top is anymore anyway!!

Its alot!

Do we work?

When we work do our hands blister
Do our heads sweat
Do our feet swell
And our muscles ache

When we work do we moan
Its too hot
Its too cold
Its too far
Its too close

When we work to we walk miles to get there
For mere pennies a day
Do we go unheard
Unappreciated

When we work do we moan
Pays too little
Hours are too much
Not enough incentives
There's a whole bunch

When we work do we wr the same clothes
And remain humble in them
Walk bear foot among the trees and animals
But remain prideful in that walk

When we work do we complain
He said
She said
They said this
And we said that

Yet when they work
They work
And when they work they smile
When they work they could cry
Working in such conditions they could even die
Yet they try and get by
So I sigh

As the pathetic work ethic we claim so high
And the lazy nature
Coupled with fake smiles
Fraudulent knowledge
And wasted pride

We could learn a whole lot from these people
We should learn from these people
We will learn and mirror these people.

Ispired by work at Kanyanjara school!

Inspired

Inspiration comes in many forms
Walks many different walks
Talks a variety of languages
Has an infinity of manners
And inspirations love is inspiring

To work the work of an inspired man
To walk the walk of an inspirational woman
To return the smile of an inspired child
And to plant the tree of an inspiring landscape is inspired

To allow yourself to let go
Of all your natural desires
To be truly humble
So much that you are stripped completely bare
Is inspired

To wipe that brow of sweat
And wash that foot of mud
The grime in fingernails
And that body of labor
Is inspired

To develop true work ethic
Overcoming
Laziness
Ungratefulness
Inefficiency
And truly letting love in
Is inspired

To allow each journey to plant a seed of growth in your heart
And to nurture that seed
Develop its life
And allow it to propser
Is truly inspired

Insp[ired by the Kenyan Kisima project

Kenyan Diaries: Manual Labour Time!!!

I have been itching to write but net access is so scarce around here!!!I have walked miles to try and use the internet only for one thing pr the other to happen!!! Amywho...lemme catch you all up!!

So we arrived at the project on the 25th I believe. This meant our four days of fun and tourism and learning i guess was over!!! Todays work was to doig fairly deep holes at Kanyanjara school. This is the school we are working at while we are here. Poverty is very clear at this school. The children wear very raggedy clothing and only God knows what some of them were eating for lunch. The love and happiness I see in their eyes when they see us is priceless!

So anyway, the work is very strenuous and the walk to work...kai!!! We have to walk up and down hills of mud in heat or rain...the wather here is mad but that's a story for another blog!! So after filling the holes we had dug with manure we got to plant our trees. The first day was sooo hot so work was pretty difficult but I am remaining surprisingly upbeat!! I can only imagine what my girls would be saying if they knew this is what I was doing!! Everyone is pretty annoyed that we are doing a whole lot of manual labour as opposed to the teaching we had all hoped for but to me the most important thing is to remain positive! Despite the fact that I am always hungry I am here to serve! So that is what I will do!!

So much more to say...so very little time!!!!