Today marks the group’s 2nd full week in Kenya. Our routine is starting to settle in and we are functioning on all cylinders. We again spent last Sunday at church in Kibera. I will never get used to the smell and the unimaginable poverty that these people live in. The group spent Monday and Tuesday working on the land this week. The Kenyan workers are fascinated by American culture. I brought my ipod out to the work site to play music for everyone while we worked after lunch on Tuesday. They kept asking me “do you like Snoop Dogg? Do you know 50 cent? What does swagger mean?” Their pace of work and the American pace of work are completely different. Kenyans have a very relational culture and it can be seen while we are working on the construction site for the new girls’ home. They would rather ask questions about America and stories about our lives instead of getting as much done as possible. Wednesday we went back to Kibera to work in the school. I received lessons to teach last week, so I am now getting to teach the children English, science, and social studies. The majority of the children that I’m teaching are in the 11-13 age range.
Happy Story: Last week there was an 8-year-old boy in Kibera who was tired of being beaten by his stepmother. He decided to run away from his home and go to where we (the interns) are staying. We are living on a compound in a town called Kisaryian. There’s about 20 miles that separate our compound from Kibera. He came within 3 miles and was intercepted by the Kenyan police. Pastor Inbumi tried to get custody of the child while we were with him in his van. We drove by the child center and Wilkens sprinted towards the van to come see us. Inbumi was forced to tell the child that he was not able to get custody and he would have to spend the night in the children’s’ home. Wilkens began to weep right in front of us. I was broken at this point. Our team spent the next few days praying for Wilkens. On Monday afternoon, Pastor Inbumi let us know that Wilken’s parents released their custody rights and Inbumi and Mrs. Martha are now the legal guardians of Wilkens. His life will forever be changed. It was amazing to see how God was working through this entire story and to see an answered prayer. Jehovah Jireh!
I still fall asleep just about every night to the sound of hyenas. We’ve seen a herd of Zebras twice this week. Also, if you’re ever in Nairobi at a Java House Café, order a mango smoothie.
Our Compound:
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