Yes, My Hair is Attached!

The Kenya Diaries (vol. 15)

June 30, 2006

This morning Andy and the rest of the Sacred Heart teaching staff took 92 boys to Nakuru to "The Show." We weren't sure what The Show was at first, but then we realized it was like a farm show and state fair combined. It was very quiet at the school.

Kevin was the first one up, and worked on his gorilla hide-out for a while. He built a bi-plane, a helicopter and a telescope. His gorilla hide-out is awesome! He doesn't have much to work with, just scraps and empty boxes, but his imagination seems to soar above his resources. I think he'll be a designer of sorts some day.

After doing the day's laundry, we walked to Rongai for a little action. I bought each of the kids a citrus Fanta while I checked e-mail. We are actually trying to buy a house while in Kenya. Our story really is quite amazing.

We sold our house last December, and haven't found a new house to purchase that meets our needs. We were running out of time to be out of our house, when the opportunity came up for Andy to teach chemistry in Kenya for the summer. Since Andy has his summers off, it seemed like the perfect answer to our situation. We took the profit we made on the sale of our house, and purchased our plane tickets. Andy's sister agreed to store our belongings, and here we are!

Now the truth is, we have no home to go back to, but  God seems to be opening a door. Even today I received an e-mail concerning a house that would more than meet our needs. Dear God, please keep this door open to us if it be Your perfect Will!

On our way back to the school we stopped by the rainbow playground. There were lots of children there already, and they were wild and crazy. They were making the merry-go-round go too fast for Lucia, but Kevin, Ania and Philip didn't seem to mind. The kids did not understand English.



The see-saw was great for a while, until Lucia fell off and got a mouthful of dirt and a skinned elbow.




I just finished helping Lucia up when I noticed an older girl yank Ania's ponytail. "No! No! Ouch! That hurts!" I told the girl. I guess she understood me, because she stopped. That's when Ania told me that she had been pulling her hair since we got there. Even Philip complained of getting his hair "rumpled" and "combed through" by the boys. I guess they wanted to know if it was really attached.

Ania said this: When we went to the playground, there were lots of kids there. We all played together. My hair flopped on a girl's arm when we were on the merry-go-round, and that started all the girls pulling my hair. They each pulled my hair lots of times. Finally Mama saw one girl do it, and she said, "No! No! Ouch! That hurts!" Then the girls stopped. Mama said they were just seeing if it was real.

We returned to the school with all the children following behind.










When Andy came home, he had four masks that the boys had bought for our kids. Poor Ania -- she got a witch, which she didn't like, but was never-the-less very gracious about it. Philip got Spiderman, Lucia got a green bunny, and Kevin got a tiger.









After dinner, Andy was heating up the water to do dishes when the propane tank ran out, which was much better than having it run out while cooking dinner. Needless to say, we washed dishes in cold water tonight. Note to self: One tank of propane lasts three weeks.

Today was a very good day. Thank you, Jesus, for your many blessings! Amina.

Baba Kevin, Mama Lucia

The Kenya Diaries (vol. 14)

June 29, 2006

This morning I went to Mass without the rest of the family because we were told it would be quite long since it was also a special ceremony for the Order of the Contemplative Evangelizers of the Heart of Christ. Six novitiates made their First Vows today, and they were right! Mass lasted for 3 1/2 hours! Liturgical celebrations in Kenya are absolutely amazing. There were four groups of liturgical dancers, a beautiful choir from St. Maria Goretti Girls' School, sixteen priests and several deacons. It was amazing.

The church was packed, so I stood in the back. Then at the end of Mass, Fr. Callistus recognized guests that travelled great distances to be there. I was having a hard time understanding his Kenyan accent until I heard him say "America." Then everybody turned around and looked at me and clapped. What a surprise!































Kevin said this: While Mama was at Mass for 3 1/2 hours, Daddy tried to take us to the rainbow playground, but every door we tried to get out of was locked. We finally found a doorway through the kitchen. Then we had to climb over a locked gate and through their garden. Lucia got little black hitch hikers all over her. Then we came to the front gate, which was unlocked, so we just walked right through. It was fun trying to figure out how to get out.

We went to the playground but it was being used, so we went to Rongai and Daddy let us each choose a piece of candy. Ania and I chose whistle pops, and Philip and Lucia chose gum.

For supper I made fried rice and buttered carrots. Kevin and I took some to the kitchen for Peter the Cook, and he gave us some sukuma wiki (kale) and beef in return. The kids devoured the beef!

Andy said this: I saw Peter later in the evening and he was all lit up. He asked, "How did Mama Lucia* get her rice to taste like that?" I invited him to come by sometime and see.

Thank you, Jesus, for such a blessed day! Amina.

*A side note from my journal:

In Kenya, fathers are referred to by their first-born's name, because the first born is what earned him the title father.  So Andy was referred to as Baba Kevin.

Mothers are referred to by their last-born's name, since that is the child that people see on her hip the longest. So I was referred to as Mama Lucia.

All Creatures Great and Small

The Kenya Diaries (vol. 13)

June 28, 2006

Lucia's Turn

Last night we got to stay up late and color in our coloring books until 9:30, as long as we stayed under our mosquito nets. This morning Mama washed everyone's hair in a bucket.

I like to help do the chores. Two days ago I got to help Mama with the laundry, and I even helped Ania mop the kitchen floor. Then we went out behind the school with the boys to their agriculture class. It was fun. All the boys had to bring their own hoe from home or else they couldn't come to school here.

Some of the boys found a toad and showed it to us. We couldn't touch it because it had poison on its skin. Then some other boys found a baby snake that looked like a gray worm. We played with it because the boys said it wasn't a poisonous kind. Mama says there are lots of very poisonous snakes in Kenya, and we have to be careful.

Then another boy found a baby bird, and Edwin found a clicker beetle. He brought it to me, and it clicked itself right up my sleeve! It was a day of creatures, and I like creatures. So thank you, Jesus! Amina.


Kevin's Turn

I have been busy adding more stuff to my gorilla hide-out.  They now have two panthers that have become agents. I built a car for them, and a garage with a big garage door to park it in.

This morning Daddy told us that if we swept the house really well, we could watch a movie this afternoon. There weren't enough brooms, so we made some Kenyan style out of sticks and palm branches. We did a good job, so after lunch we got to watch E.T. It was a really good movie.

Lucia said this: I didn't want to watch E.T., so Daddy put me on his shoulders and took me on a date to Rongai. He bought me a coke and I drank the whole thing. Then he bought me a purple scarf, but we didn't know how to put it on right, so the lady at the store tied it on my head. Then I got an orange whistle pop, and a ride home on a boda-boda. It was so much fun. I want to do it again.

We now have to wear bug spray whenever we go outside. It has been raining so much lately that there are lots of mosquitos.

Mama made chipati for supper, and she used a rolling pin to roll it out this time. We brought some to Peter the Cook, and he couldn't believe that Mama made it. It said it tasted perfectly Kenyan! That made Mama so happy!

Ania's Turn

Tonight when Daddy was reading Peter Pan to us, all of a sudden the room was full of really cool bugs. They were flying around all over the place. They had four wings, and were as big as dragon flies, but they were really termites. Philip, Lucia and I had fun catching the bugs and playing with them. Kevin didn't want to. They came through a big hole in our screen.




Philip's Turn

Captain Hook died tonight.

Fortnight For Freedom Rally

"Tonight all believers stand together on this issue of religious freedom. Tonight we are all Catholic."
 ~ Bob Garrett, Vineyard and Overall Coordinator of the ecumenical Alleluia Community

"Why should my freedom be determined by someone else's conscience?"

Almighty God, Father of all nations, through your goodness we have received our right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. Through the power and working of the Holy Spirit, you call us to live out our faith in the midst of the world, bringing the light and the saving truth of the Gospel to every corner of society.

We praise and bless you for the gift of religious liberty, the foundation of human rights, justice, and the common good. Grant to our leaders the wisdom to protect and promote our liberties. By your grace may we have the courage to defend them, for ourselves and for all those who live in this blessed land.

We ask this through the intercession of Mary Immaculate, our patroness, and through Your Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord.

Please join me in praying for our Supreme Court to uphold religious freedom in our nation.

Malaria, Mefloquine and Matatus

The Kenya Diaries (vol. 12)

June 24, 2006

Philip's Turn

Today we went to Nakuru in a matatu. I got squashed when a big man got on. We went to a lot of shops and bought Ania's birthday present - a real Kenyan uniform. She wants to save it for fourth grade's "Country Day." We met Fr. Zak's son, Nelson, who brought us Lucia's stroller from Amagoro. Now Lucia gets to sit and be pushed around. Lucky!

We went to a restaurant that Nelson likes for lunch, Gilani's. I wanted to order pizza, but Daddy said it would take too long, so I had a cheeseburger and french fries instead. It was DELICIOUS! Then Mama bought us some ice cream on a stick with chocolate coating. YUM! The bathrooms there were actually clean!

Kevin said this: As we were walking back to the matatu station this afternoon, I saw a man sitting on a blanket with only one leg. He was all bandaged up. It was sad. I prayed for him.

On our way home, a man sitting behind Ania and Lucia was holding a little rooster. Daddy said it was probably their dinner. I felt sorry for that rooster.

When we looked out the window we could see rain coming down from a cloud over the mountains in the distance. That was cool!

Now I am holding my head because when I was getting in bed I bumped it very hard, and it hurt so bad I screamed. I also have a hangnail that hurts. Dear Jesus, please heal all my hurts, especially my head. Amina.

June 25, 2006

Today is Sunday. It is Mefloquine Day. Every Sunday evening we take our weekly Malaria prophylactic to ensure we do not contract the dreaded fever. The kids hate taking it, because it requires a full 8 oz. of water, and tastes terrible. To me it is simply a "peace of mind" pill. I know that we all have had at least one mosquito bite since we arrived in Kenya nearly a month ago.

Wow! Has it really been that long? Somehow having my husband and all my children here with me makes homesickness a mute point. If any of them were back in America, I'm sure I would be ready to leave.

I began reading Barbara Kingsolver's The Poisonwood Bible ever since I boarded the plane in Atlanta. Orleanna Price has become my comrade, my nightly "phone chat" with a dear friend. It is so uncanny how my life has mirrored hers these past few weeks. She travels with her missionary husband and four children from Georgia to Africa, and she has to learn how to survive on the provisions that Africa brings her. The way she describes things -- the produce piled high into pyramids on the sides of the roads waiting for a buyer, the raised garden beds in perfect rows, and the brighly-colored, mismatched clothes -- I have seen it, and I understand.

Today we taught the boys how to play some games. One is called, King Elephant and the other, Down by the River. Some caught on very quickly, some preferred to watch. We spent most of the day laughing and having a grand time.




















June 26, 2006

Lucia threw up last night around 4:30 a.m. She is fine now. I think she didn't drink enough water when she took her Mefloquine. The directions say that if vomiting occurs within the first hour, take another dose. I think she'll be okay.

I spent most of my day trying to e-mail everybody back in Georgia. I composed a nice long letter at the post office in Rongai, but when I hit send, an error message popped up. Ugh! I'll try again after lunch.

We ate lunch in the staff room with all Andy's fellow teachers. It was fun to sit and talk about their interests and concerns.

After lunch I went back to Rongai and purchased 20 minutes of Internet time to compose another letter. It is difficult to type on a broken keyboard with sticky keys. However, I managed to get finished and had one minute left as I was signing my name. As soon as the time got down to 59 seconds it disconnected. Timed out. Shut down. Double Ugh!!

Life is not easy here. Everything is difficult.

June 27, 2006

This morning I made the no-bake cookies again, but ran out of sugar. They still tasted good, but were more like granola bars.

We all went over to the lunch room today to eat what Peter the Cook made for the boys. Andy and I ate in the staff room, the kids ate in the lunch room with the boys. What was on the lunch menu? Beans and maize with potatoes, or in Kenyan, gadire. (Ga-deer'-ay). The boys let our kids go to the front of the line and handed them each a bowl, cup or plate, which Wilson (one of the boys) filled with a scoop from a big pot. It was actually quite good. After lunch, they rinsed their plates at an outside faucet.



















At Andy's suggestion, I composed a letter on our laptop last night, and Andy used his thumb drive to send it at the post office today. Yeah! It worked! I am no longer incommunicado!

Lord, please forgive me for complaining yesterday. Help me to be grateful for all your blessings, those I see, and those I don't. Amina. 

Counting Our Blessings

The Kenya Diaries (vol. 11)

June 23, 2006

I meant to publish this as my Seven Quick Takes, but due to technical difficulties, had no Internet access this weekend. So rather than reformat the whole post, here is my Kenya Diaries in seven distinct thoughts.


1. Since we have no oven, I cannot make anything that requires baking. That means that all the requests I have had from priests as well as the boys to conduct a class on "How to Make Pizza," will have to remain untaught. However, I received an e-mail yesterday containing a recipe for no-bake cookies. I practically ran to the store to acquire the ingredients. Then with the help of all my children, we created something extraordinary for everyone here at the school. Their exclamatory phrase for something this good is, "Too sweet!" I must have heard that phrase 100 times today!

2. Ania has recovered from her boda-boda mishap from two days ago. She spent yesterday morning kicking the soccer ball around with the boys between classes. However, I had quite another scare in the afternoon. Mornings can be chilly here, and Ania started out the day in long pants and a flannel shirt. As the day heated up, she was too busy to come in and change. Afternoon classes were cancelled so the boys could clean up the school for parents' day tomorrow. So, they moved all the chairs out of the t.v. room and brought in a hose to wash the concrete floor. It quickly turned into a slip and slide all afternoon, with my children having the most fun.

Just before dinner Philip came bursting through our door frantically yelling, "Mama, come look at Ania!" I came to the door and Ania was as white as a ghost. Her lips didn't even have any hint of pink in them. She looked like she was about to faint. She was dripping wet from the slip and slide, but I'm sure she hadn't had a drop to drink all day. "Jesus, help me know what to do," I prayed. I am not a nurse, but Jesus answered my prayer. I got her heavy wet clothes off and put her in something cool and dry, and laid her down in bed. Then I brought her a glass of water and a plate of fresh mango. She ate and drank everything I brought her, and slowly the color came back in her face. She learned a valuable lesson in keeping the INSIDE of her hydrated, not just the outside.

3.  Then, just when you think you are in the clear, Kevin complained of a stomach ache. Oh, Lord Jesus, help me! I told him to go to bed for a while, so he did. He must not have felt too bad, because as he laid there, he invented a new game called, "Feed the Birds." He used an empty margarine container, three toilet paper rolls, and Duck tape. You had to throw the dice and try to get them into the toilet paper rolls. I just love the clever things that Kevin comes up with. He even found a way to improve the game before nightfall by tossing beans instead of dice.

4. Today was Parents' Day at the school. The boys were very excited about introducing their families to us. In many cases there were no parents, rather aunts and uncles, since the mortality rate is so high. The families brought picnic lunches and spread out blankets in the courtyard. They were amazed to find an American family at the school with four children. "You are more African than American," many would say, believing that America had a two-child per family law. Or, "You must be millionaires," some would say believing that Americans could not afford to have more than two children. These comments amazed us.

5. I really enjoyed meeting Kelvin's parents and two young brothers. His mother's name is Lucy, and she has eight children. She was especially encouraged by our family. She told me that she observed us during Mass, and she couldn't believe we were Americans with four young children. When I told her that I come from a community where there are many large families, she was so happy to see that what she heard about America was not all true. She shared that even in Kenya, she gets remarks about being nothing more than an uneducated, baby-producing nobody. Now it was my turn to be amazed. I thought that it was the norm in Africa to have many children. We agreed that this attitude exists all over the world, but likewise God's blessings exist all over the world, wherever we choose to call home. I know I met a kindred spirit today.

6. Kevin, Ania, Philip and Lucia had a lot of fun playing with all the younger brothers and sisters of the boys. They found out that even though none of these children could speak English, it didn't prevent them from becoming friends.

7. After the days' events concluded and the last family left for their journey home, Fr. Johannes came by, just in time to see me make popcorn. He was astounded at the simplicity of it. As  I removed the pot from the stove and began dumping the popcorn in a bowl, a handful of last-minute kernels popped, sending a shower of popcorn into the air. The kids howled and Fr. Johannes chuckled. After sampling some, Fr. Johannes responded with his usual, "Too sweet!"

Boda-Boda Bruises

The Kenya Diaries (vol. 10)

June 22, 2006

Ania's Turn

Yesterday started out great! I took everybody on a walk to the convent where Sister Ploxeda brought me last week. Lucia waved a branch as we sang, "Joy is the flag flown high from the castle of my heart," all the way there. It was so much fun to be there again. We played with their puppy, Rex. At first we couldn't understand why he was afraid of Philip, but then we figured out it was Philip's hat! After that Philip just held onto his hat. Kevin spent a little while trying to make friends with their lawn mower, a little calf that eats their grass all day. We were invited to stay for lunch. The sisters are amazing cooks. Yum!




























Then Daddy took me out on a date to Rongai. I love it when Daddy takes me out, just me and him. First he bought me a Coke. Then he took me to a clothes store down a row of stores that we never went down before. It was a narrow dirt alley. He bought me a green scarf that matches Mama's orange and Lucia's black scarves. Then we went to the post office where Daddy checked his e-mail, and I got to play computer games. After that, we explored some more streets, and I got another scarf. This one is orange and pink and has blue peacock feathers all over it. I love it! I also got a lollipop that when you are done with it, the stick becomes a whistle.

This is when the day got worse. Daddy wanted us to take boda-boda's back to the school. He said it would be fun. We each had our own separate boda-boda. At first it was fun, riding on the back of a bicycle, sitting on a big, soft cushion. But then a herd of cows ran right in front of us, and my driver had to stop very quickly so he wouldn't hit a cow. I lost my balance and my foot went into the spokes of the back wheel. Daddy jumped off his boda-boda and asked his driver to carry me the rest of the way home. He paid his driver 20 shillings when we got to the school.

Mama said this: Andy came in carrying Ania, who was pretty inconsolable. Her foot was scraped and bruised by the boda-boda spokes. Luckily we had an ice pack in our first aid kit, so we put Ania in bed and propped up her foot. When Sister Ploxeda heard about Ania's mishap, she stopped in to cheer up "her friend." I don't think her ankle is sprained, but her feelings are pretty banged up over this whole ordeal. Ugh! Why do these things have to happen?

Mama and Kevin made chipati (Kenyan flat bread) for supper. Yummy! It is my favorite. Just thinking about it now makes me want some more.

Thank you, Jesus, for a mostly fun day yesterday. Amina.