Portaits

This is what our refrigerator looks like.  It is covered with pictures and notepads and cute magnets that we inherited with the fridge.  It also hold lots of notes and pictures, hand drawn by kids and given at break times or after school. 

I love these notes because they always seem to say "I love you" in lots of different ways.  The colors, the non-birthday cakes, the flowers, hearts, penguins and sometimes candy canes all add up to a great message.

My two favorite pictures are portraits of Richard and me, done by a girl in Class 5, and adorned with stickers.  I love Richard's beard and beautiful (hehe) eyelashes.

In my picture, I might look like an 80-year-old woman, but at least I'm a happy 80-year-old woman.

You never know what you might get when a child hands you a piece of folded paper.  But I always love it.

Party Time!

My few months supply of hygenic products that I brought from home is starting to run out and so I'm branching out into the available products.  I bought regular looking, Colgate, normal toothpaste.  Or so I thought.  In reality, it's bright green with white confetti flecks.  Party in a bottle!

In other party news, Kenya voted Yes! for it's new constitution on 4 August.  It went into effect yesterday, Friday, 27 August with a huge national celebration.  It was declared a national holiday and President Kibaki and others made speeches.  We didn't have school, but our resident kids took turns in the library watching their nation's history unfold on live TV.

Please don't tell any Kenyans you know that I put toothepaste and the new constitution in the same blog post.  Thanks.

Signs of the Times

While traveling last weekend to Nairobi and our favorite breakfast spot, Richard and I passed several very illuminating and engaging signs.  Usually when I saw one, I would scream, "Slow Down!  I have to take a picture!" And then Richard would say, "Did you get it?  Because this bus is about to run us over."

So I will start with signs on buses.  Their are two main bus companies in Nairobi: City Hoppa and Paradiso.  There are also privately owned buses with names like "Negotiator" and "Honesty is the Best Policy."  These names are prominently displayed on both windshields and the sides of the bus so there can be no mistake.  In addition, many buses have spoilers.  Yes, I said spoilers.

My favorite road sign of the day is the caution triangle of the silhouette car falling off the cliff created by road construction.  I'm so glad they posted these signs every 20 feet or I might have tried driving off the road thinking it was safe.

As evidenced above, there is a major road construction project on the main highway which is being managed by a Chinese company.  They have kindly hung banners to ease the tension this construction causes.  My favorite banner?  "Any inconvenience is highly regretted."

As we were coming home, we got stuck behind a huge, smelly, dirty smoking lorry.  When the exhaust cleared, we realized the lorry was called the "Exhauster" and you could call them to come and "Exhaust" something (your septic tank, come to find out).  At least there was no false advertising going on!

Miracle Shoppe and Cereals

While on my journey to the doctor's, I was lying down in the back seat, looking out the window, and slightly up.  This gave me a whole different perspective on Kenya, which frankly, was kind of nice.  One shop in particular caught my attention: Miracle Shoppe and Cereals.  The words were in white on a pink background and they flashed by in an instant.

Let's examine this from several angles as I've had quite a bit of time to lay around and think about it.  Maybe:

1.  The Miracle Shoppe came first, and the owner married the shop owner next door who happened to sell cereals, and they called it a match-made-in-heaven and combined their businesses.

2.  It's really a cereal store where miracles happen.  "Did you see that John bought whole meal flour instead of white today?  It's a miracle!"

3.  Contrary to popular belief, people aren't really investing in miracles these days and cereals is a nice safe standby in hard times.

4.  Maybe their slogan is "Eat More Fiber" and when people actually do, it's considered miraculous.

As funny as I find this, it sobers me every time we are out exactly how many places are Miracle Ministries are Miracle Shops or the like.  It's the health and wealth gospel running over Africa that essentially says, "You pay me now and God will get you back ten-fold."  The ironic thing is that is what all the spam emails from Africa essentially say too.  I'll have to think about that.

Anyway, the upside is we are here to tell orphans and widows and others the true Miracle - that God became Man and died and rose for our sins and adopts us into His family.  It's a miracle you can't buy in a store.

Not a Bad Joke

Let me say at the outset that Richard deserves several gold stars for putting up with me and taking such good care of me.  Now we may proceed.

So a Kenyan, a Chinese and an American drove to the doctor's office yesterday.  I was the American, and we were going because I have been sick since Friday with fever and "other things."  I won't bring you into that part of my life, dear reader.  Anyway, the Surgery, as it's called is clear on the opposite side of Nairobi in a quaint place called Karen, about a bumpy hour away.  My doctor is dutch and very nice and knowledgeable and nearly bowled me out of my chair when she said, "Worst-case-scenario: Typhoid.  We can all get it."  Yum.

She sent me to get blood work down the hall and a shot for nausea so I could have some liquids. The head nurse is Kenyan, and she was in a Bible study with our village director for a long time, so we kind of chatted about that while I pretended she wasn't sticking a needle in my arm to suck my blood out.  The problem was, by the time she got to the nausea shot, we had used up our small talk.  She told me about five times that, "The shot is going to sting a little, well, a lot, I mean it really will hurt."  Lovely.  So jokingly I asked her to sing something in Kiswahili to take my mind off of it and I was surprised when she obliged.  How many nurses have done that for you?  And she didn't lie.  It did hurt a lot.

My two friends went to get my antibiotic from the Chemists (we don't have pharmacies) and left me at the Surgery to recover.  While I was in the waiting room, two British ladies were waiting for their friend, and a third lady walked in.  Put on your best high-British accent and read the following out loud:

LOVE-ly CAR-di, dear.

DO you Like it? (Hop around like a little crow and show off your sweater.)

VER-y DASH-ing.  Where-EVER did you GET it?

Anyway, their conversation warmed me up a lot and made me feel better.

Yesterday we called back to get the results of the blood work.  Thankfully, I do NOT have Typhoid.  Yay!  Unfortunately, I do have a bacterial infection of the abdomen.  Boo. So now I'm at home, day two of three of antibiotics and praying I'll be able to teach tomorrow.  We don't have substitutes, so all the other teachers are giving up their planning to cover my classes.  And Class 5 started a new novel today and I really wanted to be there.  I know, I'm a sick puppy.

Quick Tidbit

I have one quick tidbit to share with you before I go to bed.  Richard and I were driving today and realized traffic was merging from two lanes to one.  The reason?  Someone had a flat tire and a small problem: no jack.  No worries!  His two buddies held the car in the air by the wheel well while he changed the tire.  I of course was so astonished that no camera emerged in time.  But I bet you can imagine it.

Play Time

Our children have never surfed the web or texted a friend on their cell.  Some share a TV with their family, but certainly not in their own room.  They don't know what a PSP or a Wii is.  But they have a blast.  Here is a small list of things that our children enjoying playing with.

1. Dirt - This was a cafe where I was generously given a portion of dirt and then another kid accidentally threw some on my shoe.  Do I still have to pay?

2. Hand games - I taught several kids to play Ms. Mary Mac and I think my hands were making the motions in my sleep I had to do it over so much.

3. My watch - A constant source of amazement and joy.  Everybody thinks you have to push a button, but they can't find one, so they push on the sides of the watch instead.  I can't walk anywhere without someone holding my hand and reaching for my watch.

4. Old Tires - These are set in the ground and the students love to run across the tops.  They were delighted when the very professional Mr. Brueck ran across one Sunday afternoon.

5. Something to climb on - This little guy wanted to show me what he could do and then just cheesed about it!

6. Pretending - Aaron is taking a picture of the sun with his camera.  He and I are sure it turned out very well.

The Non-Post

This is a post about a picture I did not take.  That I wish I had taken.  And that I will take next time.

These were the clouds outside our house yesterday morning at dawn.  Before this, everything was rosy, rosy red and even more beautiful.  But I didn't manage to get up on time.  Now that I've let the whole world know I'm a slug in the morning, maybe it will encourage me to get out of bed when my alarm goes off.  Here's hoping.

Duty

Today, I am on duty.  I am the point person for locking and unlocking the gate, for waking up by 6:15 to give the kitchen keys to the cooks (on a Saturday!), for opening the art room for the volunteer who comes and teaches our students every weekend, and for being on call in case something crazy happens.  We always pray that nothing crazy will happen, especially on the weekend.  So far so good!

Richard is on duty tomorrow, so he went to town to today, as in to Nairobi.  He is doing grocery shopping and drinking a mocha and is going to bring me back some flowers.

Since I'm hanging around the village, I want to show you some of the pictures of things around here that I like.

I JOY HEART.  I'm not sure exactly what the message is here.  I love Joy?  I am Joy, love to you?  I have joy in my heart?  Whatever it means, I think I like it.

The border inside the pre-primary school building is made of the students hands and names, each set of hand prints in a different color.  It's so fun to walk through and see how much the children have grown!

I found this little guy sunning his wings while I was walking the trail around the village.  I think he looks like a bat or vampire clinging to a church spire.

These are two of my students from Class 3.  Mary, on the left, has given me enough notes and drawings to decorate the front of my refrigerator.  It doesn't feel like "duty" being here.

Lil' Cricket

Thanks to special request, I am going to introduce you to our car.  His name is Lil' Cricket and he is a 2003 Mitsubishi Pajero io.  There are many things that I like about Lil' Cricket:

1) I get to say "petrol" when I fill up with gasoline.

2) He looks snazzy.

3) He has high ground clearance so if we go over a speed bump (usually there is one every 100-500 feet) we don't scrape.  (Some people call speed bumps "sleeping policemen.")

4) He has four-wheel drive so if we fall into a pot-hole we can climb back out.

5) There is a radio with which we can choose Indian music, American country, American R&B, Kenyan R&B and actual African hits.  I usually listen to the African stuff.

6) He was very gently used before we bought him secondhand from a dealership that imported him from Japan.

7) He has a bonnet (hood) and big boot (trunk).

8) There is this weird side mirror thing on the front left hood that helps you see the edge of the road.

9) He chirps when you press the car alarm button.  Unfortunately, when they installed the alarm, they disconnected the hazards.  Oops.

10) My very, very favorite thing is that when the security system is enacted, the side mirrors fold into the car automatically so you can't steal them or break them easily.  Yay!

The Weirdest Thing

Today, after I finally shooed all the students out of my room after Primary School Choir practice, two of my boys came back around the corner and headed for my room.  They each held the weirdest thing I've ever seen.  Well, today anyway.  I wish I could tell you I know what it is.  The best I can do is tell you it's a flower/fruit thingie and I haven't developed a rash yet from holding it.

The outside is knobby and leathery.  It reminds of iguana skin except it's bright, bright orange.  And the inside is sticky and bright orange with bright, bright red seed thingies stuck to the sides.  Not gracefully either.  It looks like someone spilled a bag of wet and sticky movie theatre candy inside.

It could easily be fruit.  But then why does the fruit look like it has opened in petal formation?  I have no idea.  But I do know I'm glad my students decided to share it with me!

Our Local Slum

This is an alley in the local slum.  It's the front "yard" for houses that face in on both the left and right.

Chickens for sale - not for meat - for eggs.

Cutie-patootie.

Fish cleaned to be sold in the market later.  I use cleaned loosely.

A doorway to an apartment in the long alley.  It's probably one room big.

Please take picha!  Please take picha!

I love that even in the midst of this poverty, this is the only graffiti I saw.

Ugali

No, I'm not calling you names.  Ugali (oo-GAH-lee) is the traditional dish of Western Kenya, and I've been told by someone from Western Kenya that if you don't eat Ugali at least every few days, you shrivel up from want. Many people hate Ugali.  We love it.

We asked Jane, who helps at our house, to make us this staple meal.  Even by Kenyan standards she makes great Ugali.

The side dishes and sauces that go with Ugali are what make it good.  A main one is skumawiki - cooked Kale and spinach.

Many people in the upcountry can't afford side dishes and so they eat Ugali plain.  This would be equivalent to eating grits or polenta without seasoning or sauce or anything for three meals a day, seven days a week.  Ugghhh!

But all together, combined with the fun of eating with your hands, Ugali is a yummy meal.

Bird's Eye View

I promised my dad I would take a video of driving in Kenya.  This takes you through a bit of our local village, Mwiki, and shows you some examples of pit holes in the road, sometimes the size of small countries, and why the road should have a shoulder.  If you watch carefully, you'll notice at one point we actually drive off the road because the dirt on the side is better than the road itself.  Also, please note that while it appears to the American eye like I'm driving and videotaping, we actually are driving on the left side of the road with our right-hand drive car, which we have named Lil' Cricket.  Our goal  for later in life when we have nothing better to do is make a million creating a video game of driving in Kenya.  And if somebody else makes it first, I'll know you told them my idea.

Move over Martha Stewart

I receive Living magazine all the way over here in Kenya.  Thankfully, they pay shipping because it cost my mother $8.94 to send me a magazine through the mail.  Anyway, Mrs. Stewart had a huge article about the virtues of succulents and her large collection.  She could have taken all the photos on my front veranda.

This plant makes me laugh because the underside of the leaves are striped like a zebra and someone planted it in a zebra container.

I like feeling these leaves when no one is around to think I've gone mad.

This plant is slowly overtaking the porch.  This stem is probably four feet long.

These plants are everywhere along the wall surrounding the compound.  If I was trying to jump the wall, I certainly would not want to land on these spikes.  I also love how you can see the impression of each new leaf on the old leaf from which it unfurled.

This last plant sits on a table in my living room.  I think one day I will paint a room this color.

I hope you enjoyed our garden tour of the day!  Except a real garden tour would tell you the names of plants and I don't know any.  I guess Martha Stewart can have her job back.

School Days

I know many of you are getting ready to go back to school.  I don't have that issue because I've been teaching in school straight through your summer!  Kenya is on a year-round schedule with 10-11 weeks of school followed by 2-3 weeks off throughout the year.  And I actually really like it.

We start each morning with an assembly at the flag pole.  The students line up by class with their teachers and we sing the Kenyan National Anthem alternating between English and Kiswahili each morning.  I'm getting better at the Kiswahili, but I'm certainly not ready to do a solo.  We then have announcements, devotion and prayer and then we are off to class.

Everyday, I teach four periods of English, two each (reading and writing) to Class 5 and Class 6.  I've learned an awful lot of grammar since I've been here. After lunch I teach three classes of general music so that I see Classes 1-6 twice a week and 7-9 once a week.  As of this week, I also teach Class 8 a writing composition class once a week. 

The students all wear uniforms that are provided for them.  All schools in Kenya, whether public or private, use uniforms.  It's a practice leftover from the British, much like roundabouts.

The boys wear navy blue trousers, a white button down and a burgundy striped tie.  The girls wear a gray jumper with a white button down.  Both boys and girls wear black leather shoes and burgundy wool sweaters.

The students sit two to a desk.  Damaris (below) is the Assistant Prefect for class 5, and gets to wear a badge to match her station.  Most of us thought the badge read "Perfect" and wondered what was going on until we were trained.  Oops.

I know I'm not supposed to have favorites, but Class 5 asked me to continue reading a story to them instead of going to recess today.  I had to pinch myself to make sure I wasn't dreaming.

Smile on!

When Clocks Talk

This is the second half of my Widows' Program tour.  We were taken to this building where a group of elderly women were weaving beautiful baskets.  By "building" I mean corrugated metal pieced together and painted to match.  The people inside however were warm and friendly and glad to have something to do instead of sit alone all day in a slum.

When we arrived, the women sang a song of welcome and invited us to sit with them.

Their handiwork is amazing, but the love of Jesus shining out is glorious.

I don't know if I'm more surprised or humbled by it, but on the back wall the crooked picture/clock reads, "May your world always be a beautiful place."  I thought about that clock for the rest of the day.